All-Star award rounds off stellar season for Smith

Enda Smith dared to dream.

Travelling to the RDS with members of his family, including his parents Mike (Junior) and Mary, and his girlfriend Jean (Flanagan) alongside some of the family’s closest friends from Boyle GAA Club, he knew that he was in with a realistic chance of becoming Roscommon’s first All-Star in 22 years.

When RTÉ’s Marty Morrissey confirmed his place on this year’s star-studded team, it drew one of the biggest and warmest cheers of the evening. Bucking the trend in becoming only the ninth player to receive an All-Star from a team that hadn’t reached the All-Ireland quarter-finals since 2001, Smith’s selection was hugely popular and, of course, richly deserved.

“I knew, in comparison to the last time I was up there (in 2017), that I was in with a decent shout. I wasn’t oblivious to that. Then when I saw Paudie Clifford and Seánie O’Shea called out, I began to think that (Paul) Mannion or (Cormac) Costello might be in there.

“When my name was called out, it was a shock. The legs were like jelly walking up on stage. I didn’t know how to react,” he revealed.

From the bright lights of the RDS pavilion celebrating one of the biggest moments in his career among family and friends, it was all a far cry from the scene at Dublin Airport in early July 2022.

The season hadn’t ended well with Roscommon after being knocked out by Clare in the All-Ireland qualifiers. Injury had hampered him during the championship, but a summer in America was destined to clear the head and replenish energy levels. But a phonecall from Dr. Martin Daly stopped him in his tracks.

“I had my bags put through. I was through security heading for US customs. I had a scan on the Monday, and this was the Thursday. Then I saw the phone ringing. It was Martin Daly.

“We had a bit of small chat. Then he told me that I couldn’t go to America. I had a stress fracture in my pelvis. He made it very clear that things would not end well if I went over and played football on it.

“I was caught between two stools. I had told the club over there that I was going. But I turned around and came back. I suppose I went with my gut instinct, but I was in bits. If you saw me in the airport at that moment, you’d think that something shocking had happened to me,” he revealed.

Doubts, and plenty of them, began to creep in.

“It was tricky one to get right. The groin had to heal itself. I had awful tendonitis in my groin and in my abductors. I knew there was something up before I was going to America, but I thought that I’d be able to manage it. I went for the scan, and, obviously, the news wasn’t good.

“The injury along with the way the season ended with Roscommon was tough. I wouldn’t say that I was at a crossroads but you do ask yourself ‘what am I doing wrong here?' This could go either way if I don’t figure out what’s happening.

“The club run was great last year but, on a personal level, I wasn’t probably overly satisfied with the way things were going. Coming back from injury was probably trickier than I thought it would be.

“The best thing for me was going straight back into Roscommon. I took two weeks off after the county final last year. Obviously, we had Donie’s wedding and I went on a holiday as well. But I came straight back in to meet with Davy (Burke) and the lads.

“It’s not that I did anything hugely different. Essentially, I went back to basics and took this year game by game. I didn’t try to overthink things, I just tried to enjoy my football. I’ll be 30 next year, so I’m probably on the other side of my intercounty career. But it was a good approach for me, just to embrace it that bit more and not put pressure that, maybe, I was putting on myself, especially last year,” he explained.

Smith’s approach paid off in spades as a string of impressive performances in the league earlier this year was buttressed by three Player of the Match performances against Mayo, Sligo and Kildare in the championship.

Suddenly, he was catapulted into the All-Star conversation, culminating on Friday night when he was selected alongside some of the best footballers of his generation.

“Cluxton, McCarthy, Fenton, the two Cliffords — they’ll be going down as greats of the game. To be amongst them is unbelievable, to be honest. It’s something you might have thought about at the start of the year. You set out your goals and you might have it at the bottom. You think it could be a nice thing to achieve.

“To be honest, it hasn’t sunk in properly yet. I’m just taking it all in. The last 48 hours have been mad. We had something with the club on Saturday night and something else with the club today (Sunday). I haven’t looked at everyone’s messages yet. I’m still trying to trawl through those kinds of things,” he outlined.

In becoming Roscommon’s 12th All-Star, Smith joins an elite list of players, including some of the greatest footballers the county has ever produced. He has to pinch himself to take in the reality of it all.

“Players like Dermot Earley and Tony McManus, and a few more — they are the greats. When you talk about Roscommon, it’s those sorts of players that are on the list. So to be among them is just lovely.

“I got a few messages off Tony McManus, Paul Earley, Francie Grehan, and a few of the lads. For me, that’s unbelievable to hear from them. I wouldn’t have seen many of those lads playing in the eighties, but I know all about them. You’d still be in awe when you meet them. For the current team, they’ve set the bar for what we want to do as a team.

“We can all give the party line that team success is the ultimate thing. I’m no different from any other player on that. But, on a personal level, it will be hugely satisfying to look back on it when I finish up. It’s a really nice thing to have boxed off,” he acknowledged.

The outpouring of goodwill has taken him by surprise, especially around his native town.

“It’s great for the club, a first one for Boyle. There’s a great buzz around the place. A lot of people were down there today (Sunday), which was great to see.

“I’m really humbled by all the messages I’ve received. People are just genuinely delighted. I got a few videos of kids’ reactions when they were watching it. They were delighted. That’s the sort of stuff that will stay with you,” he highlighted.

To receive the award in front of family and friends was also a special moment.

“My parents are absolutely chuffed. They’re unbelievable. They’ve always been supporting us, whether it’s club, college, or Roscommon. Dad was delighted as you can imagine — he was the belle of the ball on Friday night.

“Mum was obviously that bit more emotional. We had a few from Boyle up there as well — people like Tony Conboy, Aidan Lavin and James O’Boyle who are club stalwarts. It was great to have them there. They really enjoyed the night, and the cherry on top was me winning the award.

“The three brothers — Cian, Ronan and Donal — have been brilliant in their own way. I have a very understanding girlfriend, Jean, who has been brilliant and gives me great support as well.” 

What Smith’s All-Star award means to Roscommon’s prospects in 2024 and beyond remains to be seen, but he hopes that it can be a springboard for the players to achieve great things both collectively and individually.

“I’m back doing a small bit myself at the moment. When I get back properly with the lads, that will be the level demanded. We want to be at the All-Star awards every single year. We want five or six lads nominated every single year — that’s the standard we need to set for ourselves. That’s the message we need to get out there.

“We need to embrace that. There will be added pressure. That’s fine, you deal with it. I take the whole man-marking stuff as a compliment. I really do. I say ‘you’re put out to stop me’. But I want to influence the game, not with ten runs but with maybe two or three runs to bring other lads into the game.

“I’m not the scorer that Diarmuid (Murtagh), Ciaráin (Murtagh) or Donie (Smith) are, but I can make them look good by assisting them and influencing the game in different ways. That was really satisfying this year, and it will be the aim again next year.

“I won’t get too high when we win and I won’t get too low when things don’t go our way. I just want to embrace it all and take it in my stride. I’m an All-Star now, and take that confidence to go out and build on things next year, and show other lads that it’s something that they can achieve.” 

With Enda Smith calling the shots, who knows where that journey will end.