Emmet Malone on the Shelbourne star's hunger for real celebrations this time around
There may be nothing new about clubs here spending themselves into trouble in pursuit of league success but the speed with which Shelbourne's finances have unravelled in the wake of last season's championship win still hangs over the team as they kick-off their title defence this evening.
As he ponders the club's chances of retaining the championship, midfielder Stuart Byrne maintains that, for all the frustration it caused at the time, the drastic curtailment of their championship celebrations will at least help on the motivational front when the action starts again this evening.
"I think we'll still be that bit more hungry this year because of the way things happened," he says. "We didn't get a chance to celebrate it, we didn't even get a chance for it to sink in really. Winning the league is as good as it gets for a footballer in any country but deep down, there's still a strange feeling that what happened with us wasn't what it should have been."
The team's achievement, however, remains untarnished by what followed at the club. Beating Bohemians into second place by five points was an impressive performance by a side that had stuttered and threatened to squander their advantage at the top of the table. Byrne's winner at Dalymount Park two weeks before the end of the campaign might well be seen as the moment the title was decided in the visitors' favour.
For the 27-year-old, a consistently strong performer in central midfield where he works tirelessly to win the ball, distributes it effectively and chips in with the odd goal, the league success was the high point of a career that had contained a few twists and turns before he was convinced to take the plunge and go full-time by Pat Fenlon.
With a good day job as a technician in an architect's firm, not to mention a young son to consider, Byrne admits the decision wasn't taken lightly but having taken time to adapt, he is happy with the move.
Financially, he says, he is probably a little worse off but, he adds, "in terms of lifestyle it's very different to be out training once or twice a day and then home rather than leaving for work at 7.30 in the morning and not seeing anyone again until 10.0 at night."
The additional time off, he admits, was initially a little difficult to get used to after coping with such a hectic schedule for so long, "but I've gotten used to it. I try to develop my skills for my other job because I would expect to be going back to it at some point. I cook the dinner at home and relax a lot more. It's definitely different but it's good, particularly to be around more for my son Finn at what's a very important time in his life."
There are practical problems, he concedes, with being a full-time footballer in a country that is for the most part still obsessed with the English game. "It can be awkward all right, I mean I have direct experience of going in for a loan, credit card, mortgage, that sort of thing. You have to confirm your salary and it turns out then it hasn't really registered with the person on the other side of the desk in the bank that there is professional football in Ireland. It can be difficult persuading people that you have a decent wage out of it."
On one level, he says, he understands the scepticism for he is disappointed with the lack of progress made by the game here over the last few years despite the lead provided by clubs like his own.
"Obviously there have been problems at Shelbourne but there's been a huge move forward too. You could say the same of a few clubs, but not too many, and that's disappointing.
"I decided to go full-time because I wanted to have a go at football, to see how well I could really do if I gave it everything for a while but I think the future is still up in the air for everybody.
"For me to stay in it long term I'd want to be developing as a player but the league would want to be moving forward too. As it is everything seems to be on a knife's edge. Anybody who tells you otherwise is lying."
