National Football League Final: Ian O'Riordantalks to Kevin O'Neill about his decision to remain with the Mayo squad and how adversity has only strengthened their resolve
If there were any doubts about Mayo being quite the fully committed bunch this year then Kevin O'Neill single-handedly dismisses them all. Last September's All-Ireland defeat to Kerry did take time to wash out of the system, and it was widely expected one of the definite casualties would be the 33-year-old O'Neill.
But when John O'Mahony arrived as manager he not only convinced O'Neill to stay on, he also made him captain. The former All Star forward from 1993 realised the nature of the deal.
Based in Dublin, with a demanding job that involves periods of foreign travel, he clearly needed to be enjoying his football if he signed up - because the commitment would be absolute.
"To be honest after last year I really didn't expect that I'd continue playing intercounty football this year," says O'Neill. "And I did have to think long and hard about that before I decided to do it.
"John O'Mahony coming in was a huge influence. Everyone knows he's a hugely inspirational figure, a very experienced coach, and that was a huge factor in my decision to come back.
"But the captaincy was something I never expected to get. It's a great honour, at this stage of my career, but I don't see it as any extra pressure. I've always gone out to play as well as I can and lead by example. And I've never been shy before about saying things in the dressingroom.
"Football is also something I still enjoy. Sometimes people lose sight of that factor, with the level of commitment there. But at the end of the day it is very important to enjoy the game, feel relaxed playing football and to express yourself."
O'Neill has been doing plenty of that lately, his performances at corner forward central to Mayo progressing to the National League final against Donegal.
A calf muscle injury has left some doubt over his participation on Sunday, although he's obviously keen to get out there, and make some amends for what happened in Croke Park last September.
"It was hard to get back into the training mode, but last year is already history now, and we're looking forward to the year ahead. Nobody died, it wasn't the end of the world, and life goes on. We're fortunate to have made the league final, and to get back to Croke Park so soon after what happened last September.
"Of course we've tried to learn a few things from defeat that day, and I think as a group of players we've got an even stronger resolve now, and that's been seen throughout the league this year. We have been five or six points down in a number of games and come back to win, and that's great credit to the resolve of all the team."
O'Neill's career to date has been notably stop-start. After the high of his 1993 All Star he sustained a broken leg in 1997, then opted out of the panel altogether before his surprise comeback last year.
In the meantime he'd established a professional career as director of business development for Royal Bank of Canada, and being based in Dublin, along with the foreign travel, means a truly hectic schedule of balancing work and play.
"Well I'd always maintained a good level of fitness, playing club football with Na Fianna. If anything I'm in better physical condition now, being away from all the rigours of it for two or three years.
"But there's a group of eight of us based here in Dublin, like Billy Joe Padden, Gary Mullins, Aidan Higgins, Conor Mortimer, and we travel back to Mayo every weekend, and some weeks we'd meet up with the rest of the squad half way there. We do our weight training in Riverview in Clonskeagh, and football work in Clonkeen College in Stillorgan.
"Logistically it can be difficult the way traffic has gone, and there are the demands of work on top of that. But we're all aware of what we've signed up for. You just have to be exceptionally well organised, and well disciplined to manage the schedules.
"My work does involve lots of travel, to the US and UK, and around Europe. It can be exceptionally demanding to combine that with the football, but I always bring a gear bag with me and a pair of boots. But I suppose I enjoy that too. It's a very active schedule.
"It will be like that for most of the summer, but I'm used to that at this stage, and know how to get the diet right, and rest, and things like that. The general level of fitness is quite good, and rest is probably the most important thing for me at this stage.
"But I'm still looking forward to winning something over the next year or so."
Starting, that is, on Sunday.
