Limerick's late bloomer David Reidy not putting pressure on himself

The recently turned 30-year-old was initially surplus to John Kiely’s requirements before a spell with Joe Quaid’s Kildare in 2017

Tue, 18 Jul, 2023 - 00:15

John Fogarty

Every team has their stories of Johnny-come-latelys and Limerick are no different.

Having been a senior footballer before becoming a hurler, Gearóid Hegarty was one. It was Dan Morrissey’s fifth season before he cemented a starting place. Will O’Donoghue made his championship debut at the age of 24.

Personal perseverance characterises this All-Ireland winning group and no more so than in David Reidy, the recently turned 30-year-old who was initially surplus to John Kiely’s requirements before a spell with Joe Quaid’s Kildare in 2017 when he scored 2-41 in Division 2A and 24 points in two Christy Ring Cup games caught the Limerick manager’s eye.

“It was a brilliant experience,” he recalls of his time in Kildare. “I think I grew or matured from it. I learned a lot of things. The training, the facilities, the way we were looked after, I couldn’t speak highly enough of it.

“John brought me back then in October. It was around the time of the boxing event. Leading up to 2018. Reflecting on it, I don’t think I’d be back in here if I didn’t play with Kildare. That’s my own personal opinion. I’m grateful and delighted that I said yes. I really enjoyed it.”

A three-round fight with Aaron Gillane was how he reacquainted himself with the group – “I came out with a win,” he smiles. “I put him down once. There was only one knockdown in the whole event. Aaron Gillane was down. He said it was a slip but it wasn’t.”

Since then, Reidy has had to be patient. Of the 26 championship appearances he has made across the last six seasons, just four of them have been starts, including the last two games. Does he find himself now looking over his shoulder or to the sideline?

“No, I wouldn't think like that. I think if you start thinking like that you're in the wrong way because you'd be looking out to the sideline if you miss the first ball. Mistakes are going to happen in matches and that's it.

“To be honest with you, there's more pressure on yourself when you're a sub coming on because you feel like you have to... you've only 10 minutes, 15 minutes, you have to make an impact.

“Whereas starting, you're going with the flow of the game for the whole thing. I'm lucky enough with my own mentality, I don't really put too much pressure on myself. I'm more nervous now speaking to ye than I was going out (v Galway).

“I just take it as it comes and put your best foot forward, try your hardest. Like you've trained well, you're physically fit, you've played this game since you were a young fella, just go out and try and express yourself as best you can.”

Recalling last year’s narrow semi-final win over Galway, Hegarty thanked his buddy Reidy for his storming display off the bench, scoring three points having been introduced in the 61st minute.

And then potential disaster. The Friday before the All-Ireland final, Reidy was rising for a high ball in training, landed with his studs getting caught in the sod and his ankle twisted.

“I strapped it up and adrenaline got me through,” he said of his second half appearance two days later. “I was stressed enough – didn’t move off the couch all day Saturday. Had an ice machine strapped up to the ankle for the day. Was nervous enough.”

Explaining why he picked Reidy and Graeme Mulcahy in last month’s Munster final, Kiely said he couldn’t but after their level of performance in sessions, What the manager had been saying to them about the team being open-ended, he backed it up with action as Reidy pulled through an iffy first half to set up a Gillane goal and post three points.

“It just shows that if you are performing you will get picked. It was a nice shot in the arm of confidence for me, for Graeme, for all on the panel to see that you will get rewarded if you’re performing.”

The Dromin-Athlacca man is happy to report the ice-cream van still comes to training as it will do this Friday.

“It’s a nice little touch. A reward for the tough couple of weeks training. It’s a thing we do before championship matches.”

Before that, he might take himself to the homestead from his Castletroy base and walk in the Morningstar river close to horse trainer Enda Bolger’s stables in Howardstown. Maybe wander on the family farm too.

“It’s nice to go out for an hour or two, leave the phone inside and switch off. Don’t hear from anyone, go up the fields.”

He'll hear plenty around a hallowed one on Sunday.