All-Ireland, Connacht championship, and minor medals decorate his walls, but Gort stalwart Ollie Fahy would gladly hand them all back for a county final win.
The man well known as the spiritual leader of the south Galway club after 16 years in the senior side has the chance to complete the final chapter on a career for which the word distinguished appears too fickle a term.
When he plays well, Gort plays well, and if there was ever a time to shine and leap that last hurdle, then Sunday is it.
“I would give everything back for this medal,” the 32-year-old full-forward said.
“It is great for the club. This is what every player plays for.”
It is 25 years since Gort last tasted county final success and a generation has been and gone in that period.
But standing in their way of success is an Everest – a mountain that has stood at such dizzying heights in the last few years that the oxygen has been thin on the ground for anyone else attempting a last gasp.
Portumna may only be a recent phenomenon in Galway hurling, but they have become a force of nature. Sunday will be the sixth consecutive county final they have taken part in and also an enticing chance to climb the next rung on the ladder to repeat All Ireland crowns.
So the pieces are in place – in one corner stands the reigning champions, desperate to continue an odyssey of success. In the other are the rank underdogs, thirsty for a reward that has now been a quarter of a century coming.
The head and the heart of any objective punter would turn towards Portumna. It is hard to go past a team with the country’s most potent underage weapon in its ranks in Joe Canning, who is the key cog in its superior scoring power. There has been some perception that the Portumna fullback line is the side’s weakness, despite the inclusion of Ollie Canning, but trying to locate a major competitive fixture in which they have been taken apart is nigh on impossible.
Their road to Pearse Stadium has been solid without setting the world alight, although many would construe this as doing what needed to be done at the time, rather than trying to overextend on the back of such a hectic year. Regardless they still qualified for the knockout stages without dropping a point in their four games when they overcame Sarsfields, Turloughmore, Kiltormer, and Carnmore.
It could have gone either way against Carnmore and Turloughmore, while a preliminary quarter-final against Castlegar was also not entirely comprehensive. However, their biggest scare came against Clarenbridge in the quarter final where, were it not for the concession of two goals, the champions could have been in serious trouble.
It was back to business in the semi-final though against city side Liam Mellows in a performance which displayed their renowned cohesion.
Experience promises to be one of their biggest weapons on Sunday, Ollie Canning confirming the nucleus from last season’s pack were almost entirely in place for the final. One confirmed absentee is Canning’s older brother Dave, whose broken thumb is currently pinned in two places, while Niall Hayes’s injury fate will be decided closer to game day.
“It will be similar to the team that played last year, with one or two changes through injury, but the core of the team will be the same,” Canning said.
“Obviously we hope that experience will stand to us on the day.
“We’re looking forward to it. It’s been a long year. It was our plan at the start of the year to get back in the final. We’ve had a couple of really tough games in the last couple of weeks so it hasn’t been easy.
“In our preparation we’ve just concentrated on our side of the draw, we didn’t get much of a chance to look at the other side. But we’re not surprised to see Gort there at all. We set out at the start of the year to give ourselves a chance of retaining the trophy and obviously it’s going to be a challenge.
“Gort, this is their first time in the final for a number of years and they obviously will be using that as motivation.”
Indeed the 25-year anniversary of Gort’s last prior success will become a focal point of Sunday’s proceedings with that team being honoured during half-time. The handing over of the generational baton is well and truly apparent for the club with numerous members of the victorious 1983 team watching their sons and nephews in action.
That final is still a vague memory for the 32-year-old Fahy and his family connections are also evident with father Paddy a selector in that team, while Slyvie Og, Tadgh Linnane, Niall Linnane, Aidan Harte, Brian Regan and Greg Lally also had relatives in the side.
Gort’s ability to graft out a win has become synonymous recently as evidenced by the last time these clubs met in championship three years ago when Portumna won by four points in a uncompromising semi-final in Loughrea. This is a fitter, better prepared Gort side. But remains to be seen how they adapt to the wide open spaces of Pearse Stadium as opposed to the tight confines of Loughrea.
Youth is the other factor which could be seen as their detriment with a huge number of the team still under 21. One of these Regan, who was a surprising absence from the starting 15 of this year’s county under 21 side, has the ominous task of marking effervescent Joe Canning, while another key match-up will involve whether Niall Linnane can make an impact on Ollie Canning.
The Gort side that overcame Loughrea in their semi-final had six under 21s on the team all of whom are underage for the grade again next year. The entire half back line is under 21, while Mark McMahon who had a solid performance that day is also underage. However, McMahon’s participation in the final is in serious doubt after an accident while working in Gort mart last week. He sustained a serious facial injury and could be out for the foreseeable future. Mid fielder Aidan Harte who was a member of Ger Loughnanes county squad this year is also under 21 while corner forward Richie Cummins is still a minor.
“It’s going to be tough, but we’re in with a chance.” Fahy said
