Brennan and Bergin toast sweet success for St Lachtain's

In any All-Ireland victory, it can come down to small moments making a difference and that was definitely the case for St Lachtain’s goalkeeper Darren Brennan after he made a super save in the second half to maintain his side’s advantage.

The former Kilkenny stopper knows it was a big stage in the game.

“It was an unbelievable performance and our lads really stood up when it counted.

“The save in the second half was important and I probably didn’t realise it at the time as I was so engrossed in the action and looking back at it now I’m delighted but it was the lads out the field that put the pressure on the man striking the ball and that makes the difference for me as well.”

Brennan was also influential in open play as he got on the ball in a kind of refined quarter-back role that set up a number of attacks for St Lachtain’s.

“I think there is great value in taking the ball out the field and even younger lads in the club are starting to play like that now as they see the value in it,” he added.

“It’s an extra player which can be a great asset to the team.”

Despite the bad weather around the country, Croke Park avoided the worst of it and the 28 year-old was wholesome in his praise of the pitch.

“I couldn’t believe what good nick the pitch was in and when I went out the flags weren’t even moving which was ideal and the pitch was in perfect condition too.

“I knew then we’d get good value out of our puckouts as I knew our lads were well able to win their own high ball and that suited us.”

Were there nerves in the final few minutes?

“I’d full confidence in our lads and maybe the occasion was kicking in a bit in the last few minutes but they did see it out and you’d have to give them credit for that as a lot of them were playing in Croke Park for the first time and they weren’t involved in that environment before and they really stood up to it.”

As a result of winning the All-Ireland, Criomhthann Bergin was collecting a championship trophy for a third time this season. Despite facing up to fellow skipper Ciaran Sheehan in opposition, the full-back took on the challenge.

“I didn’t read too much into who I was on and it was just another game. I don’t like to get too bogged down on who I’m marking as I’m a bit too long in the tooth with that and I wouldn’t get too nervous on those things,” he said.

The win was extra special given the family ties Bergin has with the Cork club.

“It was an unbelievable occasion and I’ve my own ties with Russell Rovers as I’ve a sister living down there which makes it extra special for my family and there was huge excitement in our house.”

After losing the county final in 2023, the experienced defender had huge praise for the management in getting the most out of the players in recent months.

“Great credit must go to our management team as they really brought the spirit into this group and it’s unbelievable having a backroom team that are all Freshford men.

“They’ve instilled that fire to drive us on we were wondering would it ever be our day but thank god we stuck with it.

“Our panel has been key to this success and I remember when I first started out that you’d go down to the intermediate team and you might have only 15 on the field but now we have 34 or 35 lads and we’ve subs making an impact so we are ready for any challenge that is thrown in front of us.”