Eoin Cadogan: Brutal or brilliant - this is what All-Ireland final weekend is like

To whoever loses, in advance, you have sympathies. And for all who get on that team bus, my respect, whether you’re a thirty-something with the head down or a mad young buck jumping off sea rocks that morning.

Limerick manager John Kiely with Eoin Cadogan of Cork after the 2021 All-Ireland SHC final. Photo by Ray McManus/Sportsfile

If you’ve ever played in an All-Ireland final you come to realise, especially when you return to being a spectator in the stand, that while only one team leaves with medals, the occasion guarantees everyone is left with memories.

Of how you felt in the lead up. The match itself. The aftermath. Some will stay with you forever.