Damien Byrne Trying hard to fuel a Waterford revival Much of Damien Byrne's time these days is spent delivering oil to houses and businesses throughout the south-east. But the Waterford hurler is also attempting to fuel a revival in the fortunes of his native county. The twenty six year old full back who works for Tedcastle Oils Products in Waterford City is certainly one who believes that the blue and whites are on the verge of ending a long sequence of hard luck stories and regaining their place among the countries hurling elite. The cynics might retort that this is an extremely optimistic view. After all, they could add, Waterford haven't won a Munster championship since 1963. They have won All-Ireland finals all right, but the last time they brought the McCarthy Cup to the banks of the Suir was in 1959 thirty two years ago. But Damien Byrne who also plays for his local club Erins Own is undaunted by cold, unyielding statistics. Instead he points to amalgamation of youth and experience he sees in the Waterford side. This valuable mixture, combined with the right attitude and the iron determination to win something, provides, he believes, the ingredients for a powerful cocktail. "People don't realised what is going on in Waterford at the moment, and that's because we are not in the limelight. But the players on the county panel have being working very hard in recent years, the turn-out at training sessions have being very high. The attitude among the players is a good one. But recent events have not helped." This reference to "recent events" points to the many difficulties within Waterford's G.A.A. administration. Discord and bitterness among the corridors of power that have being grabbing the national headlines - but for all the wrong reasons. These events, the Erin's Own player adds, has tended to distract attention away from the good work that has being taking place within hurling circles in the county. And the young players such as Brian Greene, Noel Dalton, Sean Daly and Billy O'Sullivan joining with more experienced players like Ger Fitzpatrick, Liam O'Connor and Shane Aherne, the reasons for optimism within Waterford become clear. While still only 26 Damien Byrne could be categorised with the older, more experienced players. He has being playing senior hurling for Waterford for almost ten years now after graduating up through the underage ranks. Apart from one summer which he spent working in the United States the 6ft full back has attempted to rekindle old faded memories of past glories when Waterford was one of the top teams in the land. Along the way there has being many disappointments. But there also has been some truly memorable moments. Beating Cork in the '89 Munster championship semi-final was a great occasion for us. We had drawn with them in the first game. We had played very well and I suppose everyone thought we had blown our chance but we came back for the replay and played very well again, only this time we beat them. "It was a great moment" he recalls. But any hopes that the Waterford men were awakening to a new golden day were quickly and cruelly dashed, however, when a rampant Tipperary team pushed aside the blue and white challenge with a chilling ease in the Munster final. Waterford lost by 15 points. All in all it was a disastrous, bleak day for Waterford-and more particularly for Byrne, who was sent off. "It was a very emotional and disappointing occasion. We had being all looking forward to it so much but it didn't happen for us and then on top of everything I got my marching orders". Such occasions are, the full back points out, are part of gaining that valuable asset - experience. He adds that in the early part of his career his fiery determination to gain possession of the ball had, at times, landed him in trouble with one or two referees. But his determination has also been his strength and allied with his skill and mobility has helped to turn him into a player that is quickly grabbing the attention of hurling followers throughout the country. Some recognition of his talent were provided with his selection on the Munster panel for the past three years. It has given him a chance to rub shoulders and learn from some of the best players in the game. Part of Byrnes achievements on the hurling field has been built upon a great desire to achieve and maintain a high standard of fitness. During any lulls in the hurling season he goes in search of other sporting activities that will keep him in shape. He plays a little soccer and Gaelic Football, but injuries sustained at these games has tended to make him wary of playing them on a highly competitive level. On the hurling pitch is where he wants to fulfill his sporting destiny and nothing must distract him from that. The fact that Erins Own has not won anything yet does not in the least shake his resolve to keep on plugging away, at attempting to win that elusive "something" - more specifically a Munster championship. "Of course it would be great to win a Munster final. Winning is very important but once you get something out of the game-in my case enjoyment then that is O.K. as well. I have made some great friends through hurling but at the end of the day it is the involvement, not only the winning that counts", he said. Often-in Byrnes opinion-the dividing line between success and failure for Waterford has being an extremely thin one. The soft goal or inexperience on the big occasion usually meaning that the blue and whites ended up on the wrong side of that line. But on the local level life has being looking somewhat brighter.Erins Own are in the Intermediate semi-final and often the disappointment of losing two finals in recent years they are hopeful of finding the path to success this time. It is a club with a high tradition in hurling. Able to boast nine successive senior championship triumphs. A remarkable achievement that old rivals Mount Sion can also lay claim to. When searching for the type of people he most admires in hurling Damien Byrne doesn't have to look that far outside his own area. His heroes are not the big names that are regularly seen in the headlines.They are the people who helped him develop his game. The people who spent large amounts of their time looking after the juvenile and underage teams. "When we were growing up it was these people who looked after us. Gave us their advice and their time. You appreciate them later on in life because they did a lot of work behind the scenes. Different people in my own club who have being doing this type of work for years". The Byrne connection with Erins Own doesn't end with Damien. His father Joe, who played hurling in his native Laois in his younger days, is a selector for the Waterford club. Both would dearly like to see Erins Owns, once again become one of the top clubs in the county. In the meantime, Damien will continue to play for both teams hoping that the hard luck stories will turn into fairytale endings. When he does finally decide to hang up his boots Byrne would like to give back to the game something in return. To get more involved in coaching the young players. Until then he has his many ambitions to fulfil. Believing that "nothing is impossible". Damien Byrne toys with the idea of being part of a Waterford team that wins the Munster final and gallops out of the Croke Park dressing rooms on a certain day in September. One thing is certain. If this dream is not realised it will not be for the lack of determination from the Waterford full back. Taken from Hogan Stand 1st November 1991 Tweet

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