Shattered and drained Ciarán Kilkenny still on Cloud Nine

By Michael Moynihan

The enormity of the achievement hadn’t yet sunk in when Ciarán Kilkenny emerged from the Dublin dressing-room.

He and his teammates had just collected a fourth All-Ireland senior title in a row but the Dublin playmaker was still dealing with the physical effects of a draining game.

“Absolutely shattered from the emotions of the week leading into the game and then the game itself,” said Kilkenny.

“They (Tyrone) really had a massive purple patch in the game in the second half and brought it back to four points. To finish the way we did was really satisfying. The adrenaline is still pumping, you’re enjoying it but you’re just shattered.”

The Castleknock man stressed the strength of the bond between the All-Ireland champions: “Being in the dressing room there is special. When you can look each other in the eyes, everyone who is involved in the team, their kids, whoever.

It’s just a unique, special feeling. And when you’re in that room together, it’s just incredible.

The experienced forward admitted to nerves a long way out from the game, but pointed out that the routine kicks in the closer he gets to the big day itself.

“The further out from the game, the more nervous I am. Once it gets closer, you find your rhythm and you get into game mode. And I find that when I get to Croke Park I’m just relaxed and at ease because the guys are so calm. You just go into routine then, it’s incredible to be honest.”

They needed to be calm, with the searing start that Tyrone enjoyed. The northerners were five points to one up but Kilkenny said his teammates’ composure was critical when the game was in the melting pot.

“We just stayed calm. And we really pushed up on their kickouts and won a few of them and that led to a few scores and the penalty.

“We actually had a very good second quarter. The main thing with the guys is that we kept calm, we looked around at each other, kept together and drove it on to finish really well into half-time. In those games, you’re just in the heat of the battle and you have to respond.

Even when they went four points up, our guys went really hard after the kickouts and won them and turned it around, that was really the difference in the game.

Given the level of experience in the Dublin ranks, it’s no surprise Kilkenny mentions their ability to be patient — he himself spent the early part of the game looking to get his hands on the ball but he never became frustrated with his lack of involvement.

“You just have to be patient. That’s what happens in the game. You just have to recognise that you night not get on the ball a lot so you just have to be smart and patient when you do. You have to go after the breaking ball and get on it that way if you have to. Everyone was getting tagged really hard so you have to look at different strategies for getting on the ball.”

Kilkenny, who was named at full-forward but spent most of the game out in the half-forward line, finished with three points, but admitted to being “completely off my feet after it. I’m absolutely drained here now.

“I’m just on cloud nine, I can’t really put a sentence together. I’m just ecstatic about the victory and how special it feels. That’s really it.”

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