The All-Ireland Football Champions finally brought the Sam Maguire Cup to Co Armagh this evening.
They began the trek to their home county this afternoon. It normally takes less than three hours but on this day of days it took nearly twice the time to reach the Crossmaglen Rangers GFC ground in Co Armagh where the homecoming party will take place.
Crossmaglen is the spiritual homeland of Armagh GAA ' and will this evening host what is sure to be one of the most emotional parties in modern history.
It's been a while since Northern Ireland has had a homecoming for sporting heroes and when it does have them, it's usually for individuals ' think Higgins, Peters, Taylor. And although 30 players and a handful of backroom and management staff will be heroes of the hour (week, month, year, generation..) it's still an individual who will take centre stage: Sam Maguire. He's never been to Armagh.
Not since Ger Loughnane's Clare hurlers won the All-Ireland in 1995 has there been such popular champions. And what Clare supporters are to hurling, Armagh's are to football.
The team left City West Hotel in Dublin at around 2.30 p.m ' it should have left two hours earlier. By the time the team arrived in the county capital they had probably seen the entire population of Armagh and more besides.
The Dublin-Belfast road has seen a victorious All-Ireland team before but never one from Armagh ' not at county level. And that's what makes yesterday's victory over Kerry so special.
The team will be back at the Crossmaglen Rangers pitch to play Louth in the annual Goal challenge on Wednesday, throw-in time, 5 p.m.