Waterford's Captain Fantastic, twenty four months to remember.

On October 31, 1990, ‘Captain Fantastic: My Football Career and World Cup Experience’ was published by O’Brien Press.

The book by Mick McCarthy told the inside story on the World Cup finals from the captain of Ireland s best ever soccer team.

The greatest moments from Italia 90, the thrills and disappointments were recalled by the Irish Captain whose family hails from the Tallow area of the county.

Mick in the book gave us an inside into the Irish camp from Malta to Rome and tells how Ireland prepared for their greatest ever sporting challenge.

The whole Italia 90 experience was recalled. Stories were told of the games played by ‘Jack’s Army’ at Cagliari, Palermo, Genoa and Rome. Tales of the players on and off the field were told. The unforgettable home received by Jack and the team was recalled.

Mick McCarthy was one of Ireland’s most important players, even if he was far from the Nation’s best ever player. He had a club career that began at his hometown Barnsley in then England’s Fourth Division and which culminated in being named Captain of the Ireland team at a period when Soccer was at an all time high on this Island.

Mick McCarthy towards the end of his career became known as the title of the book suggests ‘Captain Fantastic’.

On Sunday afternoon next, as we all know Waterford take on Galway in the All-Ireland Minor Hurling Final. It will be the fourth time that Waterford has appeared in the final. Wins were recorded in 1929 and 1948 but defeat was Waterford’s lot in 1992.

The first Waterford man to emerge from under the Cusack Stand on this Sunday will be team Captain Kevin Daly. The Dungarvan man over the past twenty four months has proven himself to be a top quality hurler and could be called Waterford’s Captain Fantastic.

Sometime after next Sunday, win, loose or draw, when all the hype dies down, the players will sit down each by themselves in their own time and think about the journey they have had and for the Dungarvan Man he will have to agree that the past two years were indeed a bit of a rollercoaster.

At the end of 2011 he was part of the Coláiste na Déise side that came through the group stages of the Dr Harty Cup, loosing just one game, against Midleton CBS at Ardmore.

After the Christmas Break in the schools, he was part of the combined colleges team that beat St Flannan’s at Tipperary Town in the quarter finals of the competition despite playing the whole game with fourteen players as team Captain Kieran Power was dismissed for an incident before the game started.

In the semi finals, the combined colleges were pitted with fellow Waterford side De La Salle College at Fraher Field. They say history does not repeat itself, but we know it does, and for the second game in a row, the combined West Waterford Colleges side had their numbers cut before the game started, this time it was full forward Kevin Daly that was banished to the stand before the game started for an incident spotted by the umpires who must have seen more than the large attendance in the stand saw as most would have agreed that a yellow for the Dungarvan Club man would be more than sufficient.

Despite again playing the whole game with fourteen men, the Dungarvan CBS and St Augustine’s College combination proved too strong for the city side to advance to the final.

Kevin missed the 2-14 to 1-10 win over Nenagh CBS in the Harty Cup Final at Cashel as a result of his sending off against De La Salle.

For the All-Ireland quarter final against Kilkenny CBS the Dungarvan man was back in contention for a place, but started on the bench, before coming on for Michael Kiely. After a very slow start by the Munster Champions, they settled as the game went on. Some strong players were sent on during the course of the game which strengthened the side and at the end of sixty minutes they had earned a draw. However in the extra twenty minutes played, it was the Kilkenny side that proved to be the better of the two sides and ran out winners 2-12 to 1-12.

The Dungarvan man’s year was not over however. He was part of a very young Dungarvan side that surprised man in the Waterford Senior Hurling Championship, going all the way to the final, the clubs first appearance in the decider since 1951 but on the day they had to settle for second best against a stronger and more experienced De La Salle side.

A week later however, Daly and Dungarvan were back in Fraher Field for the County Minor ‘A’ Hurling Final, where the Old Boro came out on top in a 2-21 to 4-13 thriller against Saint Carthages.

After a long season with his club, Kevin Daly did not have much time to rest as he was back in action with Dungarvan CBS and Dungarvan Colleges in the Munster Senior Colleges Championships.

The two college sides with Daly playing a pivotal role for both sides, came through the group stages, and eventually reached the Munster Final of both competitions. In the Munster ‘B’ Colleges final (Corn Phadraig) Dungarvan CBS came out on top 1-22 to 1-15 after extra time in Golden on February 16 and just over a week later, Dungarvan Colleges with Daly playing in the centre of a strong half back line, proved no match for Our Lady’s from Templemore at Tipperary Town, winning 2-21 to 1-11.

Both sides again came through the All-Ireland series of games. Dungarvan Colleges again with Daly playing a key role beat Kilkenny CBS in the All-Ireland Final (1-12 to 1-7) at Semple Stadium on April 6, and just over a week later, he again stared for Dungarvan CBS in their All-Ireland Senior ‘B’ Final against St Mary’s from Belfast, winning 3-18 to 1-5 at Navan.

Again little time was given to the players to recuperate from a long Colleges season, as the County Minors were soon in action. In the days before the game against St Mary’s from Belfast, Daly and a number of other Dungarvan CBS team members were part of the Waterford team beaten by Tipperary in the Munster Championship.

A play off with Clare soon followed before the players had a break for the Leaving Cert and were back in action again as soon as the exams were over, taking on Cork in Pairc Ui Rinn. A first ever underage win on Cork soil set up a Munster Final with Limerick which ended in stalemate, and in the replay which followed, Waterford lost out to the Treaty men.

A game against Antrim quickly followed which proved to be a one sided affair and then a rare Croke Park win against Kilkenny was achieved in the All-Ireland semi final which set up this weekend’s game with Galway.

Throw in the fact that the Dungarvan man was also part of John Kiely’s plans with the Minor Footballers. He was part of a Waterford panel that trained once before beating Limerick in Fraher Field in the Munster Quarter Finals which set a Munster semi final against Kerry at Fitzgerald Stadium and with little work done in the period between the game with Limerick and the game with Kerry, Waterford nearly pulled off a shock result in the Lions Den, loosing out 1-12 to 2-6.

He was part of the Dungarvan team that played five games in the group stages of the Senior Hurling Championship before the Old Boro were somewhat unlucky to bow out before the knockout stage of the championship began.

Take into consideration that Dungarvan have reached the semi finals of the Western Intermediate Football Championship playing six games to do so, the County Minor Hurling Championship is in progress and there is also the Under 21 Hurling and Football Championships, and you will agree it has been a long twenty-four months for the Dungarvan Man.

He will no doubt want the year to continue for a little longer yet, but when it does come to an end he will get some bit of a deserved break, before it all starts all over again.

It has been a fantastic last twenty four man. It can get even better. If Shortly after 2-30pm on Sunday he is leading Waterford up the steps of the Hogan Stand and he the first Waterford man to shake the hand of Archbishop Dermot Clifford who will be presenting the Cup to the winning Captain, the Dungarvan man can quite rightly consider himself to be ‘Waterford’s Captain Fantastic’.