Crowley: I never doubted the resolve of this ‘super bunch’

“DREAMS do come true after all”, cheered an elated Bandon selector, Pádraig Crowley, after his side took the Cork IHC title in convincing fashion at Pairc Uí Chaoimh yesterday.

“We lost the 2007 final to Fr. O’Neill’s in dramatic fashion and that took a while to recover from, but after losing the 2008 final as well, people began to question our ability to win a county. However, I never had doubts about these lads. They are a super bunch and I knew all week that we were ready for this one. We looked a bit nervous early on but once we got going, there was never any doubt in my mind about the outcome.

“Not for the first time this season our defence were magnificent. If you check on the stats, they conceded very little all year and again today the restricted a highly rated Fr.O’Neill’s attack to just seven points. It speaks volumes for their efforts and commitment.

“We were the best hurling team out there today by a country mile, and once the scores began to come, it was a bit too easy in the finish, but we’ll take after what we’ve been through.

“This victory will do wonders for hurling in the club. We have a very good under age structure with a lot of new families joining in. Bandon needs to be playing in the higher grade, and already I can’t wait for next season to come around.”

Bandon captain Eoghan O’Donovan was a member of the two losing teams, and agreed there was a bit of tension early in the game from his side’s point of view.

“I knew we had the spirit and heart to turn it around and to be fair that’s what won it for us. We struck a great patch in the second quarter to lead by six points at half time, but Fr. O’Neill’s pulled down as huge lead in their game against Milford and we had to stick to the game plan.

“Jason’s (McCarthy) goal so soon after the restart was the perfect tonic and it was great to be able to enjoy the closing minutes.”

Long serving Kieran Hurley said the victory means absolutely everything to the lads and the club and to the Bandon area in general.

“The way things are going with the economy any distraction in welcome.

There was never any doubt in mind that we were going to win. They say you have to lose a county to win one, well we lost two, and so it would be fair to say we deserve this one.

“Teddy McCarthy coming this year as coach instilled a toughness in us that was crucial, and coupled with that our excellent hurling, all contributed to this great day for the Bandon club.”