WHEN CLARE EXITED the 2023 All-Ireland hurling race, the disappointment hit Ryan Taylor on different levels.
Another defeat to Kilkenny at the last four stage, following up on a Munster final loss to Limerick, left the Clare squad as a collective facing a familiar setback.
For Ryan there was personal concern, his knee giving him trouble before half-time and forcing him off. The confirmation later that he had torn his cruciate capped off a miserable end to 2023.
“I knew I did some damage, wasn’t quite sure how bad it was. The physio came on, he reckoned that, yeah, I was in a bit of bother. I played on for one more play and I was running on it and I came off then, signaled to the lads to come off and that was it.
“It took me seven weeks to get surgery because the knee was a bit swollen, the surgeon wasn’t too keen on getting it done. In your head you’re thinking April, for when the championship starts, but that probably wasn’t very realistic. Then as time goes on you’re thinking, ‘Will I ever get back?’
“Shane Malone, our physio, is absolutely unbelievable. To be honest, I don’t think I would have got back without him. He played a major role in it.”
There is a sharp contrast to his downbeat feeling in 2023 and his current mood.
As Clare’s season reached the crunch stage, Taylor was back at the heart of the action.
Sprung from the bench against Kilkenny where he influenced the outcome with his intelligent midfield play in his first appearance in a year.
Then he was involved again against Cork on Sunday as he snapped over a point in Clare’s thrilling final success.
“For me personally to get back and play some part in it is unbelievable, absolutely unreal.
“The Wexford game was probably a little bit more realistic (to come back) but I think I had only done two full training sessions. Now I was moving fairly well but I’m not sure the physio was too keen, you need a bit more in the bank.
“He said there’s a big difference between a training session and playing in a game, the intensity is just at a different level.
“I’m probably not the most patient but I really do trust him (physio). He’s been there with me since the very start of it and he has my best interests at heart. There’s no point coming back early for a few minutes and doing more damage. So I put my full faith in him and he did the job.”
Taylor’s form has been terrific at midfield for Clare over the last few years but he admitted to some doubts about his capacity to recapture that form after such a serious injury.
“It’s 12 months since I played any form of competitive game, I didn’t even get a chance to play a club game.
“If that had fallen right I might have got a few minutes but I didn’t. You have doubts in your head. Will you come back the same? How will you go? But thankfully I chipped in and had a bit of a contribution.
“It was just great to get back for some part of the season and actually play a role and then for us to win, that was the icing on the cake.
“I felt like I had a decent impact against Kilkenny and then it comes into your mind about maybe getting a starting position. But it’s still only a two-week turnaround and maybe the boys were thinking, ‘Listen, we need some fresh legs off the bench’.
“I was genuinely happy to do any role I could, as long as we got the business done.”
As an 18-year-old he stood on Hill 16 in 2013, watching Clooney-Quin club-mates Peter Duggan and Fergal Lynch get their hands on the Liam MacCarthy Cup.
11 years on, Taylor experienced that feeling alongside Duggan.
“Listen, the two boys, to bring two All-Ireland medals back to the club was a huge thing. For me and Peter to do it now, it’s some feeling. I believed we had the potential, that we could always do this.
“There’s no guarantees you’ll ever get there but I believed we had the stuff to do it. Just to get over the line, it’s a little bit surreal. It hasn’t really sank in. Hopefully that will happen in the next few days but yeah, it’s special.”
Success will be savoured now. The 29-year-old works in the family pub Taylors in Ennis, happy to spend the winter serving drinks to customers and reliving memories of last Sunday in Croke Park.
After the slog of rehabilitation work last winter, working closely alongside Tony Kelly who was on a similar recovery mission, this is the reward.
“You’re with the physio in the corner training for many, many months, looking on at the boys in training and playing games. It’s a long road, there’s no doubt about it. But in fairness we have some backroom team, the physios are top class.
“It was the ankle (with Tony), it was my knee, but the injuries had a similar timeframe. It was kind of nice to have someone to do the donkey work below in the corner with. We could bounce off each other. Sure listen he’s a leader and our captain. It’s good to get some info off him too about these things.
“Ah he’s a magician. I know people see it in games but we see it in training every day, the stuff he does, it’s just incredible. Even off the field as well he’s a massive leader. We all look up to him, it’s great that he’s got back here again and has got over the line.”
Remarkable the dedication and example all these amateur players from every county show.
Fair play to him. He has brilliant against Kilkenny in the semi final. Clare may not have come back and beaten Kilkenny without his contribution off the bench.