Two Laois players displayed tremendous bravery and courage at the weekend.
Captain Stephen Attride showed complete and utter disregard for his own safety for the good of Laois in their Leinster semi-final against Carlow. Forward Evan O’Carroll’s father passed away during the week but the Crettyard club man still came on as a second half substitute for John Sugrue’s side and played a key role in securing their place in the Leinster final.
It’s acts like these that build the spirit of a team and draw the players closer together and this Laois team couldn’t be any closer heading into their first provincial decider since 2007.
Attride paid the price for his own courage. The former All-Ireland medal winning cross country runner sustained a double fracture to his skull after his collision with Carlow’s Ciaran Moran in the closing stages of the game.
The Killeshin club man put his head where a lesser man wouldn’t. It was one of those 60:40 balls that the majority of players would take a step back from. He knew there was serious contact coming but he wasn’t for shirking and instead of celebrating with teammates, he spent the night of one of his biggest triumphs in the Laois jersey in the Mater Hospital. Those are the lengths these lads will go to, this is the strength of their characters.
Colm Parkinson paid tribute to his county’s captain on Monday’s GAA Hour Show.
“He dived head first onto a ball that he had no right to win…He’s put his body on the line for his county,” said Wooly.
“He knew diving on that ball, ‘I’m getting it here,’ but he still dived on it, and that’s what championship football is all about and that’s what captains are for.”
They say that the pride of victory can overpower any physical agony and it certainly appeared that way with Attride, despite a gruesome black eye and a clearly swollen head, still smiling through the pain from his hospital bed.
Great to see the captain smiling after 25 stitches, a double skull fracture and concussion. As brave as they come Steven Attride pic.twitter.com/JU5QBwXtPA
— Jack Nolan Locksmith/Commentator (@NolanInfo) June 11, 2018
Credit: @NolanInfo – Twitter.
And then you’ve O’Carroll. The UCD student’s father Michael passed away on the week of the game and Laois folk were unsure if he was even going to tog for the game.
He was brought on as a second half substitute, won a free and scored a point with the game in the melting pot. It can’t have been easy for O’Carroll, on such a distressing week for him and his family but it’ll be consoling for him and for them to know that his father would have been proud of his and his county’s achievement.
Colm Parkinson praised his countyman.
“He was really up for it yesterday. He celebrated winning a free, he celebrated his point with his hand in the air. He lives close to the Carlow border so that would have probably meant a lot to him, but I’d say those celebrations were probably for his father,” said Wooly.
“It was a great moment for him. I’m sure it was a huge release for him after a tough week that he had something at the end of it,” added Cian Ward.
Two courageous characters.
You ca listen to this chat and much more from Monday’s GAA Hour Show here.
