AND it’s straight I will repair to the Curragh of Kildare, for it’s there I’ll find tidings of my youth.”

Quite.

And now it can be revealed: when I was a lad and was routinely asked what I wanted to be when I grew up, I would always reply with conviction: “a horse.”

But not just any old horse. Understand that we’re talking about a time when Ireland was somewhat lacking in world-famous sports stars and indeed internationally renowned icons of any kind. It was all well and good, for example, to be a young Shamrock Rovers nut but even the most optimistic among the Milltown regulars had to accept that, a couple of heroic European excursions notwithstanding, the Hoops were unlikely to beat Celtic or Manchester United to the European crown. Similarly, with Jack Charlton still busy wiping the Wembley ‘66 mud from his boots, the idea that Ireland might ever contest World Cup or European Championship finals was the stuff of sheer fantasy football.