Cork's Patrick Horgan hoping to emulate icons who claimed belated ...

On June 8, 2008 when 20-year-old Patrick Horgan replaced Niall McCarthy near the end of the Cork v Tipperary Munster semi-final he had grounds for thinking he wouldn’t have too long to wait before securing Championship silverware.

Granted Cork lost that day in Páirc Uí Chaoimh but they had contested four of the previous six All-Ireland finals; won back-to-back titles in 2004-2005 and had narrowly lost to Kilkenny in their bid for a hat-trick of Liam MacCarthy successes in 2006.

Horgan’s scoring exploits began a month later when he notched his first point in Championship action, hitting Cork’s last score in a sluggish five-point win over Dublin in a qualifier.

Imagine telling anybody that evening that this Glen Rovers rookie would go on to notch up more than 700 points (29-617 to be precise) in Championship hurling over the next 17 seasons years but not win a Celtic Cross.

Horgan had established himself as a first-choice player by the time the Rebels knocked out today’s All-Ireland final opponents in the 2008 All-Ireland quarter final – he scored 0-3. He was replaced during the subsequent semi-final loss to Kilkenny when another rookie, TJ Reid, made only his second Championship appearance off the bench for the Cats.

Horgan will almost certainly overtake Reid’s 34-604 (706 points from 89 appearances ) scoring tally and become the highest-ever scorer in Championship hurling this afternoon in Croke Park in his 83rd Championship appearance. The record is mostly a sideshow, however.

The divergent paths which the careers of Hogan and Reid took after that 2008 semi-final is as striking as it is different.

Reid has collected 13 All-Ireland titles, seven with Kilkenny and six with his club Ballyhale Shamrocks. Horgan has yet to win an All-Ireland and is making only his fourth appearance in a final today.

Clare beat Cork in 2013 after a replay and the Rebels were on the receiving end of a trouncing from Limerick just three years ago.

At 36 Horgan has defied conventional wisdom by staying at the coal face for so long. It illustrates his passion for hurling.

Not all epic tales have a happy ending. But it is not unprecedented in the GAA for players to finally reach the Promised Land after many years of heartache.

Here we look at some classic cases of players finally getting their hands on a Celtic Cross after enduring endless disappointments.

Hurling

George O’Connor (Wexford)

One of the most iconic images ever captured on All-Ireland final day was George O’Connor falling on his knees, hands clasped in gratitude after the final whistle sounded in the 1996 final.

Soon afterwards the oldest player on the field was swept off his feet and hoisted high on the shoulders of jubilant Wexford fans.

A dual player, O’Connor had made his senior hurling debut back in the 1979 Oireachtas final. Within two years he had won a hurling All Star. Wexford featured in six Leinster finals and a League final but lost all of them.

He had retired by the time Liam Griffin took charge but was persuaded to return. After picking up a nasty hand injury in the Leinster semi-final win over Dublin he was able to make only a cameo appearance when Wexford defeated Offaly to win their first provincial title since 1977.

He came on as a substitute in the semi-final win over Galway but wasn’t expected to start the final. However, when defender Seán Flood was ruled out through injury O’Connor was drafted into midfield to partner Adrian Fenlon.

Despite being a man down for the entire second half Wexford prevailed by two points. After 17 seasons George O’Connor had finally won an All-Ireland medal at the age of 37. He retired soon afterwards.

Damien Martin (Offaly)

When Damien Martin made his Championship debut in goal for Offaly against Westmeath in 1967, the prospect of ever winning the biggest prize in the game seemed fanciful. Kilkenny, Wexford and Dublin were the dominant teams in hurling in the province. Offaly did reach their first Leinster final since the 1920s in 1969 but lost to Kilkenny. The seventies were just as bleak: Kilkenny and Wexford contested every Leinster final.

But Martin, together with Pádraig Horan and the late Johnny Flaherty, though he spent much of the seventies in the US, soldiered on. It all came together in spectacular fashion at the start of the 1980s with the Faithful County beating Kilkenny in the 1980 Leinster final. A year later thanks to Flaherty’s late goal they secured a historic All-Ireland win. The significance of that triumph increases with time as there have been no first-time winners of the Liam MacCarthy Cup since. Offaly’s first All Star, he won a second All-Ireland medal in 1985 before retiring a year later at the age of 40.

Joe Canning (Galway)

From the moment he made his senior debut for Portumna at the age 15 in May 2004 Canning looked destined for stardom. During a glittering underage career for Galway he won back-to-back All-Ireland minor titles and an All-Ireland U-21 crown. He made an immediate impact at senior level in his debut season in 2008, winning an All Star and was named as Young Hurler of the Year.

But Galway and Canning had to wait another nine years before they finally captured the Liam MacCarthy Cup – to deliver Canning his first Celtic Cross at the age of 29. He retired after the 2021 All-Ireland Championship.

Pat Fox (Tipperary)

Tipperary experienced their worst-ever hurling famine when they failed to win a Munster title between 1971 and 1987. Fox made his Munster Championship debut against Cork in 1980 on the day a revamped Semple Stadium was opened. But it wasn’t until Babs Keating became team manager that their revival began in 1986. Fox finally picked up a Celtic Cross in 1989 when Tipp beat Antrim in the final and he won a second two years later.

Football

Dinny Allen (Cork)

Allen’s story is arguably the most remarkable of the lot. Though he made his senior debut in the 1972 Munster final, he had to wait 17 years before winning his first All-Ireland medal.

He ought to have played when Cork won Sam in 1973 but was dropped from the squad after he featured on Cork Hibernians’ FAI Cup-winning team in the spring. In 1975 he returned to the Cork GAA fold as a hurler and won a Munster title. He was back as football captain the following year but the Rebels lost eight Munster finals on the spin to the Kingdom.

Allen finally picked up a Munster football medal in 1983 when Tadgh Murphy’s last-gasp goal gave Cork a sensational win over Kerry.

But the Rebels were beaten by Dublin in a replay in the All-Ireland semi-final and he seemed destined to end his career without an All-Ireland medal.

However, after a two-year absence he was recalled to the team in 1988 at the age of 36. Cork lost to Meath after a replay in 1988 but – 17 years after he made his debut – Allen captained Cork to victory in the 1989 final against Mayo.

Peter Canavan (Tyrone)

A bitter internal club dispute in Tyrone meant that Peter Canavan played no competitive club football at underage level. He showcased his talents with the Tyrone Vocational schools team. And through a loophole in GAA regulations – he registered as a member of Killyclogher hurling club – he became eligible to play with the Red Hand county teams. He made his senior Championship debut for Tyrone at the age of 19 in 1990 and won his first All Star at the age of 23. He scored all but one point of Tyrone’s 0-12 tally in the 1995 final against Dublin but had to wait until 2003 for his first All-Ireland SFC medal. ‘Peter The Great’ won a second All-Ireland SFC in 2005 before his retirement.

Stephen Cluxton (Dublin)

Such has been the success and impact of Stephen Cluxton’s career that it is often overlooked that he served a long and, at times, painful apprenticeship before finally winning the first of his nine All-Ireland medals in 2011. Cluxton made his Championship debut as a 19-year-old for Dublin against Longford in 2001 before becoming the first-choice goalkeeper the following season.

Joe Cassells (Meath)

Cassells made his Championship debut as a 19-year old in 1974 – he came on as a substitute in Meath’s Leinster final loss to Dublin. For the rest of the decade the Leinster Championship was dominated by the Dubs who won six titles on the spin before Offaly took over as the top team. Under the management of Seán Boylan Meath finally re-emerged. After four final losses to Dublin they finally beat them in the 1986 final and a year later – 13 years after his debut – Cassells picked up an All-Ireland winners medal when Meath beat Cork in the final. He won a second medal a year later when he captained the Royals to victory over Cork in a final replay.