By Paul Keane

Of all the emotions associated with Kilcoo's breakthrough AIB All-Ireland club title success, selector Conleith Gilligan admitted relief was the overriding one.

Two years ago, Gilligan was the man tasked with explaining away their painful final defeat to Corofin, a game that also went to extra-time, and the former Derry forward admitted the thought crossed his mind as Kilcoo trailed by two points late on this time that he would have to experience another grim postmortem.

Jerome Johnston, scorer of Kilcoo's match-winning goal a minute into stoppage time at the end of extra-time, spared him that ordeal and it was a happier looking Gilligan that chatted to the media this time.

"An enormous sense of relief, just delight to get over the line, just for so many reasons," said Gilligan who won an All-Ireland club title himself with Ballinderry exactly 20 years ago. "I remember we were up here in Croke Park for a kickabout last Sunday and me and Richie (Thornton) were in the media room setting up because we had a presentation done here to save us going back out anywhere and I just came into the room and I got that feeling instantly from when I had to come in after the 2020 game and answer the questions on where it went wrong and what would you do again and I just remember thinking, 'I never want to go in there again'. With four or five minutes to go, that thought just popped into my head again."

There was surely relief too for manager Mickey Moran who had previously lost All-Ireland finals while in charge of Slaughtneil and Mayo teams, aside from the 2020 final defeat to Corofin with Kilcoo. Notoriously publicity shy, he was coaxed up to the podium by joint captain Conor Laverty to help lift the cup afterwards.

"He didn't want to go up at all to be honest," said Gilligan. "But Conor wasn't doing any more talking until he came up. And then eventually he did go, reluctantly, because he doesn't want the limelight, he doesn't want people talking about him. He doesn't want to be the story."

Beaten manager Robbie Brennan admitted it was 'gut wrenching' to see his Kilmacud Crokes team suckered at the finish by an 81st minute match-winning goal.

"I'm not sure what it was like as a spectacle but it's probably hard to lose it in those terms at the very end, but fair play to Kilcoo for sticking at it, they never gave up," said Brennan, whose side led 0-8 to 0-2 at half-time.

"The first-half we said we'd go for the jugular, that being a final we'd go for it and wouldn't sit back, that when we could we'd take it to them, which I think we did pretty well.

"At half-time we spoke about the fact they'd obviously press up more because they were behind and we'd have to be more careful on the ball.

"Again, I thought we did that pretty well but then when their first goal went in we lost a bit of momentum. I think still we wrestled it back pretty well. We were still ahead at that stage so we probably weren't panicking. It might have looked it a bit but we were still trying to keep our head at that stage. Obviously a sucker punch then at the very end."