By Cian O’Connell

“I remember the first training session.” Enda Meagher’s mind wanders back to 2005 when Rathdowney-Errill amalgamated. “It was actually like being in a county final with the crowd that was watching the first training session.

“I was involved with the county at the time, to come back to the club the excitement was just unbelievable.

“In ‘05 and I was lucky to be the first ever senior captain of Rathdowney-Errill, it was great. It just grew and grew. Practice matches were like county semi-finals with the crowds and interest of people watching it.”

A decade and a half later Meagher remains a key cog in the Rathdowney-Errill machine. Winner of five Laois SHC titles on the field of play, Meagher is now a selector with John Delaney with Rathdowney-Errill busy preparing for an AIB Leinster Club SHC Semi-Final against Carlow outfit St Mullins at Netwatch Cullen Park on Sunday.

For Meagher Rathdowney and Errill joining forces was a logical step to ensure hurlers from the vicinity continued to be crafted. “They had been hurling underage together, but it is like in most parishes now: hurling is a numbers game,” Meagher states.

“We were doing okay at senior level, Rathdowney on our own, we were probably reaching quarter-finals, Errill were probably struggling more at senior level, to hold senior status. When it came to a head at a meeting there was excitement around the whole place.”

How the story has unfolded is a source of pride with Meagher acknowledging that early success helped the process significantly.

“To be honest I think there was more of a banter amongst the supporters when people would be calling it 'come on Rathdowney' and they'd say 'don't forget Errill',” Meagher recalls.

“That kind of thing. From the players point of view we all knew one another very well. I've never thought there was any chance of breaking back up once we got rolling.

“Every year nearly we won something whether it was Intermediate, Junior, whatever, we were competitive in four grades - Senior, Intermediate, Junior A, and Junior B. Having four adult teams, it is not easy.”

Meagher, now 41, has been instrumental with his senior club for 24 years. The service has been unbroken. Ups and downs occurred, but going from player to mentor was testing initially.

“It was difficult, but this is my 24th year in a row in a senior dressing room whether as a player or selector, trainer whatever,” Meagher explains.

“I haven't been out of a senior dressing room since I was 17 years of age and I'm 41 now. I said to the lads the difference between playing and being a selector is that I feel I can be a lot more of a help on the line and training wise using experience rather than staying togging out being a part player.

“That was a big thing for me. Last year I found it hard to take after losing the final because I probably thought there was maybe something I could have offered.

“This year I said no. I was a selector, I was still hurling on the Intermediate team, and I was probably one of their better players. For me it was hard to let go, but when you have been in a senior dressing room since you were 17 it isn't something you take lightly to just decide to finish hurling senior now.”

Candid and honest about the value of sport, Meagher has derived real pleasure from being involved in Rathdowney-Errill’s first Laois triumph since 2014.

“I was never going to step away from it for the simple reason people would say you need sport or hurling needs you, whatever,” Meagher states.

“It is so hard to step away when you are part of it. I have great friends on the team, it is great to see a young lad coming up giving you respect.

“That could have been an issue at first, but you demand respect. That is the way you work it. Last year was hard, but this year wasn't hard, it was actually very enjoyable from my point of view. I had my mind made up, this is what I was doing. That was it.”

Hurling into November means the game remains high on the agenda following a hugely encouraging stint for Laois.

“It is a very good time and to be honest everyone is hopping off after the Laois campaign this year,” Meagher stresses. “To carry it on with our own campaign it keeps the flag flying for the county which is brilliant.”

Rathdowney-Errill were beaten in the 2018 Laois decider so they were accompanied by a burning desire from the outset of the current campaign.

“Especially after the happenings of last year, it was massive for us,” Meagher says. “The whole thing after losing to Camross and to maybe lose two finals in a row.

“Realistically we were looking at maybe three county final defeats after losing in 2016 and 2018. Funny enough this year was the first uneven year we got to a county final, ‘06, ‘08, ‘10, ‘12, ‘14, ‘16, ‘18 and this year is ‘19 so it is unique that way.”

So how have Rathdowney-Errill managed to remain relevant since earning Laois glory in 2006? “It is hard to nail it down to one thing, but a group of players came along after we joined up in 2005 the competition for places was excellent,” Meagher remarks.

“It stayed like that for a few years and it went off a small bit until a couple of the young lads like Mark Kavanagh coming up. That gave us an extra bit of energy. Our transition period funnily enough was probably between 16 and 18. It took that two years to transition again to get back to the team we have now.

“A few lads got the sixth one this year, the likes of Joe Fitz, John Purcell, Alan Delaney, Brian Campion, Noel Brennan, the sub goalkeeper, they would all have six. It is great.”

Meagher relished hurling at inter-county level for Laois and those who played and trained him had a major influence on the Rathdowney-Errill clubman’s approach.

“Definitely, going back to my own time with Laois, Castletown were very dominant in the county,” Meagher remembers. “We had a lot of lads from that team, Camross too. At the time we were fighting hard, but not taking anything from the current Laois team we were in the highest grade where you got one match or a round robin before being straight in the backdoor to play Kilkenny or Dublin.

“It is gas, when you look at it this year with the training and everything there is no comparison in the set-up. This current crop of Laois players, we got away with a couple of lads who wouldn't be speed merchants, but everybody nowadays seems to be absolutely flying around the field.

“I came on the panel the first year Padraig Horan was training us. Then it transitioned to Sean Cuddy and Paidi Butler, who had a good few years and it finished up with Dinny Cahill. Paidi Butler, Sean Cuddy, and Pat Critchley, of course, they were savage people for it.

“Paidi Butler brought a new dimension with hurling drills. Back in them times you'd do three drills maybe and then you played a match or went running. It was different to the way things are now.”

Valuable lessons were learned by Meagher during his days in the blue and white Laois jersey. “When the likes of Padraig Horan calls you aside, being a young lad hurling with Rathdowney you probably didn't think too much about Padraig Horan - it is only then you realise what he achieved in the game himself,” Meagher comments.

“Even then you go to the stories about Sean Cuddy and that Camross team. Pat Critchley talks to you about hurling and what he thinks about the way you should go about things of course you are going to listen. They are great lads.

“You could be hurling half back or midfield, Niall Rigney would be hurling behind you, then the likes of Bill Maher, who was finishing up when I was coming through, Paul Cuddy, David Cuddy all them lads were full of encouragement.”

Meagher is grateful for the manner in which they assisted him and Rathdowney-Errill have benefited from his passion.

Following a fine victory over St Rynagh’s from Banagher, Rathdowney-Errill now face Cuala conquerors, St Mullins at the penultimate stage in the province.

“You still get people who would say to you that you are playing a Carlow team, but Carlow played a grade higher than Laois,” Meagher cautions. “You have to keep reminding people about that. From our own mental point of view going into the game you are not playing Cuala or Ballyhale straight away.

“You get another good crack at it where you are going out on a level playing ground basically. Everyone is looking forward to it and it is the same as the Banagher game really. We came into play the Banagher game, we didn't know too much about them. We didn't know too much about them, but by the same token everyone was looking forward to playing the game. St Mullins' will be the same, they will be thinking the same thing after beating Cuala.”

One thing is for certain: Meagher has contributed handsomely to the Rathdowney-Errill cause. The buzz is similar to when Rathdowney-Errill was founded in 2005, ambition still exists as hurling chat peppers the conversations. Meagher has been there every step of the way.