Been there, done it.
You ask a man like Matty Forde about pressure and he’d just smirk and tell you that’s only a thing for tyres.
13 years ago, the Wexford legend won an All-Star and took the plaudits – even if they were only individual – that his talent surely deserved. On Saturday, he showed that he is still doing it.
Whenever any conversation starts about players who never won an All-Ireland or forwards who other counties would’ve loved in their teams, Matty Forde will never be further away than three names.
This man really is Mr Wexford, so much so that he made a return to the purple and yellow last year, five seasons after retiring from inter-county football, and he won a Leinster Junior Championship with the county.
He’s no stranger to excelling and he’s already racked up four Wexford senior titles with his club, Kilanerin.
Now, he’s a provincial champion again.
Same lads different day #leinsterchamps pic.twitter.com/57QohVbzyy
— Matty Forde (@MattyForde15) November 26, 2017
The Model county outfit won the Leinster intermediate club title, seeing off the Dublin lynchpins Ballyboughal 0-13 to 0-11 but it was a late salvo that clinched it for Kilanerin and it was one of Matty Forde’s six points that saw them home.
The veteran Gael, now operating at midfield for his club, launched over an effort from way downtown in Wexford Park. He had the distance, he had the accuracy, he had the nerve, he split the posts and sent Kilanerin into the All-Ireland semi-final.
They will now face the best of Connacht’s intermediate forces in the last four, Roscommon’s Michael Glavey’s awaiting them on January 21.
Elsewhere, Moy of Tyrone will face Kerry’s An Ghaeltacht in the other semi-final.
