Humble Hayes happy to sign off on a high note

JOHN HAYES admitted the words of Roy Keane a few years back were very much in his mind as he contemplated last night’s farewell appearance for Munster at Thomond Park last night.

“Roy came in to chat to us and told us that nobody was bigger than the team, that you are only here for a while and that you should enjoy it while you can,” he said. “He pointed out that he had seen great players come and go, that you had to give it everything you could, always appreciating that the end of your career would come some day. Even then he could see that his time was coming.”

Hayes, who made his 217th appearance in a Munster jersey a winning one as his side saw off Connacht by 24-9, was delighted at the outcome and paid particular tribute to the several young players being gradually fed into the system.

“I’ve been in this team now since 1997 and only Wally (David Wallace) and Rog (Ronan O’Gara) are still there. It’s been a great 14 years or so and tonight was a tremendous way to wind it up. I hadn’t expected the reception I got, the way the crowd cheered and so on, but I was very conscious that we had to win the game first and foremost. It would have been very much a damp squib had we lost.”

The Bull never captained Munster or indeed any team throughout his magnificent career. But he admitted to getting a great kick out of leading the team out last night, not least when he returned to the pitch at the end to have a picture taken with his wife Fiona and daughters Sally and Roisin.

“I sensed the others weren’t behind me as we went out, that they were leaving me on their own, and to hear the crowd left me with a few goose bumps,” he acknowledged.

Hayes knows it won’t be easy to adjust to being his own boss now that he can concentrate on his farm in Cappamore.

“Yeah, it was funny how quickly Christmas passed, there was so much happening in the lead-up to the game,” he said. “Of course, I’m going to miss it an awful lot. You find out an awful lot about yourself in a team environment, how you react to wins and to defeats. But when you leave here, there are other challenges to face and you can’t do it in a comfort zone.”