Tyrone captain Padraig Hampsey says All-Ireland final win over Mayo is 'the stuff of dreams'
Pádraig Hampsey and Brian Dooher give their reactions to Tyrone's All-Ireland final win over Mayo at Croke Park. "This is the stuff of dreams," said Hampsey. "Days that you have dreamed of, as a young lad."
Saturday 11 September 2021 20:48, UK
Pádraig Hampsey has led Tyrone to just their fourth ever All-Ireland final victory.
By lifting the Sam Maguire Cup, he joins fellow county-men Peter Canavan and Brian Dooher as Red Hands captains to receive the famous trophy.
For the Coalisland man, it is a dream come true.
"This is the stuff of dreams. Days that you have dreamed of, as a young lad, to follow in the great footsteps of Brian [Dooher] and Pete [Canavan], it's just a surreal feeling. Words cannot describe this feeling," he told Sky Sports after the match.
"This is what you dream of as a lad, to climb the Hogan steps and win the All-Ireland with a Tyrone team. We've had some tough days over the last couple of years. The last couple of months, even. But we stuck together and thankfully we got across the line today."
And Hampsey knows he and his teammates had to dig deep to pull through the contest.
"Look, it was a real tough battle," he said.
"We knew what Mayo were bringing, and they didn't throw in the towel. We got a few soft enough goals, but we felt they just kept coming at us. Thank God we got across the line."
Dooher: Words can't express how I feel
Joint-manager Dooher also created a piece of history in the triumph.
However, he was in no mood to take any of the credit.
"It's all about them players today, and that's the important thing. We should remember that. They put their heart and soul into this. They invested a lot of time in it. Today they're getting their just rewards," he said.
"Words can't express how I feel about the work those boys put in throughout the year and they put in a huge shift there today. Things didn't go well for them, they faced an uphill battle at times but they dug deep, persevered and got their rewards at the end of it.
"The first time we came in, they did everything we asked of them and more. And that's what it takes nowadays. We had the rub of the green, Mayo missed a penalty, that was a big turning point in the game, but you take those things as they come to you. And thankfully we rolled on from there and pushed on."
And like Mickey Harte in 2003, the new management team has guided the county to the summit of the sport in their maiden season.
"It just worked. You get that first-year bounce, and everything went for us," Dooher smiled. "We got the rub of the green whenever we needed it, and thankfully we're here now."
