Tom Óg Phelan says being ‘written off’ spurred on Castletown

CASTLETOWN’S captain and talisman, Tom Óg Phelan, was immense for his club in Sunday’s Minor Hurling Championship final. He finished with an outstanding 1-13, earned the Man of the Match award, and lifted the trophy as Castletown claimed their second successive minor title.

After the game, Phelan spoke about how he and his teammates had once again defied expectations, just as they did last year.

“These are unbelievable scenes. Hard to put into words, but it's unbelievable. Last year we came here, we had a job too, we were completely written off, and the same this year again. We were completely written off.

“Everyone expected The Harps to win it. I tell you one thing, there’s heart and belief in this group, I've never hurled with a better group before, it's unbelievable,” Phelan said.

When asked about his remarkable personal tally, Phelan admitted that players rarely notice how much they’ve scored during a game; it’s all about doing whatever it takes to win.

“You wouldn't really be noticing, to be honest. You'd just be trying to do whatever it takes to get over the line. You wouldn't really be noticing what's happening around you or the scores going over. But it's just whatever it takes to get over the line. We do it on the day and simple as that,” he said.

The Harps ended the first half strongly, hitting a goal and a point to stretch their lead to five at the break. Phelan acknowledged that Eoin Delaney’s goal was a blow, but he said the team remained confident, especially knowing they’d have the wind behind them in the second half. He also mentioned that there would be some well-earned celebrations.

“Definitely, the goal was a killer just before half-time. Delaney got a goal; he's a super hurler. We went into the dressing room and regrouped and said we're still in a good place. Only five points down at half-time, we're with the wind now.

“And then they got a point straight after half-time, and then right after that, we got a goal and got back on top. Once the goal went in, we got momentum and stayed going. We'll enjoy tonight and we'll enjoy tomorrow and sure we'll see what happens after that,” Phelan ended.