Armagh goalkeeper Blaine Hughes looked his imperial best against Galway in the All-Ireland final last Sunday, and no one suspected anything was wrong.
To the naked eye, the Orchard number one was his usual self, making saves, catching high balls, and delivering accurate kick outs throughout the match.
Those in the crowd with an eagle-eye would have maybe noticed that Hughes never kicked across his body, and opted to pop the ball to the one side.
In fact, he took four kick outs with his left, weaker foot, and only went long in the game on one occasion.
This is because a collision with Joe McElroy right at the end of the warm-up before the match, resulted in him picking up a knee injury that almost ruled him out of the game completely.
According to The Irish News, substitute goalkeeper Ethan Rafferty was even told to warm up, and in a panic-ridden couple of minutes, nobody was sure what would happen in the Armagh camp.
Thankfully for Armagh the physios were able to strap up the knee, and with some adjustments to his kick-outs, Hughes was able to get through the 70 minutes of football.
Not only that, he didn't look like a man who was burdened by injury or thrown off his game, despite such a disastrous start to what was the biggest game of his entire life.
The Carrickcruppen clubman was drafted into the starting team this season, after Rafferty picked up a serious ankle injury that ruled him out of action right up until the championship started.
That misfortune turned into an opportunity for Hughes, who went on to have a brilliant season for the Orchard county, and his pin-point kick outs under pressure during extra time of the semi-final against Kerry, were vital in helping his team pull off the upset that day.
For Hughes it was a case of mind over matter, and the young goal-stopper clearly has a stronger mind than most.
