Jamie Barron: in the thick of it during the Munster Final
But the Fourmilewater man isn’t too interested in labels, tags or informal honours bestowed upon him by The Munster Express, Club Deise or The42.ie. He’s just doing his job.
“I’m just happy to be on the field – I don’t really mind about being unsung or whatever you’d like to call it,” he declared.
“Just being part of this team is great at the moment. I’ve Kevin Moran in midfield with me, you’ve Austin (Gleeson) out and around there to and you’ve Colin (Dunford) as well – sure whoever gets the scores doesn’t really matter a whole lot to me. It’s just great to be part of it.”
Barron continued: “Work rate out around the middle of the field is the main thing these days, and that goes for every team. And we’re all contributing. Who’s scoring isn’t that great a deal really just as long we’re winning at the end of the day.”
That work rate was bedded in during gruelling running sessions on the gallops in Kilmacthomas overseen by Physical Trainer Fergal O’Brien, who has won just praise for the panel’s tip-top conditioning. Hardly a pleasant winter memory, I take it?
“Oh no, going out there on a Saturday morning at nine o’clock, sure it was the last thing you’d want to be doing,” he recalled.
“But back then you’d be trying to say to yourself that mornings like that were to make days like next Sunday in Croke Park possible, and that’s what you have to keep saying to yourself at that time of the year, and thankfully we’re seeing the benefits of all that running and all that physical work and hopefully that will help get us over the line against Kilkenny.”
For a man from Jamie’s neck of the woods, a clash with Tipperary, just over the border, always carries an additional charge of electricity.
And, of course, the same thing goes for East and North Waterfordians whenever the black and amber is the opposing colour emerging from the tunnel at Croker. Jamie knows this one means a hell of a lot to a great many hurling fans.
“Sure you’d be looking across The Quay there and there’s Ferrybank; some will say it’s in Waterford, and you’ll have Kilkenny people claiming it too,” he replied.
“And on this side of the county, when you’re on the border, sure you’re talking to or working with people from Kilkenny every day of the week. Kilkenny are the team you want to be playing, they’ve been the best team for the past 10 to 15 years and they’re still the team to beat. And if you’re going to beat them sure more than likely it’s in Croke Park – sure it’s a second home for them – they’re a serious team.”
It’s all of 56 years since Waterford last lowered the Kilkenny colours in Senior Championship action, but all records have to end sometime.
“That’s it exactly. I wouldn’t be looking at the record books or anything like that between now and Sunday. It’s all on the day. We’ve got to go up there and we’ve got to perform, and we’ll be going up with a positive mindset and we’re going to give it 100 per cent and if that gets us over the lines, then happy days.”
The togetherness of the panel this year has been particularly noteworthy, to which Jamie added: “This is the closest you’ll get to being like a club at this level. If you look around the panel, everyone genuinely gets on well, there’s great friendships after developing and there’s not an ego to be seen. We’re all down to earth and mixing well, and while ‘Brick’ is probably the oldest player in the group, he’s as immature as the rest of us younger lads.
“The buzz is great in the group whether you’re 20 or 30 and that’s certainly helped us whenever we’ve crossed that white line this year.” Let’s hope that buzz is still live beyond full-time on Sunday.
