PAUL O’Donovan has been a big draw since he and brother Gary were “pulling like a dog” on the way to securing silver in Rio eight years ago – but a pair of Fermanagh lads are out to upstage Irish rowing’s greatest showman on Friday morning.
O’Donovan and Fintan McCarthy remain on course for back-to-back Olympic gold medals after storming into the lightweight double sculls final in impressive style. It will be a shock if the Cork pair don’t top the podium again.
For Ross Corrigan and Nathan Timoney, however, this is all new.
But, now they’re here, and having held off New Zealand to seal third in the semi-final, Corrigan and Timoney want more.
“It’s phenomenal - we’re obviously buzzing and excited but the job’s not done,” said Corrigan, who played Gaelic football with Kinawley in his younger years.
“We’re going to give it all, we’re really going to go for that medal. Gold medal. So it’s all or nothing for us on Friday.”
Maybe Daniel Wiffen’s supreme self-confidence is rubbing off on his Irish team-mates.
Indeed, the Armagh swimmer – who won 800m gold on Tuesday night – was among the first to call the pair after their semi-final success.
“The whole team was in watching Wiffen, he’s some buzz,” said Corrigan.
“He really got us fired up today - he was on the phone to us then at the finish line. He dialled us in. I’d say Armagh is buzzing, first the All-Ireland and then Wiffen to take home.”
“He rang us and said ‘the job’s not done boys’,” added Timoney, before Corrigan continued: “Phil Doyle is probably the most upset because he’s going to lose out on the county council awards next year!
“But it’s savage, the whole team to get the buzz, to see people winning medals this early on and still have so much to go.”
Timoney has his fair share of sporting pedigree too, having hurled for Fermanagh in his teenage years.
And, now 23, he shares his partner’s confidence in the pair’s ability to force themselves into the medal frame on Friday morning.
“I think the medal was on our minds from day one,” he said, “from the world champs final [where they won bronze], we set out at the start of the season for the gold medal.
“Where we are right now, we’re in a good position to learn from the heat and really push on, give a good race plan together and go for the gold medal.”
