Maurice Nugent has felt the warm embrace of his local GAA club during his winter back home in Clare.
The Galway United star has been preparing for the club's first season back in the SSE Airtricity League of Ireland Premier Division, after their saunter through the second tier in 2023.
Nugent was one of five of the league's stars to appear at Virgin Media HQ on Wednesday, as the broadcaster announced details of the 14 live League of Ireland matches they will be screening during the upcoming season.
While there, the Ennis native told Balls that St. Joseph’s Doora Barefield, with whom he played hurling as a youngster, have been helping him tick over during the dark winter months.
"To be fair , the club are great to me," said the 25-year-old.
"I was at home for a lot of the off-season and they let me use the gym, let me use all of the facilities, they were brilliant for me. It’s a real community club."
Soccer is where Nugent's passion lies but had things turned out differently, he could have carved out a career pucking around the small ball.
All-Ireland winners Tony Kelly and Shane O'Donnell were a few years ahead of him in school and he played in a Munster semi-final himself, losing out to Tipperary at Semple Stadium.
"We would have been in school when Tony Kelly and Shane O’Donnell and all were there," he says. "They’re older than me, they would have been playing Harty Cup when I was in first year or second year so we would have seen them around alright. But no one from my club or my year really went that far.”
Nugent has been a mainstay for the Tribesmen over the past few years, as they have knocked on the door for promotion before finally getting over the line under the management of John Caulfield last season.
Similar to new Bohemians recruit Dayle Rooney, who spoke to Balls at the Virgin Media launch about the difficulties of balancing part-time football with work, Nugent also has plenty of experience in living a dual lifestyle.
"Yeah, Dayle (Rooney) was explaining the situation at Drogheda, it sounded tough," says Nugent.
"Similar to me last year, a full-time football set-up but you’re trying to work your hours around it. It can be difficult at times but it’s something you just get on with, you get used to it.
“You could be tired going into training alright and landing into the office. Look, it’s not that bad. You get through it. It’s not something most people would do but it’s worth it I think.
"It's not just the love of the game but that's definitely part of it. The opportunity to play in the league is massive. I’m only young so I’ll take it while I have it. I’ll be working the rest of my life."
After a six-year absence from the top flight, excitement is building in Galway ahead of the new campaign. The Virgin Media cameras set to roll into town on Monday April 1st for the club's meeting with Bohemians, a point at which the Tribesmen will already have seven games under their belts.
Where Caulfield's side will be positioned in the table at that point remains to be seen but Nugent can sense the excitement around the county as the First Division champions prepare to welcome Ireland's biggest clubs over the next nine months.
"All the talking is done at this point and we really need to do the business on the pitch," he says. "It’s brilliant to have the club back to where we feel it belongs and the city feels it belongs. I’m hoping there will be a big crowd there for Pat’s on the opening night. I’m hoping it will be a big year for us this year."
Galway United v Bohemians is the second of three live broadcasts confirmed by Virgin Media thus far, sandwiched by Shamrock Rovers v Derry City on Monday March 4th and Shelbourne v Shamrock Rovers on Monday April 22nd.
The confirmed dates signal a shift from the traditional Friday night TV offerings, with Virgin Media also set to experiment with live Thursday night broadcasts.
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