My Leaving Cert - Alan Brogan: This time six years ago, I was jumping for joy as I read the words "William Wordsworth" on my English paper 2. I haven't been that excited about a poet since.
Overall, the Leaving Certificate was a positive experience for me at St Declan's in Cabra - although I did find it stressful. I can look back on it calmly because I got what I wanted (finance in Maynooth) but, at the time, I remember being up the walls with nerves.
My friends and family were brilliant. My friend Barry Cahill, who also plays on the Dublin team, was doing the Leaving at the same time as me and he gave me a hand with my maths. He was a bit of a whiz.
My mam had whatever dinners I liked best prepared for me at any odd hour of the day. That was a big help. My brother is getting the same treatment this year as he sits his Leaving, but he's an awful lot cooler than I was.
I remember the first four days of the exams - English, Irish, maths and geography - went pretty smoothly and then the going got tough. Physics was always going to be a struggle. I never liked it and I dreaded the exam. I took pass and scraped a C3. It was enough to get what I wanted, though.
German was a really tough paper as well. If I could take the Leaving again, I would definitely study harder. I know I achieved my first CAO choice but I think it would have been less stressful if I had put in more hours from the start.
Despite my anxieties, I had no trouble switching off in the final weeks. I gave up playing with the Dublin minors to concentrate on the exams in sixth year, but I still played plenty of football. Golf was a good way of getting out and clearing my head too.
In the final days, I spent plenty of time in the library with my mates or across the road in the Blanchardstown centre. I stopped cramming at that stage and tried to keep more regular hours. On the morning of the first exam, I was glad of the school's decision to make us wear uniforms right though to the end. It would have been very off-putting to have other students checking out my runners as I entered the exam hall.
Despite the pressure, I think that doing the Leaving Cert was a very worthwhile experience. There comes a stage in a person's life when they have to knuckle down and face a challenge. I think 17 is a good age to do that. It helps to develop character.
The stress I felt then is comparable to walking out on to Croke Park under the eyes of 70,000 people. It needs to be handled in the same way too. Forget about everyone's expectations of you and block out voices around you, whether it's friends or media. At this point, all you can do is concentrate on your own game and do the best you can.
