Graciousness in defeat from Kilkenny, Glenn Ryan’s tirade and a Dublin ‘Jimmy’ winning matches.
The Cats are in a funk not seen for over a decade but you know what they say; form is temporary, class is permanent.
A letter in today’s Irish Times reveals that even after what must have been a crushing defeat to Dublin on Saturday, Tommy Walsh was a true gentleman.
Paddy Monahan from Dublin says: There, in the middle of the field, some 10 minutes after the final whistle, stood Tommy Walsh of Kilkenny – still glistening with sweat in the warm evening sun, his jersey marked with splashes of blood; possibly his own, possibly not. He was surrounded by children decked both in sky blue and black and amber. He signed every single jersey and match programme. He posed for every single photograph. This man is not accustomed to the bitter of taste of defeat. This living legend who has garnered a record nine all-star awards in a row and won six all-Ireland titles and will surely see more of both, has never before been humbled at such an early stage of the championship. And yet, there he stood, as I watched in awe for a further 10 minutes, putting his arm around every youngster that was ushered before him by an eager parent and patiently waiting as yet another camera phone was pointed at him by an outstretched arm.
No more needs to be said. Top man.
No just deserters for Glenn Ryan
A hard man in his playing days, Longford boss Glenn Ryan still possesses a steely core it seems. In yesterday’s Irish Examiner Ryan had a pop at players fleeing panels for the US after defeat.
“I wouldn’t put these lads up on a pedestal, but none of these fellas have f*****d off [unlike some players from] the Laoises, the Galways and Armaghs, teams that have greater, loftier ambitions and greater traditions than we have. These fellas stuck around.”
“It wasn’t easy but they stuck around,” he went on. “They didn’t go away. They didn’t go off to America looking for the sugar daddy or whatever is over there and if we hadn’t won it would have been a travesty for those fellas.”
Tell us how you really feel Glenn.
Jimmy (Gavin) winning matches
It didn’t take long for Dublin fans to borrow the Donegal idea from last year. Question is how do Donegal folk feel about their iconic message being nicked? Well you know what they say, imitation is the sincerest form of flattery.
Are you serious…? #dubs #GAA #stolen #belongsToDonegal pic.twitter.com/0tIyWNw3dD
— sorcha little (@sorchadorka) July 2, 2013
