For Bernard Feeney and the Easkey hurlers last Saturday will live long in the memory.
The Sligo senior hurling champions for the past three years, Easkey, which is a well-known tourist hotspot for surfers, had never managed to get over the line when it mattered most until this year's Connacht Junior hurling decider which was played out in horrendous weather conditions in Bekan, Co. Mayo.
The club has seen a remarkable rise in recent years, with hurling only being "redeveloped" in the club just over a decade ago.
"It's a huge achievement for a club who are only starting back up again to get over this hurdle," Feeney, who captains the side, told Balls.ie.
"We were there (the Connacht final) last year and it just didn't go our way.
"We learned from it and brought the lessons into this year."
This year's final was a tight encounter and low-scoring affair, with Easkey edging out Galway's Ballygar by a single point on a scoreline of 0-05 to 0-04.
"We were with the breeze in the first half and at half-time with the score at two points apiece we were going in thinking to ourselves that Ballygar were going to push on with the breeze.
"The lads were just unbelievable in defence and any ruck that came, it was an Easkey ball.
"The amount of work that was put in even though the scores might not have gone over, we were never losing the game."
In the 62nd minute with the game heading towards extra-time up stepped full forward Andrew Kilcullen to score the match winner. Kilcullen, who made the combined Christy Ring, Nickey Rackard and Lory Meagher team of the year this season, scored four of his sides points.
"He's a serious talent," Feeney says.
"There are people on this team, the likes of Rory McHugh, James Weir, Andrew Kilcullen and Niall Kilcullen, who are only 22 or 23 years of age and the talent they have is wild.
Feeney believes this bodes well for the future of Sligo hurling, which has been on an upward trajectory in recent years winning the Nickey Rackard Cup in 2019 and maintaining their place in the Christy Ring Cup since.
"Sligo hurling itself is evolving and there's been an awful lot of work put into it over the last few years.
"The work started a long time ago in the club scene between Easkey, Naomh Eoin, Coolera and Carly.
"There's a lot of work being put in underage now," Feeney adds.
"Traditionally we wouldn't be known as a hurling stronghold, but traditions change, and things are evolving in the county."
Easkey's success hasn't come easily. Up until 2020 the west Sligo side hadn't won the senior county title since 1963, a long wait to return to the big time. Feeney, who is a Construction and DCG teacher in Coláiste Muire, Ballymote, heaps praise on Michael Gordon, the side's manager, for helping them get to where they are today.
"He's the instigator behind the whole thing."
"Michael's idea was to get hurling back into the youth in the club and he's developed the game with us and brought us up the whole way.
Easkey manager's commute to training and games shows true commitment
What makes Michael's contribution even more striking is the fact that he lives in London working in the construction industry.
"He'd be coming back over doing training and games maybe once a week.
"Brian Healy is our trainer and takes sessions during the week.
"It's clearly working but that's because of the passion Michael Gordon and people in the club have to make things happen.
"No stone is left unturned.
"There are messages in the WhatsApp, there's calls, there's always something happening between trainings and organising things," Feeney says.
Before Christmas Easkey will play in the All-Ireland semi-final. A place in Croke Park on All-Ireland final day is now within touching distance.
"The goal was to get over the Connacht final, to get that piece of silverware and make that history so anything now is a bonus," Feeney admits.
"We take everything one step at a time.
"We enjoyed our weekend but we're looking towards training now the next day and any game we might have coming up to it.
"We're up for it, we're up for any game, we're buzzing for it.
"The 17th of December can't come quick enough really."
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