Legendary Kilcormac-Killoughey warhorse all set for one last stand

WITH his 40th birthday approaching and his body showing the inevitable ravages of a long career, Ger Healion is preparing for the end of this phase of his life.

The Kilcormac-Killoughey warhorse was absolutely pivotal to their great success of the 2010s as they won their first Senior Hurling Championship in 2012, completed three in a row in 2013 and 2014 and took a fourth title in 2017.

His physicality, power and ball winning ability created so much for K-K. As full back for most of his career, he was a feared, tough performer. His presence made the edge of the square a no go zone for most forwards and he was one of the great characters on the first great K-K team: a man who led by example, a true leader.

In later years as he moved through his 30s, he was rejuventated as a full forward target man, proving very effective in this role. The K-K success dried up as some of the great performers on the 2012-2017 team retired or drifted away: Ger's twin Peter, Brian Leonard, Killian Leonard, Ciaran Slevin and Dan Currams are no longer playing senior hurling – James Gorman had played senior “B” earlier in the year but came on as a sub in the semi-final.

Ger Healion was almost gone this year. For the first time in his life, he booked an extended holiday during the hurling season, heading to Calfornia for five and a half weeks with his wife and children – he booked it with the intention of not hurling this year, but was inveigled back and missed the Kinnitty and Clodiagh Gaels group games as a result of his holiday.

“It was the wife's first time to get a chance to book somewhere without worrying about hurling,” he smiled, reflecting with satisfaction on their break away. A secondary school teacher in St Joseph's, Rochfortbridge, they were based in San Francisco for ten days, Los Angeles for ten days and two weeks on the coast.

“I never had anything like that. The hurling never allows you to book holidays. I didn't have full intention of coming back until I got convinced one night. I have no regrets in that way and my wife was brilliant. We have two young kids at home so with her support I decided to give it another go.”

He has now returned and showed his influence by playing the entire game in the semi-final win over Birr. With much younger players receiving the nod to come off from the sideline, that was a remarkable achievement and it shows Healion's importance to K-K.

Reaching and winning another county final before “finishing up” was a major factor in Healion deciding to come back this year.

He agreed that K-K did not quite click in the early stages of the championship. “K-K have always notoriously not put away teams. If we take it back to 2017, Lusmagh almost beat us in a group game. We had to score 1-4 at the end to win it by a point. You can read into it but at the end of the day it is almost a tradition of ours not to put teams away.”

As K-K struggled in their group games against Birr, Kinnitty and Clodiagh Gaels, people were beginning to wonder if they would be able to find the extra gear they would need to win a championship. “If we go back to the days of Danny Owens and Jimmy Dunne, it was all about peaking at the right times. Not dogging ourselves too early. It was about doing enough to just get over the line and when the hard training has to be done as in now, that is when it started to come together. That is the time of year you want to be clicking. You can go really well at the start of the year and if things start to go stale then, it can fade away very quickly.”

He will be 40 next August and this will be his tenth final to play in – the first was in 2002 and he will be the only K-K man to play in all ten finals when he starts on Sunday. This is his 21st season – he played most of them at full back with his twin Peter in front of him at centre half back but he went away after the 2017 county final win. Peter moved to Galway with his wife and three kids and couldn't keep the travelling up but is hurling with an intermediate club, Annaghdown in Galway. He has settled in very well there, winning hurler of the year twice - “They are more of a football club so his hurling brain is a bit quicker than the boys and he is able to see stuff that they don't,” Ger said.

His own body is holding up well. “It is okay. I can't say it is good. After tough sessions, I am sore for a day or two after. I have been lucky this year. I had a twinge in my knee and got surgery a couple of years ago. In general I am going well. The lads have been good to me as well. There are times I will say I am too tired, I am not able and they will give me a break.”

There were a couple of years where Healion was either being started and taken off or reserved as an impact sub. It was a role he accepted but he wasn't jumping through hoops at it. “That was more to do with management. They deemed they were going with youth and wanted to transition into it. I was used as an impact sub. Personally I am the kind of player who wants to play. In fairness to Shane (Hand), John (Leahy) and the lads, they gave me a shot this year and I am trying to repay that.”

He was back for the group win over St Rynagh's and that was a huge turning point for K-K as they had lost their last few big games against Offaly hurling's dominant force. “They had beaten us five times and it was good to get that. There were a lot of lads there who never beat Rynagh's. Winning breeds winning and you have to try and win every day. When you beat the county champions, it instills more belief.”

Having gone four years without winning the Sean Robbins Cup, K-K know how hard it is to win championships. “Championships aren't easy won. I would say the Rynagh's lads will agree with this. You get stale very quickly and it takes an exceptional team to be able to keep things going over a long period of time. You need the right lads to come in, understand players and be able to get the best out of them and I think Shane and John are that.”

K-K have had fantastic underage success in recent years, dominating and they had some of the best and most exciting players on the Offaly team that went so close to winning the All-Ireland Minor Hurling Championship in 2022. It suggests that K-K could be about to embark on a period of dominance. What do you say to that?

“Look, I don't fully agree with it. They are exceptional players but exceptional minor players don't always turn into an exceptional senior team. You take the Birr team of the 2000s, they weren't winning minor championships and they went on to win All-Ireland's after All-Ireland's. You look at our club. We won all those minors and U-21s (1990s) before and it never transitioned into senior. You take myself and Ciaran Slevin and the Grogan's, we never won anything underage. We are being spoilt with all these lads winning everything but does that mean they will win at senior level. I don't know. Take the other side. The likes of Conor Mahon, Damien Kilmartin, Dan Currams and them, they won at underage level and came and turned the K-K team inside out. I am hoping it is more like that than the previous one.”

He is excited by the young talent emerging. “In fairness, their love of hurling is second to none. Every training session, they are here and pucking back balls, handing out water bottles. There is no airs and graces about them. They are an exceptional bunch of lads. They are all well grounded lads.”

He grimaced when asked would he be tempted to give another year to help guide those young minors into adult hurling next year. “Oh God. We won't speculate on that because I could be either killed or divorced if I suggested it. Look, it is definitely just this year and after that, there are no plans. See how the body is.”

He has found it harder to take the hits as he gets older. “The worse of it is a young lad bounces off you and before you realise it, he is two yards gone away from you. That usen't to happen as quick. At this stage, it is a bit about managing your body and trying to be in the best position you possibly can be. You are never going to be as quick as the minors coming out but you have to use your hurling brain. Young lads now are all about physical strength. They are all in gyms and power. I would say we never did any gym work until 2008 or 2009. I was in senior five or six years before I ever stepped into a gym. All these lads now are in a gym at 13-14 years of age. It becomes a lifestyle for them. Power is definitely in them.”

Shinrone represents new opposition in the final and it means that K-K will be the favourites. “I personally believe it is always 50-50. In 2009, we were favourites and Tullamore beat us. Again we were favourites against Coolderry in 2018 and we got beaten. It is very much on the day and I am a firm believer that you try and get your house in order and go from there. The favourite's tag is a thing for the bookies and those on the outside. For us, we have to try and get on with it and do our job.”

He agreed that Shinrone's presence in the final is good for Offaly hurling. “I have a friend in the school who lives in Shinrone and she has been telling me of the excitement over there. It is good for clubs as well. It will rejuvenate clubs. All the underage success here is from K-K winning the county title in 2012. All those young lads were 7-8 years of age then and are now 17-18-19. That can hopefully do the same thing for Shinrone and hurling in general in the county. It is needed.”