FOR ALL INTENTS and purposes, Denis Bastick’s mind had been made up. With a third All-Ireland medal around his neck, the midfielder was ready to bring the curtain down on his Dublin career.
The morning after the night before, he spoke of how he’d miss his young child ‘growing up for another year of his life’ if he decided to commit to the cause for another season. The writing was very much on the wall.
But something changed. At some point over the course of the winter, he was swayed to stay on for another tilt at Sam Maguire, even at the age of 35.
“It was a huge decision, a huge decision for me,” he admits.
“Time will tell whether it’s the right one overall. Obviously I sat down with the family, had discussions, sat down with Jim [Gavin] and made up my mind.
“We’re in a lucky position that we have a chance to do something special and compete at the top end of the Championship so in that sense it was difficult to step away from that.
“It’s tough. It takes so much time, takes so much out of you and it is tough. You don’t always get the reward you deserve so that’s the dangerous factor. You could be left empty-handed at the end of the year and that’s when it’ll be really telling.
“There was no convincing. It was my own decision. I had to weigh up what was right. For me it was a case of do I have something to contribute to the team? That was the biggest question for me. Can I add something? Can I add value to the team and the group? I felt I could and that’s why I’m still here.”
As Dublin prepare for Sunday’s Allianz League final against Kerry at Croke Park, Bastick’s hunger for success remains undiluted and ultimately it was that ‘greed’ which convinced him to go again.
“Why does any sportsperson, why do Kilkenny stay coming back and winning,” he continues.
“It doesn’t get any less appealing to win an All-Ireland, that hunger, that’s always there. That stays there. Maybe it was the right time, starting an All-Ireland final and winning, to step away.
“Maybe that was the right time to go but for me at the moment I’m enjoying playing football, I’m enjoying playing on the team. Being involved in that group. It’s a special place. It’s a great place to be.”
Jim Gavin’s men coasted through to this weekend’s decider at HQ as they seek to win a fourth successive league title, a feat last achieved by Kerry between 1971 and 1974.
Bastick has played his part throughout the campaign and will be pushing for a starting position in Gavin’s engine room at the weekend.
But with Michael Darragh MacAuley back in the fold after injury, competition for places is high and the Templeogue Synge Street man insists being first choice won’t determine whether he made the right decision or not.
“It’s a tough question,” he adds. “But if I can come on and make a contribution and win a game, then that’s the part I’m going to play in that team.
“I could be happy or comfortable with the idea that I’ve contributed to the team winning and doing well. So it’s not a case that I have to start all the time for me to be happy.
“Obviously every player on the team wants to do that and not everybody can. But I’m going to be happy if I can look back at the end of this and say I’ve contributed or I’ve done well.
“I’ve inputted or helped someone or someone has helped me and the team has done well as a result of that. That’s what would make me happy.
“I want more and that’s what I want to do and that’s why I’m here.”
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