Emma Duffy Reports from Croke Park

HERE SIT CONOR Glass and Malachy O’Rourke, finally All-Ireland champions.

The on- and off-field masters behind Glen’s remarkable success.

When O’Rourke was appointed manager and Glass returned home to from the AFL in October 2020, the Watty Graham’s club had never even won a Derry senior football championship.

They have swept all before them since, adding the Holy Grail of a first All-Ireland to three county titles and back-to-back Ulster crowns.

Sweet as a nut, particularly in the wake of last year’s final heartache to Kilmacud Crokes.

“I definitely questioned over the last 12 months would we ever get there,” says Glass after today’s 2-10 to 1-12 win over St Brigid’s.

“Especially with Derry as well. Although I didn’t say that, those thoughts go through your mind, 100%. Me and this man beside me, we can say we are All-Ireland champions now.

“It’s a pretty good feeling.”

His late, great goal was crucial amidst a dramatic finale at Croke Park.

Glass openly admits he felt the Andy Merrigan Cup ebbing away at times.

“After they went four points up and we had the black card, I thought we were done and buried. Between the 50th and 60th minute, that 10-minute spell went by like that, and there were multiple times I thought the game was done and buried.”

Controlling the controllables and short-term memory was pivotal when things went against Glen, like their “terrible” shot selection, as Glass alludes to.

Both he and O’Rourke mention character on several occasions, and that was best seen in the talismanic midfielder’s 58th-minute goal.

It was a case of “playing off instinct,” he says, pleased to make amends for a miss late on in last year’s decider which has long played on his mind.

Glass facing St Brigid's Shane Cunnane. Ryan Byrne / INPHO Ryan Byrne / INPHO / INPHO

“I said to myself if I ever get that occasion again, I’m just going to put my foot through it. If it comes off, it comes off, if it doesn’t, at least I went for it. Thankfully it happened today, I was able to get that opportunity again.

“It’s a weird one I found myself on the end of it, compared to last year. I’m very happy.”

O’Rourke’s thoughts? “Unreal,” the former Monaghan and Fermanagh boss chimes in.

“It was a strange game. We nearly saved our worst until last. We just couldn’t get going at all. Even what Conor said, three or four points down with however long left, he thought it was gone. It’s nearly a greater testament to him that he didn’t give up and was able to make those big plays. That is pure leadership.

“That is what we pride ourselves on. No matter how bad things are going, we just keep working, working for each other, trying to make good decisions. It wasn’t looking good but the character shown and the goal was a massive turning point.

“You can mask it all you want but after losing one All-Ireland final, you don’t want to lose the second one. There possibly was a wee bit of nerves there.

“The overriding thing was we weren’t prepared to give in. We kept going until the end and got our reward.”

Asked later what it means personally, O’Rourke adds: “As I’ve said before, my life’s not going to change that much whether I win an All-Ireland or not.

“The joy I get out of it is just seeing the boys, seeing them growing as a group of players, developing and just having that hunger and will to improve and get better and test themselves at the highest level in club football. For the whole club and community.”

St Brigid's players dejected after the game. Laszlo Geczo / INPHO Laszlo Geczo / INPHO / INPHO

Away from the winner’s enclosure, St Brigid’s are feeling how Glen did last year.

It’s a bitter pill to swallow. The Roscommon side were the better team for most of the game, but fell agonisingly short in their bid for a first All-Ireland title since 2013.

Jerome Stack speaks to the media briefly before Glass and O’Rourke enter the room. The mutual respect between the teams is clear for all to see, as is that of Jerome Stack for his own lot.

“I’m not going to go analysing why or why not, it’s just too raw,” the Kerryman says.

“That bunch of players and the spirit and unity within the whole panel – the no fear of playing anybody or the situation – I’m proud of them.

“They’re a marvellous bunch of players so I’m not going to get into the different parts of the game, but we were facing a really tough task in the second half, really difficult conditions, everything coming against us, and they nearly went and did it.

“Our dressing room is hugely disappointed, and I’m terribly disappointed for the players, but I have respect for what they’ve done as well. They’re young, they’re not beaten though, they’ll keep coming back.”