KILCOO will bid to get back to a second successive All-Ireland club final when they face Cork champions St Finbarr’s tomorrow – and stalwart Conor Laverty insists he is cherishing every moment of the journey.
The 36-year-old has been an integral part of the Magpies side for most of the past two decades, and the joint club captain is one of the more experienced heads on a Kilcoo side aiming to get back to Croke Park after the disappointment of defeat to Corofin two years ago.
Compared to their Ulster breakthrough in 2019, celebrations were decidedly low-key in the wake of the provincial final demolition job on Derrygonnelly Harps, which sent them through to tomorrow’s All-Ireland semi-final against the Munster kingpins.
And Laverty – speaking at an AIB launch yesterday - knows he might not have too many more chances to get back to the biggest stage.
He said. “I don’t think the celebrations were as muted as much as people thought.
“You saw the crowd on the field after, we were just delighted to win the game, and any time you win an Ulster Championship is a great privilege for the club.”
“After every defeat you definitely be hurting,” he said of that 2020 extra-time loss to Corofin, “once you come to the later stages of your career, and I’m at the very later stages of it, you do cherish every moment.
“You’re just conscious of how much longer the journey can go for.”
Last year’s Down championship saw Laverty come up against several of the young men he managed to Ulster U20 glory in the summer but, while time may be ticking on, he has no intention of turning his full attention to coaching just yet.
And yet, while his body holds up and he continues to contribute on the field
“I really enjoy both,” said Laverty, who is also a GAA development officer with Trinity College in Dublin.
“I enjoy coaching but, as many great players and managers have said and given me good advice on it, nothing beats playing. Nothing beats that buzz of playing, so I think you should always try and play as long as you can, and as long as the body holds up I’ll definitely try and play as long as that can be.
“I’m just not sure where that journey will end.”
After that U20 success, Laverty and Marty Clarke were strongly linked with the vacant Down senior post as part of a management ticket including Donegal All-Ireland winning boss Jim McGuinness.
With such a crunch game on the horizon for Kilcoo, though, Laverty wouldn’t entertain any discussion about that connection – with James McCartan having since taken up the reins in the Mourne County.
“Eh, listen, my sole focus at every minute was winning the Down senior championship with Kilcoo. Anything else was secondary.
“That’s the number one priority and the only priority in my life at the minute. It was to win the Down senior championship with Kilcoo and being successful with Kilcoo.”
When the boots are eventually hung up for good, however, Laverty will have learned plenty from the experience of working under somebody like Mickey Moran, and alongside legendary former Meath boss Sean Boylan with the Down U20s last year.
“Listen, I’ve been very lucky to be able to work with two legends of the game, being able to tap into them and to learn from them has been a privilege.
“I think - I hope - that will stand me in good stead in whatever path, coaching-wise, further down the line.”
