Gaelic Games

‘An incredible image’: Two-year-old boy engrossed by All-Ireland hurling semi-final

Photograph of Kilkenny supporter Fionn McGivern on Croke Park steps goes viral on social media

A photograph of Fionn McGivern taken during Sunday's senior hurling clash between Kilkenny and Clare at Croke Park has gone viral. Photograph: Inpho/James Crombie
A photograph of Fionn McGivern taken during Sunday's senior hurling clash between Kilkenny and Clare at Croke Park has gone viral. Photograph: Inpho/James Crombie
Rory Fleming
Wed Jul 12 2023 - 13:43

Eoin Murphy’s goalkeeping heroics saw Kilkenny overcome Clare in Sunday’s second All-Ireland senior hurling championship semi-final, but much of the post-match coverage was fixed on an off-the-field matter.

A photograph of an enthralled young Kilkenny fan, Fionn McGivern, was captured by Inpho Photography’s James Crombie and went viral on social media after the full-time whistle.

With more than three million views on Twitter to date, the image shows two-year-old Fionn standing in a striking pose along the steps of Croke Park as fans watch the action unfolding on the pitch.

Fionn’s father, Brendan, who won an Ulster minor hurling title with Antrim, has hailed the photograph as “incredible”.

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Mr McGivern explained that Fionn has been “engrossed” by the game of hurling since before he could walk.

“He’s only a two-year-old, but he just loves being involved with the game,” he said. “Even in and around the house, he’s hurling mad and football mad. He’s had a hurl in his hand from the time he was struggling to walk, so it’s pretty cool to see.

“He’s always loved it, he’ll come out to the club games [St Enda’s of Glengormley] with me, and he’d be there watching that, and his sister would be up playing her matches which he goes to too, so everyone up in the club knows him.”

Fionn McGivern during Sunday's All-Ireland senior hurling clash between Kilkenny and Clare at Croke Park. Photograph: Inpho/James Crombie
Fionn McGivern during Sunday's All-Ireland senior hurling clash between Kilkenny and Clare at Croke Park. Photograph: Inpho/James Crombie

The McGivern family hail from Co Antrim, but that did not stop Fionn from cheering on the Black Cats at Croke Park at the weekend. “There’s no real link, we’re just big GAA fans and he’s got a lot of county kits, both him and his sister,” said Mr McGivern, adding: “I was always a fan growing up and DJ Carey was always my guy when I was younger.”

Thankfully for the McGiverns, Derek Lyng’s side overcame the challenge of the Banner county during what was Fionn’s first trip to GAA headquarters. “He loved every minute of it and he got a great game for his first one,” Mr McGivern said.

He described the reaction that the photograph of his son has imbued as “incredible”.

“It really is an incredible image. I think it’ll be one of them ones where you never get such an iconic photo again. Everybody is just there focusing on the match, and then there he is, the wee man, stood there by himself. You can see that he’s there looking on, engrossed in it, with his pose too,” he added.

“A lot of friends and family have reached out, quite a few journalists too, RTÉ and some newspapers got in touch so you can see that the photo really took off.”

Now though, Fionn’s attention has switched to Sunday week’s All-Ireland final, where Kilkenny will be tasked with stopping Limerick’s quest to achieve a record-equalling fourth successive Liam McCarthy Cup.

Despite the attention the image has received, the McGivern’s are still in search of tickets for the big day, with Fionn hoping to get the chance to witness Eoin Cody hoist aloft what would be Kilkenny’s first All-Ireland title since 2015.

“I was down at the final last year so it would be good to get down again ... and sure we’ll stick with Kilkenny if we do,” Mr McGivern said.