*John Joe Costelloe at his home in Kildysart. Photograph: John Mangan.
KILDYSART’s John Joe Costelloe has been following Clare hurling teams since 1974 and is regarded as one of the most genuine GAA supporters in the county.
Sunday morning’s scheduled departure time is 08:30 as the Costelloe clan prepare to embark for Croke Park, a journey they would have preferred to be making more often but one they are grateful to be undertaking on All-Ireland final day. “We’ve followed great teams in the 1970s getting to the Munster finals but coming up against a fantastic Cork team,” John Joe recalled this week.
“Then in 1995 Ger Loughnane inspired the whole country when we won the All-Ireland for the first time in 81 years, we probably should have won more around that time, we were robbed in 1996 with the last minute point from Ciaran Carey, we came back in 1997 to win the All-Ireland again, we were on our way in 1998 until Jimmy Cooney Lord rest him blew the game up three minutes early and we lost to Offaly in the replay. Jamesie (O’Connor) broke his hand in 1999 and he was a huge loss, we had a free against Cork in the Munster final but David Forde missed it, Cork went up the field and scored, they ended up winning the All-Ireland that year,” he added.
Costelloe added, “2013 was a memorable year and a great win with Davy Fitzgerald and Paul Kinnerk, please God we will be celebrating again in Croke Park”.
Noted for decking out his home in saffron and blue and for writing poems in advance of championship encounters, for the All-Ireland final John-Joe has six carboard cut-outs in Kildysart. Conor Cleary, John Conlon, David Fitzgerald, Tony Kelly, Shane O’Donnell and Peter Duggan are the selected six and according to John Joe, “they are six of the best in the country, they’d be on any county team. Donal Óg Cusack said to Joanne Cantwell on RTÉ that he never got to see Christy Ring hurl in his lifetime but that Tony Kelly is one of the best hurlers he has seen and that is true”.
For Sunday, he is predicting a “classic final” but noted that Cork are “very confident” heading into the game. “I’d say they think they have won but there is no game like a game of hurling, we’ve had great players down through the years from places like Sixmilebridge and Newmarket-on-Fergus, places where the only game is hurling”.
A constant at all championship games for Clare this year, John Joe has been struck by the level of support for Brian Lohan’s side. “The Clare supporters are the best in the game, we lost three Munster finals and we’re still coming back, we outnumbered Kilkenny three to one the last day, we’re great supporters and we deserve an All-Ireland. They are the greatest supporters I’ve seen, I hope Clare do it for the supporters, they have let us down in a few Munster finals and I know it wasn’t their fault, we have the best supporters, Tony Kelly will lift the Liam McCarthy in the Hogan Stand, Shane O’Donnell win be the Hurler of the Year and Clare will get nine All Stars and more than our neighbours”.
Clare must learn from past mistakes, he felt. “We threw away the Munster final last year, you have to take your chances, you can’t say people played poorly, you play as good as your let and it is great to see lads back, Aron Shanagher brings power and steel from the bench, he makes a big difference when he comes on, Ian Galvin is a class hurler and I’d love to see those two lads getting more game time. Cork will be no pushover, they won’t lie down, they will play hurling when there’s other teams pushing and dragging. The 2013 final was amazing and we’re hoping for the same outcome this weekend”.
Who comes out on top will depend on who plays well, he said. “Shane O’Donnell and Tony Kelly will be the ones to rise it, Peter Duggan and David Fitzgerald are fantastic hurlers, I’d say they will be flying it, Aidan McCarthy and Mark Rodgers are great young hurlers, they have to do it on Sunday, David McInerney and John Conlon are outstanding warriors, Conor Cleary is the most under-rated full-back in the country, it will be a team effort, they have to do it and they will do it”.
John Joe concluded, “It will be a great day, hurling finals are always a great day, My Rose of Clare will be singing at 5pm in Dublin City and we’ll be dancing on the street by the Croke Park hotel”.
All photographs by John Mangan
