Sunday's Leinster club hurling final victory for Ballyhale against Clough-Ballacolla put the icing on the cake of two months TJ Reid will never forget.
Along with Sunday's win, Reid won his tenth Kilkenny title in early November and later in the month got married to his long-term girlfriend Niamh de Brún.
"November and December are two months that I will cherish forever," Reid told TG4.
"Between county finals, birthdays, weddings, and then winning today. I'm really looking forward to a few weekends off. Every week, it's training, match, training, match. This is Christmas week now, and we're celebrating with our friends and family today."
Ballyhale hammered Laois champions Clough-Ballacolla 6-23 to 0-14 at Croke Park to win their third consecutive Leinster title. They are the first team to win three-in-a-row. It came a week after they suffered a major score against St Rynagh's in the semi-final when it took an Eoin Cody goal three minutes into injury time to save them from elimination.
"Our motivation was today to win," said Reid.
"We have our own standards. Last week, we were annoyed with our performance. We were nine points up. We left them back into the game, and made it very difficult for ourselves.
"Today, the second half was about addressing that. The message at half-time was to go out and drive it home. We did that. From one to 15, we did that."
TJ Reid interview after Ballyhale beat Clough-Ballacolla
Lán Ama
“Our aim today was to express ourselves” 👌
Tuaraimí TJ Reid tar éis Craobh Laigheann a bhuachaint arís!@BallyhaleGAA @gaaleinster #GAABEO #TheToughest pic.twitter.com/DzcenQes3m
— Spórt TG4 (@SportTG4) December 19, 2021
Ballyhale manager James O'Connor said Sunday's performance was one he's been waiting to see for quite a while.
"You poke the bear enough times, eventually it will wake," said O'Connor.
"Thankfully, today was the day.
"The players, they listen to the criticism every week about their performance, and they had the answer today.
"I was saying it last year, and I'm saying it again this year: Even over the last number of games, we weren't playing to our potential. I see them at training week-on-week, and these guys are showing massive hunger - it just wasn't happening. It came out today."
Featured image: 19 December 2021; TJ Reid of Ballyhale Shamrocks after his side's victory in the AIB Leinster Senior Club Hurling Championship final against Clough Ballacolla at Croke Park in Dublin. Photo by Piaras Ó Mídheach/Sportsfile
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