Darragh O'Donovan: 'Everyone said we were dead and buried'

DELIGHTED: Darragh O'Donovan of Limerick celebrates after the Munster SHC final win over Clare at TUS Gaelic Grounds in Limerick. Pic: Daire Brennan/Sportsfile

Reports of Limerick’s demise have been proven premature but Darragh O’Donovan always felt the team’s doomsayers were exaggerating.

From initially being subjects of “a softening-up exercise” at the outset of the championship, O’Donovan felt a closer inspection of Limerick’s performances would have demonstrated they weren’t as bad as they were being made out to be.

“Sure, everyone said we were gone like, everyone said we were done and buried,” remarked the midfielder. “There was a lot of things said about us, but we were only focusing on ourselves, on this group. In the game against Clare, we had 12 wides in the second half. We could have easily converted all of those scores and won in the end by six or seven points.

“So you know perception is reality for some people. The media just puts out a narrative and then everyone believes it because people can’t make up their own minds, really.” 

Playing a Munster final at home, a third for the likes of Nickie Quaid and Declan Hannon and a second for most of the panel, was a privilege for Limerick but it wasn’t a necessity, O’Donovan maintained.

“We train here every night, we know how good it is to come in here and play. We’d have played it anywhere. We’d have played it above in the Falls Road in Belfast. We didn’t care where we played, know what I mean?

The Doon man continued: “We spoke a lot about memories during the week, John (Kiely) spoke about it here Friday night. We’re all playing here since you know we were in Mackey Cup or primary game or whatever it may have been. So, we’ve just made another good memory for the memory bank now.” 

As for Clare wanting to play them on their own sod? 

“We were a lot fresher today,” he said of their April defeat to The Banner here. “And you know anyone who wants to come in here and play us… fair enough. You know 2019 we won it in here. The lads obviously won it in 2013 here so it’s nice to win it again in 2023.” 

The significance of the five-in-a-row washed over O’Donovan. 

“The first one is just as good as the fifth one. I don’t look back at medals or anything like that. I’ll look back at them in 10 or 15 years’ time.

“I don’t even know where any of the medals are, my mother’s looking after them. Just added another one to the collection there today. That’s what it’s all about. It’s all about success.” 

It mightn’t have been as sweltering as it was for the 2021 Munster final in Páirc Uí Chaoimh but O’Donovan illustrated how difficult the conditions were and felt more consideration should have been given to the players. 

“I was coming in there at half-time wondering how will I get out again for the second-half. It was hot, like.

“I don’t know why there isn’t a water break. We’re amateur athletes. In the FA Cup final last weekend, there was a water-break. Why wasn’t there one today? We’re amateur players going back to work tomorrow morning.

“Someone gets dehydrated there, someone collapses… who’s going to be held accountable then? I would say there might be a need to look at a water break there. It doesn’t have to be a situation where you have people talking about doing tactics. Backs go to one side, forwards go to one side, a water-break for one minute in each half, I think it would be very sensible.”