Land and sea bred innate toughness that manifested through the spine of any football team, allowing them to physically dominate. Bawn's words implied that there were plenty of farmers available and there were. Yet that's the nature of Darren Hughes' work each day, on the Scotstown family farm where he has a 100-strong herd. "From February 1 to St Patrick's Day would be the most intense period, 80 per cent calving in six weeks. Not everyone can juggle quite like Heslin, Hughes and others like Meath's Pádraig Harnan, a nephew of Liam and Tipperary footballer Jimmy Feehan.

Source: Irish Independent October 31, 2020 02:38 UTC