Conroy savours victory after injury woes

At times he can be confused with Tommy ‘Goals’ Conroy, his namesake from Kiltane. But as he barrelled down the left with Kobe McDonald alongside him and one minute remaining, The Neale’s Tommy Conroy could have been forgiven for wanting to put the exclamation point on Mayo’s All-Ireland final win.

Instead, Conroy wisely opted to fist it over the bar to make it a three-point game with 20 seconds to go. Time was against Kerry at that stage to work the goal opportunity and the celebration from Conroy when he pointed was proof, if proof were needed, that the wait was over.

Not that he didn’t consider going for goal, mind you.

“I did because I seen Kobe was to my right,” Conroy told the Western People. “But I just wanted to get a score on the board. I knew then it would be a goal [between us], to go from two points to three points was probably huge.

“It did definitely cross my mind but if I messed up, I'd give them a chance to get a two, it’d have been a disaster, so that's what's kind of going through my head.” 

It was almost 20 years ago that Conroy first experienced Croke Park when he went to the 2006 All-Ireland final. He was ‘in awe’ of the famous ground and from there, Mayo football had him hooked.

“I was probably the biggest Mayo supporter you could get, like most kids in Mayo. There's so many people I'm thinking of in there that inspired me to play for Mayo. Since they retired, I've seen the likes of Leeroy and more out there. Keith Higgins, Boyler, Andy and our management team. They inspired me to want to play for Mayo.

“When you're watching them, I had so much good days even though obviously we never came out on the right side of it in All-Ireland finals but so much good days in Croke Park in my teenage years. That's effectively what made me want to be out there today and I’m so grateful for that.” 

The last few years have been a challenge to Conroy, with a cruciate ligament injury in 2022 having a domino effect on the forward since. He admitted he had doubts over whether he would get back to full fitness so the All-Ireland win makes it ever sweeter.

“I've been kind of appreciating playing a lot more because last year I just found it really, really difficult in those times where I thought I might never get back.

“You know, you go through spirals in your head and I had issues with my knee, then I was just getting that right, then did a bad hamstring tear. I suppose you just start to go through spirals, and you start thinking, ‘jeez, will this ever get right?’ 

“Thankfully the medical team have been so good to me and put so much hours into me over last 18 months. It just made me appreciate playing for a start and then obviously to be able to win out there today tops it all off.” 

It was against Meath where the first signs were that Conroy was getting back to his best. The Neale man credited the experience of that game, where Mayo were well behind after 20 minutes, in helping ensure no one was panicking when Mayo were seven down against Kerry early doors.

“I suppose we were in a tough position with 20 minutes gone. A lot of people probably thought we were then buried but I suppose we have that belief within the group.

“When you look back now that probably helped us today in a way too because we were in a similar position today after 20 minutes and it was great to have that in the back pocket.” 

Conroy, along with clubmate Tom Lydon who is on the extended panel, will be bringing Sam to The Neale in the coming days or weeks. From winning All-Irelands with Ballinrobe Community School to last Sunday, there have been south Mayo men alongside him along the way. A former Mayo teammate and good friend in Oisin Mullin was alongside him all those years and Conroy was in no doubt how the Kilmaine man will have be feeling watching Mayo bring Sam home.

“I had a chat with him during the week. He'll be over the moon for us. He's doing so well out in Australia and I've no doubt he'll be over the moon over there for us as well.”