Live

Highlights on Off The Ball

07:00 AM-01:00 PM

Highlights on Off The Ball
Advertisement
Football

"We've dreamed of days like these" - Clare goalkeeper Joe Hayes savours victory over Roscommon

Roscommon became the second Connacht side in as many weeks to crash out of the All-Ireland series...



"We've dreamed of days...
Football

"We've dreamed of days like these" - Clare goalkeeper Joe Hayes savours victory over Roscommon

Roscommon became the second Connacht side in as many weeks to crash out of the All-Ireland series at the hands of the Clare footballers.

Eoin Cleary kicked six points, three from the dead ball, and goals from David Tubridy and Jamie Malone secured another massive victory for the Munster side.

Goalkeeper Joe Hayes is one of the most experienced players in the side and he explained exactly what today's victory meant to his team.

"You can see the support for the team after the game, it's day like this you play football for," he told Off The Ball's Dave McIntyre.

"It means everything. I said it before the game that these are the days you dream of and now we're here. Dreams can turn into reality.

"We had a super first half and I suppose we lost Cathal [O'Connor] early in the second half which is unfortunate. We lost possession and conceded the goal, but when the boys needed to go down the other end of the pitch and kick points they did it.

"There were a few dodgy moments and we made life uncomfortable for ourselves but we can work on all that during the week. That won't affect how happy we are at the moment."

Hayes pointed out that the strength in depth they have on the bench is one of the key reasons to behind this success.

"It was the same last weekend and the weekend before against Laois. Even going back to the league final against Kildare, it was the bench that came on and drove us over the finish line. It's great for those fellas because they're training just as hard and it's disappointing when they're not named in the starting XV."

The 34-year-old dropped off the team a few years ago but fought to regain his position. So was this the proudest day in his GAA career.

"Yeah, in a county it probably is. It's the All-Ireland qualifiers, what am I saying? Of course it is! I had a bad injury there two years ago and missed the whole national league. I thought my career was over but it's for days like this you put your body through the pain."

Download the brand new OffTheBall App in the Play Store & App Store right now! We've got you covered!

Subscribe to OffTheBall's YouTube channel for more videos, like us on Facebook or follow us on Twitter for the latest sporting news and content.


Read more about

Football