‘She captured the spirit of the GAA with the picture’

By James O’Connor

A photograph of a father celebrating with this two sons captured not just the emotion of Limerick’s victory on Sunday — but also the very essence of what makes the GAA so special.

The image of Cillian and Rian Moloney clinching dad, Darragh, has become a viral hit but the amazing backstory makes this image all the more amazing.

“It’s the meaning behind the picture that makes it fantastic,” Darragh explained yesterday.

“A Galway supporter, in the depths of despair, had the kindness to pull out the camera and capture a moment of pure joy in our lives. She captured the spirit of the GAA with the picture.”

“It’s a shocking picture of me, as everyone keeps saying, I was like a baby, but it just meant so much. Cillian said to my wife Michelle after the game that it’s the first time they had seen dad cry. I’d say they were actually a bit worried! But it was incredible.

“The boys were just as animated as I was, they’ve been at most of the matches but since the Cork game they haven’t taken off their Limerick jerseys.”.

“I was there in ‘94 and ‘96, and all the Limerick supporters thought it was gone again on Sunday when Galway came back. If we had coasted over the finish line, the emotion wouldn’t have come out as quickly .... it’s just we had gotten so close and we thought the whole thing was lost.”

The Knockaderry man continued: “I’ve said it to a couple of people that even some of this team don’t know the suffering and the years of heartache Limerick have been through, so I suppose the lads didn’t fully understand what was achieved.

“My father brought me when Limerick won an All-Ireland minor in 1984, I was nine. I didn’t care what it cost me to take my own two boys to see the match because if it takes another 45 years for Limerick to win the All-Ireland they’ll be grown men before they see it again.”

“When the final whistle went, four or five Galway supporters came over hugging me, they were the most fantastic supporters to be with.”

But one of those supporters deserves special praise. Léan Bán Breathnach — daughter of legendary broadcaster Seán — had the wherewithal to photograph the moment of unparalleled joy for fans of a county who have endured unlimited heartache.

She explained: “Darragh told me when I went to show him the picture that his name was Liam, but I’m pretty sure that’s because he was finally looking at the Liam MacCarthy, he was in hysterics. A couple of hours later, we sorted it out and he got onto me and was so thankful I had taken the photo.

“As a Galway fan, the emotions this time last year were crazy when we won the final. I was going to games since I was a baby, and obviously we had the Galway footballers in ‘98 and ‘01, but we’re a hurling family, so last year was amazing.

“So I could see in Darragh and his kids what we felt last year. And I just had to get the picture.”