Thomas Monaghan Galway
By William Dunne
Thomas Monaghan's rite of passage as a young hurling supporter was a familiar one.
He'd go to every game he could, cheer on his heroes, and after the final whistle blew he'd twist and turn his way through the throng in the hope of getting a player autograph or two.
Perhaps in the near future it will be him on the other side of the pen because he hopes to make a lasting impact on the inter-county scene after being brought into the Galway senior hurling panel earlier this year.
Under the guidance of manager Micheál Donoghue, Monaghan has excelled in an extremely competitive Galway forward line, winning an Allianz Hurling League in his debut season.
That early taste of success was sweet, but what he's really savoured has been the opportunity to hurl alongside men he had previously idolised from a distance.
“It’s brilliant”, he said Bord Gais Energy’s launch of the under 21 All-Ireland hurling championship. “Getting to training with like Joe Canning and Conor Cooney and all these lads. It’s just a fantastic experience.
“I suppose when you’re growing up you’d be getting these lads autographs, going to watch them in matches and shouting for them. It’s kind of a surreal experience then when you actually get to train and play with them. It’s a dream come true you know.”
Monaghan has already amassed an impressive array of medals for one so young. The Allianz League title is the second major piece of silverware he's won as a Galway hurler - two years ago he was an All-Ireland minor champion.
He also has a highly coveted Fitzgibbon Cup medal in his possession after helping Mary Immaculate College capture their second successive title.
Thomas Monaghan
Under the guidance of former Cork dual starlet Jamie Wall, Monaghan was introduced at half-time during this year’s final victory over IT Carlow.
“I was kind of more on the outskirts of it last year but it was great to actually be involved this year and playing in it, and winning it”, said Monaghan.
“It was a great experience we really gelled well together as a group and bonded together and I think a lot of that is down to the work Jamie Wall did with us.”
According to Monaghan, Wall was in constant contact with them when college commenced last Autumn and through his supervision and leadership he brought the group on to success and inspired their own personal development in the game.
“It’s a credit to see like he was obviously a great sportsman himself but it’s just brilliant now that he’s passing it on in the college to lads like us," said Monaghan.
“As he said before, it’s a great quote of his, ‘you never truly leave Mary I’ and I think Jamie won’t be leaving us for now anyway he’s really enjoying coaching us and, you know, seeing us develop.”
This Sunday he might get the opportunity to get his inaugural taste of senior championship hurling and he insists the League Final triumph over Tipperary is already in the rear-view mirror as they prepare for a tricky test against Dublin.
“The league is the league at the end of the day”, said Monaghan. “It’s just great to get competitive matches coming into the championship more so than anything else. The championship is what we set our eyes on from the start.
“The 28th of May against Dublin is what we’ve been talking about so I think while it’s great to win the league, the main thing was just to get the competitive matches before heading into the championship.”
