ST VINCENT’S SHARPSHOOTER Tomás Quinn admits his impressive club form could well be down to his decision to quit intercounty action.
The 32-year-old called time on his Dublin career in late 2012 but has been in excellent form with the Marino side since.
But Quinn insists he won’t be reversing his decision as he and his Vincent’s teammates prepare for a St Patrick’s Day showdown with Castlebar Mitchells at Croke Park in the AIB All-Ireland Club SFC final.
“I suppose the facts are, I wasn’t at as high a level with the club in my last couple of years with Dublin,” he said ahead of Monday’s decider.
“I was disappointed with my own personal performances with the club when I was finishing with Dublin, particularly in the matter stages of the Championship.
“This is the first year that I’ve played somewhat to my potential. So is that linked to not playing inter-county? Possibly, yeah. It might be the fact that I’m with the squad all year and I know the club lads a bit better, particularly the younger guys.”
Quinn skippered the side to the title in 2008 with a side featuring several players from outside the capital. This time around the Vincent’s XV is drawn much more from within Dublin 3. Is it different this time around?
“No. I don’t think so. Purely because the players you mentioned were so part of our team and part the Vincent’s community. And still are. We were playing games in Leinster this year and you go back to the club and Brian Maloney, Pat Kelly, they’re back in the club. They’re going to the games.
“I saw Mícheal O’Shea on the pitch after the Leinster final so…some clubs have outsiders who come in and you might see them for a year and then you might never see them again.
“I think those guys were very much part of what we were and still are very much part of the Vincent’s family. I suppose there is maybe a strong connection in the sense that if you have a couple of Diamonds player or a couple of what would be renowned Vincent’s names playing in the team….I don’t think it’s that different.”
Castlebar surprised many in the semi0final when they overcame Dr Crokes in a game that saw Colm cooper pick up that longterm injury. But Quinn insists he wasn’t shocked to see the Mayo side come through the tie.
“I fancied Castlebar to beat Dr Crokes,” says Quinn. “I had spoken to a couple of people the week before. I wasn’t surprised. I saw a bit of them in the Connacht game against Brigid’s. That day they didn’t really have too many individuals standing out. But just the team effort, the way they stuck at it, impressed me.
“I think when you see the teams they’ve beaten to get here, that’s testament to them. The Mayo Championship is very competitive and Corofin would be very strong. So to beat Corofin and Dr Crokes, that says a lot about them. So yeah, absolutely.”
