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The Irish Sun

‘You might never get over it' – Galway ace Cillian McDaid still haunted by All-Ireland heartbreak but ready to go again

CILLIAN McDAID knows that the wounds inflicted by last year's All-Ireland SFC final defeat may never heal. However, the Advertisement 2 Cillian McDaid says the wounds from last year's All-Ireland final may never heal 2 Galway suffered defeat at the hands of Armagh in last year's showpiece event - but now they are ready to go one better The All-Ireland series will begin for the Tribe on the weekend of May 17-18. Should they successfully defend their The prize will be a place in a daunting group that also contains Derry, Dublin and the losers of the Ulster decider between Donegal and Sam Maguire holders Armagh. McDaid acknowledges Galway's provincial success as a turning point in 2024, as their season was kickstarted by the win over Mayo that was secured by Connor Gleeson's last-gasp free. They will hope for a repeat of that result on Sunday in Castlebar, where Galway can claim a fourth Nestor Cup on the bounce for the first time in 59 years. Advertisement READ MORE ON GAA Still, McDaid said: "It's just one game at the end of the day – it's not four in a row. It doesn't help us get any further in the Championship. 'If you win your first or if you're going for your tenth in a row, you're still going to be in the same position so it's just another game we need to win." McDaid, 27, has started all but two of the competitive games played by Galway so far in 2025. Plagued by injuries in the past, he is not accustomed to racking up so much mileage this early in a season. But it is a welcome change for a man who feared that he might not play at all last season after fracturing his leg while on club duty. Advertisement Most read in GAA Football The 2022 All-Star midfielder said: "It definitely wasn't clearing up as fast as I'd want. Like, the injuries were fine. It was probably more just a bit of pain. 'Where I broke the leg was just very sore and it was hard to push through it. I suppose I was afraid it was going to damage it more. RTE GAA pundit Enda McGinley reacts to Dublin vs Meath on The Sunday Game 'Despite all the reassurances, I still was hesitant but no, in fairness, I just kind of did what I was told. The medical team at the end of the day got me there and so on. 'There was a stage when we kind of thought it was time to just put it on ice and wait for next year, so it was worth pushing through." Advertisement McDaid's long-awaited return was worth the wait for Galway fans. "His first 70-minute outing of the season came in the All-Ireland quarter-final, with the Monivea-Abbey man producing a man-of-the-match performance as his county savoured a first Championship win over Dublin in 90 years. He said: "It's been great to get a full batch of training and games during the league. It gives you a bit of confidence that you've done the work. 'In other years you're kind of trying to come back in the middle of a Championship when the pace is quick and there are lads who've trained for six, seven, eight months straight, so you're just kind of playing catch-up. Advertisement "But at least when you have that training done and banked early. "You kind of know deep down that you can last a full game or you can play two weeks in a row, three weeks in a row, so it's just a bit of confidence it gives you." A fortnight after conquering the Dubs, Galway downed Donegal to book their All-Ireland final spot. McDaid then chipped in with two second-half points on the big day, only for Armagh to prevail by one. When it comes to the agony of losing a second Sam Maguire decider in three years, he said: 'I suppose it'll be there forever. It's a tough one to get over and you might never really get over it. Advertisement 'It's one of those big games where you didn't get over the line but we reviewed it and we went through it as a team. "You kind of have to park it then. Once you're happy and you know where you went wrong and you know where you need to improve, I think that's enough. 'The year before, we were knocked out by Mayo in a preliminary quarter-final. That's a tough one to deal with too, at home in a game like that. 'I suppose every year you don't win it, there's a big game you've lost that's tough to get over and you deal with it at the time. Advertisement "Games come around quickly so there are plenty of other things to be disappointed about this year already.' Asked if it felt like a more painful loss than the one against Kerry in 2022, McDaid replied: "Yeah, I'd say it did. They were both pretty bad, pretty tough. "But maybe the second time around, having been there before, maybe the distractions leading up to it that people would say, we didn't really have that and we were very focused on the game. 'But at the end of the day, if you don't take your chances, you won't win the game. That's kind of what happened." Advertisement The early indications are that Galway have the makings of a team destined for another busy summer. NEW RULES The new rules appear to suit On the possibility of helping Galway go all the way for the first time since 2001, McDaid remarked: 'I think we've bounced back very well. "As players, I think we've stepped up and new leaders have come through and the team has really changed in the last couple of years and the hunger and the drive is still there. Advertisement 'We know it's very difficult to get there, for sure, but we're up for the fight and we want to get back there. "I suppose it's difficult when you lose but you have to be willing to go through that every time to win. We're ready for that again and we'll try our best to get there, no matter what the route." A former AFL hopeful, McDaid's hopes of making the grade with Carlton were hindered by a foot injury and he returned home after a year in Australia. But he insisted: "No regrets. It probably took to go out there to realise how much I want to play for Galway. Advertisement "And when I came back, Galway probably weren't competing in the latter stages of the Championships. 'The best days of my life so far have been playing for Galway in Championship games so there's not really anything that can replace that at the minute anyway.' *CILLIAN McDAID was speaking at the announcement of a five-year extension to SuperValu's sponsorship of the All-Ireland SFC.