Conor McCrickard inspiring St Finbarr's new fans to make eight-hour round trip

McCrickard, who played for Down in this year’s Ulster SFC, finished the afternoon as top-scorer from play with 2-1 for St Finbarr's against Éire Óg Ennis

Conor McCrickard of St Finbarr’s celebrates after scoring a point during their AIB Munster Club SFC semi-final win over Éire Óg Ennis at Páirc Uí Rinn. McCrickard has been a revelation since joining up with the Cork champions from his home club Liatroim Fontenoys. Picture: Eóin Noonan/Sportsfile

Conor McCrickard’s two-goal contribution in Sunday’s Munster semi-final win brought the curtain down on a fairytale first year for the Down native with his adopted club St Finbarr’s.

Having moved from one end of the country to the other for the purposes of his university work placement at the Styrker facility in Carrigtwohill in East Cork, the 22-year-old had initially been making the eight-hour round-trip back up the road to train with his home club Liatroim Fontenoys.

The travelling, though, as McCrickard said himself, was both “brutal” and unsustainable.

Down camogie player Sorcha McCartan, another from the Mourne County based in Cork, had already transferred her club allegiances to the Barrs for the 2021 season and it was she who proved the conduit between McCrickard and the Togher-based outfit.

Team captain Ian Maguire and senior football selector Ian Keeler were subsequently in touch, with McCrickard eventually deciding to “give it a rattle” with the Cork city club.

His championship debut in blue came in the Barrs’ second group game against Ilen Rovers, the newcomer kicking four points from play from left corner-forward. And in every championship game, thereafter was he again on the mark, including 1-2 in the county semi-final penalty shootout win over Castlehaven.

His exploits in front of goal reached new heights during Sunday’s Munster semi-final against Éire Óg Ennis, McCrickard, who played for Down in this year’s Ulster SFC, finishing the afternoon as top-scorer from play with 2-1.

It was the perfect end to the perfect year in blue, although their season is far from over as the Barrs have a Munster final date with Austin Stacks to look forward to in mid-January.

“I suppose at the start of the year this wasn’t something I predicted was going to happen, that I was going to find myself down playing in the Cork championship. So I’m just happy to be part of this team and contributing any way possible. Thankfully, it’s worked out to date,” said McCrickard following the 2-14 to 0-12 victory over the Clare champions.

“The lads are sound, I get on well with every single one of them. I’m happy that I’ve come in and they’ve taken to me so well, especially being an outsider. It’s obviously not my home club, but I’m very happy playing with them.”

Speaking of home, a host of family and friends who made the four-hour journey down the road to be present in Páirc Uí Rinn for the Barrs’ provincial opener waited patiently to offer their congratulations to Conor as he shot the breeze with reporters following the final whistle.

“They’re all standing over there,” replied McCrickard when asked if the Barrs had acquired a new band of Down-based supporters.

“For the Cork final, I think there were 20 to 25 of them down. So it means a lot to me that they’ve taken the time to be here, it’s a four-hour journey down the road, and I’ll be forever grateful for that.”

His two first-half goals — both the result of perfectly weighted passes from out the field — meant theirs was a worthwhile trip.

“I was sort of thinking at the house before the match that these ones have come down the road and so let’s put on a show for them.

“It’s the work that the boys do out the field, particularly for the second goal, because it was on a plate for me, so I’m happy enough.

“For the first goal, a lot of people would be expecting Steven [Sherlock] to just put that free over, but he sort of gave me the nod and I was lucky to get through and finish it.”

With his Ulster University biomedical engineering degree placement at Stryker concluding next September, it remains to be seen if McCrickard will be part of the Barrs set-up for the 2022 club season.

That is a conversation, though, for another day. Right now, the focus is very much on the aforementioned provincial decider against Stacks and extending this memorable run with his adopted club.

“We’ve come this far, we don’t want to leave it behind us now,” he said.

“This was the aim at the start of the year to get to a Munster final and here we are.”