HOW times have changed. Not just for Down, on the crest of a long-awaited winning wave that has led them to an unexpected Ulster final, but also for one of the county’s longest-serving players.
Aidan Carr remembers well the days when post-match thoughts turned to where celebrations would continue or, as has been the case all too often for the Mourne County during recent times, in which establishment to drown their sorrows.
The arrival of baby daughter Eabha last December was a wake-up call in more ways than just hauling himself out of bed to change a nappy at 4am.
Now, Eabha and wife Mary are the first faces he looks for once the final whistle has blown. Win, lose or draw, family is all that matters.
“It's been really nice for me to have Mary and Eabha there after the match,” says the Clonduff clubman.
“It's a completely different feeling to, if we win, 'are we going out? Where are we going out to?'
She is not going to remember any of this, but lucky enough we will have pictures to show her later on.”
Yet, had events taken a different turn, there may not have been any smiling photos of father and daughter. No trips to Clones for an Ulster final date with Tyrone that no-one could have predicted.
Coming from a family that lives and breathes GAA, the red and black holds a special place in the Carr household. Pulling on that famous jersey was all he ever wanted.
Yet suddenly, at 32 and with only a 2009 Dr McKenna Cup medal to show for an 11-year county career, Carr was in two minds about whether or not to go back for a 12th.
Mark Poland was in the same boat. His first son Cillian was born three months before Eabha and he too was having doubts.
“We had a chat about it when he was in the middle of his first six weeks and he said, 'I don't want to put you off or anything…’” explains Carr.
“You really have no idea until it comes. It has been tough. Whenever I was growing up and into my 20s, it was just football and nothing else. I had no idea about family or any of that sort of stuff.
“Me and Mary had a great life before Eabha came along. We went on holidays, we went wherever we wanted, we were out for dinner all the time. Then Eabha comes along and it changes your outlook on life.
“It makes everything more enjoyable.”
So how close did he come to calling it a day?
“Mary lives in Newry and her mum and sister live in Derry, so I didn’t want to be going and leaving her to deal with a newborn by herself.
“Eamonn [Burns] was great and said ‘whatever you need, let me know’, but it was so important to get Mary’s backing as well.
“I had to decide whether I was prepared to do it all over again. I wasn’t particularly happy about going out the way the last two years have finished. I would have hated to have finished my county career like that.
“Then, when the draw for the Armagh game came out, it was first time either me or Polie had been drawn at home in an Ulster Championship game. That was an extra incentive and the fact Eabha and Cillian were both at the game, it was massive.”
Decision made, it was time to get down to work.
One of the young guns when first drafted into the squad during Paddy O’Rourke’s final year back in 2006, Carr is now one of the old heads.
A survivor from the last time Down beat Tyrone in Championship nine years ago, and the run to the 2010 All-Ireland, he is comfortable with his veteran status and knows he still has plenty to offer.
Not that putting in the hard yards at training ever gets any easier, especially when you’re fending off swipes from younger team-mates.
“I hate training, that’s always been the case – hate it. Well, I hate the bit up until you get to play football.
“I’m not a runner. I don’t have pace so generally all the boys are taking the piss about having to wait on me. Or if we’re doing runs they’ll say ‘Aidan can set the pace…’
“The playing for Down is the most enjoyable part, and it’s probably because of the house I grew up in, I realised how much it meant.
“We are a very young team. There's Peter Turley, Polie, then there's me. I played on U12 development squads with Polie all the way up, so we've been at it together a while.
“It makes it easier that those two boys are there.”
All three would love to finish up their days in red and black with something special to show for it – an Ulster title on Sunday would do nicely. Carr, in particular, is well aware of the legacy created by such success.
Dad Ross won All-Ireland titles in 1990 and ‘94, Ross’s uncle Barney trained the legendary Down team of the early ‘60s, while Aidan’s sisters Fionnuala and Sara Louise are both All-Ireland winners and Allstars in camogie.
Younger brother Charlie played for the county minors last year and youngest sibling Ross was in James McCartan’s panel this year.
Both are coming up with the same head full of dreams Aidan had all those years ago, and their older brother knows opportunities for him to strike it lucky are running out.
“I am really the black sheep at this stage,” he says with a smile.
“I suppose you can't really over-analyse it. I have had a very enjoyable football career and I have lost more finals than anyone should have to...
“I have won an Ulster U21 medal with Down, a Sigerson Cup and a Ryan Cup - that's really it.
I suppose you keep coming back. Whatever about last year and not winning, always at the back of your mind is 'we have a chance.'
“On a one-off day, if everything goes your way, you have a chance. The problem with Down is that on all those one-off days, we never gave ourselves a chance.
“We didn't work hard enough, we threw in the towel, we didn't do enough to give ourselves a chance of winning.”
At the Athletic Grounds three weeks ago, the Mournemen ticked all those boxes. They worked harder than Monaghan, out-fought them - they simply wanted it more. That is not something you have been able to say about Down teams too often in recent years.
Heading towards Sunday’s showdown with the Red Hands, Carr will have a part to play, be it lining out at the start or being sprung from the subs’ bench.
His young daughter has only ever attended two Down matches – the ones that really mattered, against Armagh and Monaghan. Carr is hoping she continues to prove a lucky charm this weekend.
But no matter what happens – win, lose or draw - Eabha and Mary will be the first faces he looks for to share the moment.
