O'Connor revels in greatest day with Geelong gratitude

Daingean Uí Chúis' Mark O’Connor described Sunday’s All-Ireland Club Senior Football Championship win over St Brigid's as "one of the best days of my life" as he thanked his employers Geelong for their help in making it happen and aired his hope of returning to Croke Park again with Kerry.

The Australian Rules star was given permission to play the final with his GAA club as he delayed a return Down Under for pre-season, something which he admits is unusual, and the midfielder even had team-mates travel to Ireland to support him.

Speaking to RTÉ Radio, he said: "It's been a phenomenal journey. It has been a bit shaky with decision-making over the past couple of months, but I just can't thank Geelong enough for giving me the freedom to do this.

"This is probably one of the best days of my life, so I'm just so appreciative to them. It was so emotional driving in when Dingle supporters lined the streets coming into Croke Park and that was probably a bit of a shock to the system.

"It was probably emotion that we didn't necessarily need, but it definitely touched the heartstrings. We have such a small town, we have such small support, but the support that we have is such high-quality people.

"To look up and see them in the stands was extremely special.

"It doesn't get more special than that. It doesn't get more special than growing up with those people and watching the characters grow over the years. It's been a long time since I've been in Croke Park and it's been an even longer time since I played in Páirc an Ághasaigh [Daingean Uí Chúis’ home venue].

"To come home and to top it all off, to top the year off like this has been just such an unbelievable experience and I'm just so grateful."

O’Connor was taken aback by how Geelong and Aussie Rules has some of the GAA’s community attributes, when he expected different when heading to Australia a decade ago.

He made a point of seeking out his team-mates from the AFL side for travelling over to watch him win the day with Daingean Uí Chúis, seeing them both before and after the game.

"It probably put a small bit of pressure on!", he joked. "But no, the support that I've gotten is not something I expected with professional sports. I probably had a vision of it being far more cut throat and probably a bit more spiteful and less team-orientated, but it couldn't have been further from the truth with Geelong.

"I wouldn't still be in Australia if it wasn't for Geelong and the support that they've shown me and the interest that they've shown in my interests. The relationship we've grown over the years has been unreal.

"I just can't be any more grateful to them because I know that it's not a normal thing for a professional sports team who's paying your salary to be allowing you to do these type of things.

"I'm just so grateful they have the trust in me to come back in good shape and ready to go for them this year, which I absolutely will be."

While O’Connor has made a life in Australia, he has missed out on many special days in the green and gold shirt as well, including last year's 39th All-Ireland title.

Achieving club success in GAA headquarters was not something he had anticipated.

"It was just such a full-circle moment. I haven't played in Croke Park in 10 years.

"So, to come back now and to see Geelong team-mates sitting next to my family up in the stands, it was a big full-circle moment, and it felt like a dream.

"And the dream was lived out, thankfully. Just wearing the red and white in Croke Park was special, and trying to keep a cap on those emotions was not an easy task."

He paid tribute to Kerry’s exceptional forward Paul Geaney, who has been at the heart of Daingean Uí Chúis' journey to bridging a 77-year gap to win a Kerry title, downing St Finbarr's in such dramatic fashion to win Munster, and then knocking out Leinster giants Ballyboden St Enda's to get to the decider.

O’Connor described Geaney as the best to ever do it in the club game.

"Seeing Paul Geaney go up the steps of the Hogan; in my mind he's the best club player ever.

"If people actually go back over our record in county championships and losing so many county championships, there wasn't a day that Paul Geaney let us down.

"He scored some astronomical scores when we've lost, and he's carried us through the past 15 years. So, in my mind, Paul Geaney is the best club player ever, and he's going to be rewarded now as Kerry captain.

"We're All-Ireland champions, it just couldn't be better."

Having experienced the feeling of winning with his club in Croke Park, there is a thought of whether there is time to come back and play for the Kingdom in the All-Ireland in the future.

At 29, time is ticking away on both his professional career and what could be in the Kerry shirt.

Asked if he could one day become a champion with his county, O’Connor certainly left the door open: "Yeah, I absolutely hope so. This [club] is probably the hardest one to win. It's probably the most emotional, it's probably the most personal. But of course, as a young fellow, I probably didn't even dream of playing in Croke Park with Daingean Uí Chúis.

"It just seemed so outrageous. It was always a dream of climbing the steps of the Hogan with Kerry. So, look, of course I do.

"I have one year left on this contract, and I owe Geelong a lot.

"They've given me a life that I never thought I'd have. I'm going to give them absolutely everything this year, I owe them at least that. I've been there for 10 years now. It's a long time, it's a decade.

"We'll see after that."

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