GERRY FAHY, A highly rated football coach in Galway, found himself combing through YouTube recently.
He settled on a video of the 2017 All-Ireland U21 final between Galway and Dublin, the last decider at that grade before the U20 iteration was introduced. At just over 10 minutes in length, the video documented the first half of Dublin’s six-point win at O’Connor Park in Tullamore.
After watching the pre-match interview with Dublin manager Dessie Farrell, Fahy saw his own face flash up on the screen, speaking as the head of a team who had earned a shock semi-final success over Kerry.
The footage then shifted to the pre-match handshakes, where he saw all the familiar faces that he mentored nine years ago. His half-back line of Cillian McDaid, Dylan McHugh and Kieran Molloy were all there. Seán Kelly, a half-forward at the time, also popped up, as did Robert Finnerty.
And then a thought occurred to him: six of his starters that day, also featured two weeks ago when Pádraic Joyce’s side defeated Westmeath to reach the All-Ireland quarter-finals. Peter Cooke, one of Fahy’s U21 midfielders, would bring that number up to seven, but withdrew from the senior panel this year due to work commitments.
Céin Darcy in action against Kerry in the 2017 All-Ireland U21 semi-final. Donall Farmer / INPHO
Donall Farmer / INPHO / INPHO
Cooke’s U21 midfield partner was Céin Darcy. He was man-of-the-match in the recent Westmeath win, and was just 19 when he started in that U21 All-Ireland final.
He had played in a minor All-Ireland final the year before against a Kerry side packed with future senior stars including Seán O’Shea, Diarmuid O’Connor and David Clifford. Interestingly, Darcy was dispatched at corner-back on that occasion as Galway were outgunned by 3-7 to 0-9 for a Kerry three-in-a-row.
Despite his tender age, Fahy knew that the Caherlistrane man was sufficiently mature for the next grade and fast-tracked him into the U21 set-up along with some other early developers.
“Céin, Rob Finnerty and Dessie Connelly came straight from minor, which was a big step. They were U19 playing in the U21 final. All three of them played U20 with me [again] the next year.
“So, they were very young but deservedly on the team. They were quality players. They went on to prove it [at senior level] afterwards.”
****
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After helping Ballyboden reach the Leinster semi-final last November, Darcy made a curious admission when speaking to media afterwards.
“I’d probably just lost my way a little bit as a man,” he began, having played a key role at midfield to defeat Wexford’s Castletown.
Before that, he scored a decisive goal in the Dublin county final which ultimately powered Ballyboden to a fifth title after a 1-16 to 1-12 win against Na Fianna. They would end the campaign with provincial honours before bowing out to eventual All-Ireland winners Dingle at the semi-final stage.
“When I came in here with these lads they had me turning that corner and I really appreciate that.”
He was referring to his 2023 transfer to the Dublin club and the subsequent revival of his career with the Galway footballers. Darcy made his senior inter-county debut in 2018 and went on to start every game of the 2020 season which ended after losing the Connacht final to Mayo. Covid-19 restrictions forced a return to the old-style knock-out format for the championship that year.
Darcy was withdrawn after just 23 minutes in that one-point defeat against Mayo, and did not play for Galway again until 2024.
Fahy couldn’t quite comprehend the decision to exclude a player who inspired the Galway U21s to an extra-time victory over Sligo in the 2017 Connacht final.
“We were struggling against Sligo. I remember the throw-in at the beginning of the second half, and Céin just drove down the middle and kicked it over the bar. You could rely on him 100% to play. Whatever you asked him to do, he would do it to the best of his ability. Uncomplicated, very determined young man, and very mature for his age.
“Céin provided great leadership for a man so young.”
Darcy posted three points from play in that 3-20 to 2-14 Connacht final. It was a performance that reminded Fahy of Galway’s two-time All-Ireland winner, Tomás Mannion, who he had also coached in the past.
And as he watched Darcy graduate to the senior set-up, he felt his former student was responding well to the challenges posed by the standard-bearers of that time.
“I remember being in Croke Park for a league game, and he was marking [former Dublin midfielder] Brian Fenton. We all came out of that match thinking that not that many people had stood up to Brian Fenton as he had.
“After that, he [Darcy] was only getting bits and pieces, and I was very surprised because I watched him closely that day, and he gave Fenton plenty to think about. I’m not sure what happened, how he fell out of favour, because he was in good shape, but suddenly he seemed to drift away.”
****
Fahy received some encouraging news about his former U21 midfielder shortly after that transfer to Ballyboden in 2023. His friend — and former Galway footballer — Val Daly was the Mountbellew-Moylough manager at the time and had arranged a challenge match against the Firhouse Road side.
He called Fahy for an important debrief after the game.
“He rang me, and said Darcy was outstanding. I said, ‘Do you think the people in Galway know that?’ He said, ‘I’m not sure.’ I said, ‘Get that message out because they need to look at this man again.’
“He probably had lost a bit of his fitness, but Val said he ran the show.”
It was around that time that Darcy earned his recall to the Galway panel. Similar to the 2020 season, he started all but two of Galway’s Division 1 games in 2024 and continued to exert his influence throughout the championship.
He opened with 1-2 from play against London in the Connacht quarter-final and was Paul Conroy’s midfield partner for the final where they edged out Mayo for a provincial three-in-a-row.
Darcy on the ball during Galway's famous All-Ireland quarter-final victory against Dublin in 2024. James Crombie / INPHO
James Crombie / INPHO / INPHO
Darcy was also involved for Galway’s incredible All-Ireland quarter-final win over the defending champions Dublin that year as a substitute. He scored a vital point in the 61st minute to help secure a famous 0-17 to 0-16 result in Croke Park.
And although Galway were denied the Sam Maguire by Armagh, Darcy started that game at half-forward and kicked three points from play to finish as Galway’s joint top-scorer on the day alongside Conroy.
****
While accepting his man-of-the-match award after Galway’s win over Westmeath, Darcy made an important observation about his side’s path to this year’s All-Ireland quarter-final.
“It’s nice to go the straight route for the first year in the last three,” he told GAA+, speaking about the relieving contrast with their preliminary quarter-final journeys in recent seasons.
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He had scored two points, but it was aerial superiority that secured the man-of-the-match award in Pearse Stadium. Darcy was a reliable target for Connor Gleeson’s kickouts, particularly in the second half when Westmeath were launching a comeback which brought them to within three points by the final whistle.
And as a resurgent Dublin come into view this weekend, Galway will be hoping that Darcy can lord the skies again. Reminders of that U21 All-Ireland final nine years ago will be easy to find throughout the field on Sunday afternoon.
Evan Comerford, Sean MacMahon and Brian Howard all started that day, and were also to the fore in last weekend’s upset of Donegal. Con O’Callaghan, Colm Basquel (Darcy’s club-mate with Ballyboden) and Paddy Small were similarly involved in 2017, and have since blossomed into core players for the Dublin seniors. They combined for 2-14 to help take down Jim McGuinness’s side after extra-time.
Darcy has been named on the Galway team to start tomorrow, set to wear 22 on his back as Galway have opted not to use the number 10 jersey as a mark of respect to the late Paul Clacny, who sadly passed away this week.
Fahy says he was speaking to Darcy recently. Naturally, his club transfer to Ballyboden came up in conversation and how that has prompted the resurrection of his Galway career. Darcy remains loyal to his home club Caherlistrane where he developed as a footballer.
But Ballyboden has been the catalyst for Céin Darcy 2.0.
“I’ve noticed in his conversations that he’s very grounded,” says Fahy. “He feels very responsible to do his part.
“He’s our natural ball-winner in the middle of the field. And he keeps proving it.”
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The U21 star who relaunched his Galway senior career after switching clubs
GERRY FAHY, A highly rated football coach in Galway, found himself combing through YouTube recently.
He settled on a video of the 2017 All-Ireland U21 final between Galway and Dublin, the last decider at that grade before the U20 iteration was introduced. At just over 10 minutes in length, the video documented the first half of Dublin’s six-point win at O’Connor Park in Tullamore.
After watching the pre-match interview with Dublin manager Dessie Farrell, Fahy saw his own face flash up on the screen, speaking as the head of a team who had earned a shock semi-final success over Kerry.
The footage then shifted to the pre-match handshakes, where he saw all the familiar faces that he mentored nine years ago. His half-back line of Cillian McDaid, Dylan McHugh and Kieran Molloy were all there. Seán Kelly, a half-forward at the time, also popped up, as did Robert Finnerty.
And then a thought occurred to him: six of his starters that day, also featured two weeks ago when Pádraic Joyce’s side defeated Westmeath to reach the All-Ireland quarter-finals. Peter Cooke, one of Fahy’s U21 midfielders, would bring that number up to seven, but withdrew from the senior panel this year due to work commitments.
Cooke’s U21 midfield partner was Céin Darcy. He was man-of-the-match in the recent Westmeath win, and was just 19 when he started in that U21 All-Ireland final.
He had played in a minor All-Ireland final the year before against a Kerry side packed with future senior stars including Seán O’Shea, Diarmuid O’Connor and David Clifford. Interestingly, Darcy was dispatched at corner-back on that occasion as Galway were outgunned by 3-7 to 0-9 for a Kerry three-in-a-row.
Despite his tender age, Fahy knew that the Caherlistrane man was sufficiently mature for the next grade and fast-tracked him into the U21 set-up along with some other early developers.
“Céin, Rob Finnerty and Dessie Connelly came straight from minor, which was a big step. They were U19 playing in the U21 final. All three of them played U20 with me [again] the next year.
“So, they were very young but deservedly on the team. They were quality players. They went on to prove it [at senior level] afterwards.”
****
After helping Ballyboden reach the Leinster semi-final last November, Darcy made a curious admission when speaking to media afterwards.
“I’d probably just lost my way a little bit as a man,” he began, having played a key role at midfield to defeat Wexford’s Castletown.
Before that, he scored a decisive goal in the Dublin county final which ultimately powered Ballyboden to a fifth title after a 1-16 to 1-12 win against Na Fianna. They would end the campaign with provincial honours before bowing out to eventual All-Ireland winners Dingle at the semi-final stage.
“When I came in here with these lads they had me turning that corner and I really appreciate that.”
He was referring to his 2023 transfer to the Dublin club and the subsequent revival of his career with the Galway footballers. Darcy made his senior inter-county debut in 2018 and went on to start every game of the 2020 season which ended after losing the Connacht final to Mayo. Covid-19 restrictions forced a return to the old-style knock-out format for the championship that year.
Darcy was withdrawn after just 23 minutes in that one-point defeat against Mayo, and did not play for Galway again until 2024.
Fahy couldn’t quite comprehend the decision to exclude a player who inspired the Galway U21s to an extra-time victory over Sligo in the 2017 Connacht final.
“We were struggling against Sligo. I remember the throw-in at the beginning of the second half, and Céin just drove down the middle and kicked it over the bar. You could rely on him 100% to play. Whatever you asked him to do, he would do it to the best of his ability. Uncomplicated, very determined young man, and very mature for his age.
“Céin provided great leadership for a man so young.”
Darcy posted three points from play in that 3-20 to 2-14 Connacht final. It was a performance that reminded Fahy of Galway’s two-time All-Ireland winner, Tomás Mannion, who he had also coached in the past.
And as he watched Darcy graduate to the senior set-up, he felt his former student was responding well to the challenges posed by the standard-bearers of that time.
“I remember being in Croke Park for a league game, and he was marking [former Dublin midfielder] Brian Fenton. We all came out of that match thinking that not that many people had stood up to Brian Fenton as he had.
“After that, he [Darcy] was only getting bits and pieces, and I was very surprised because I watched him closely that day, and he gave Fenton plenty to think about. I’m not sure what happened, how he fell out of favour, because he was in good shape, but suddenly he seemed to drift away.”
****
Fahy received some encouraging news about his former U21 midfielder shortly after that transfer to Ballyboden in 2023. His friend — and former Galway footballer — Val Daly was the Mountbellew-Moylough manager at the time and had arranged a challenge match against the Firhouse Road side.
He called Fahy for an important debrief after the game.
“He rang me, and said Darcy was outstanding. I said, ‘Do you think the people in Galway know that?’ He said, ‘I’m not sure.’ I said, ‘Get that message out because they need to look at this man again.’
“He probably had lost a bit of his fitness, but Val said he ran the show.”
It was around that time that Darcy earned his recall to the Galway panel. Similar to the 2020 season, he started all but two of Galway’s Division 1 games in 2024 and continued to exert his influence throughout the championship.
He opened with 1-2 from play against London in the Connacht quarter-final and was Paul Conroy’s midfield partner for the final where they edged out Mayo for a provincial three-in-a-row.
Darcy was also involved for Galway’s incredible All-Ireland quarter-final win over the defending champions Dublin that year as a substitute. He scored a vital point in the 61st minute to help secure a famous 0-17 to 0-16 result in Croke Park.
And although Galway were denied the Sam Maguire by Armagh, Darcy started that game at half-forward and kicked three points from play to finish as Galway’s joint top-scorer on the day alongside Conroy.
****
While accepting his man-of-the-match award after Galway’s win over Westmeath, Darcy made an important observation about his side’s path to this year’s All-Ireland quarter-final.
“It’s nice to go the straight route for the first year in the last three,” he told GAA+, speaking about the relieving contrast with their preliminary quarter-final journeys in recent seasons.
He had scored two points, but it was aerial superiority that secured the man-of-the-match award in Pearse Stadium. Darcy was a reliable target for Connor Gleeson’s kickouts, particularly in the second half when Westmeath were launching a comeback which brought them to within three points by the final whistle.
And as a resurgent Dublin come into view this weekend, Galway will be hoping that Darcy can lord the skies again. Reminders of that U21 All-Ireland final nine years ago will be easy to find throughout the field on Sunday afternoon.
Evan Comerford, Sean MacMahon and Brian Howard all started that day, and were also to the fore in last weekend’s upset of Donegal. Con O’Callaghan, Colm Basquel (Darcy’s club-mate with Ballyboden) and Paddy Small were similarly involved in 2017, and have since blossomed into core players for the Dublin seniors. They combined for 2-14 to help take down Jim McGuinness’s side after extra-time.
Darcy has been named on the Galway team to start tomorrow, set to wear 22 on his back as Galway have opted not to use the number 10 jersey as a mark of respect to the late Paul Clacny, who sadly passed away this week.
Fahy says he was speaking to Darcy recently. Naturally, his club transfer to Ballyboden came up in conversation and how that has prompted the resurrection of his Galway career. Darcy remains loyal to his home club Caherlistrane where he developed as a footballer.
But Ballyboden has been the catalyst for Céin Darcy 2.0.
“I’ve noticed in his conversations that he’s very grounded,” says Fahy. “He feels very responsible to do his part.
“He’s our natural ball-winner in the middle of the field. And he keeps proving it.”
****
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