After a lap of honour and many hugs with friends in the Hogan stand, the Mayo women gathered in the winter sunshine and stood around, reluctant to depart the field.
"Look at them," exclaimed Diane O'Hora, gesturing to her team-mates. "We have been together for nearly 16 months and we are like best friends now. Today was just unbelievable.
"After we got the first score, we were just so relaxed throughout the game - not over confident but there was a real belief there. We just had nothing to lose coming up here and it showed."
John Mullen, Mayo's manager, is standing by the dug-out, taking it all in. "My voice is gone," he admits. "Personally, this feels amazing . . . here I am, middled aged and suddenly a manager of a Mayo team that has won an All-Ireland. But this is a remarkable young team. There was much made of the fact that they hadn't been to Croke Park before but it wasn't something that bothered us.
"We managed to go in at half time with a lead and then we just told ourselves that we were a second half team and played like that, which carried us through."
Quickly, his thoughts turn to Cora Staunton, the gifted forward who had spearheaded the campaign until breaking her collarbone a fortnight ago.
"It was sentimental," admitted Mullen, commenting on the decision to start Staunton - she was replaced in the first minute.
"But she had been brilliant for us all year and no matter what we wanted her to be able to say she'd played in Croke Park on an All-Ireland final day. Whatever flak I took didn't matter. On My head be it."
As he speaks, Michael Ryan, the legendary Waterford trainer, is drifting off towards the dressing room. "Even with two minutes to go, I though we might get a goal but, ah it wasn't happening for us. We reached a very high peak against Monaghan and never came up to that today. That's the way of it and take nothing from Mayo, they were great today."
The old stadium is all but deserted when the winning players finally make their way beneath the Cusack. They trail away slowly.
"I don't want to leave," announces Marcella Heffernan cheerfully. "I could stay here forever."
