It was no wonder that there was an overwhelming sense of relief when an incredibly tense match between Ireland and South Korea in Valencia last January finally came to an end, with Ireland winning 4-3 to secure the last of 12 men's hockey spots for the Paris Olympics.
After losing 5-4 to Canada in a penalty shootout and missing out on a place in Tokyo, and therefore also the 2023 World Cup (South Korea had also beaten Ireland to secure the final spot at London 2012), the only expectation the players had at that moment was to somehow get through.
Six months later, the Irish men's hockey team head to Paris on Thursday as one of the first teams to check into the Athletes' Village. They are quietly confident of their chances of progressing from Pool B, despite facing Tokyo gold medallists Belgium in their opening match on Saturday 27 July, before playing Australia, India, Argentina and New Zealand.
This will be only the second time the Irish men's team have competed at an Olympic Games since independence (the first was in Rio eight years ago, while the women's team competed in Tokyo) and they will have the added benefit of competing at the Yves du Manoir Stadium in Colombes, northwest of Paris, which was the main venue for the 1924 Olympics.
That history and opportunity is something that's not lost on Darragh Walsh, 26, from Dublin, who was also part of the team that narrowly missed out on a place in Tokyo and is a former Three Rock Rovers player who now plays for a professional hockey club in Braksgate, just outside Antwerp, Belgium.
“It was fantastic after missing out on Tokyo and then the 2023 World Cup,” he said. “We were sadly defeated on penalties in both tournaments. It was a very eventful game and it looked like it would go to another penalty shootout, but we managed to hang on against South Korea.”
“It's all still a blur, but first a sense of relief, then I've had to digest that and then it's turned into excitement before Paris. So I'm looking forward to all aspects of it, but I'm trying to treat it as much as possible like any other hockey tournament. I think we'll arrive in Paris nine days early, so I have a few days to absorb as much as I can and then I'll focus a little more. I'll try to enjoy it, but not too much.
“We definitely built on that after missing out on Tokyo. Then we had a natural break because there weren't any big tournaments after that and then COVID hit. I don't think we played any official capped matches for about two years.”
Walsh made his senior international debut against Pakistan in Lisburn in 2017 and joined the Ireland squad shortly after returning from Rio. He moved to Belgium in 2019 and not only did he lead them to consecutive wins over Belgium in the professional league in Antwerp in May for the first time since 1993, but his experience playing there will fuel hopes of a major upset in Paris.
“It's a really valuable experience to play against the best players every week in pretty high-pressure matches. If you're not playing your best, they'll let you know. They're paying you, so you have to be at the top of your game at all times.”
“I think they (Belgium) thought we were a good team that just couldn't achieve what we've been able to achieve in the past few years. It started with guys like Shane (O'Donoghue) going over to that league and playing pretty well and becoming an important part of the team there.”
“When we beat them, we didn't expect it and I don't think they expected it either. Doing it again will just solidify it. I don't know if they'll be nervous, maybe they have a stronger team, but they'll definitely look up to us in the first game.”
“So, we're not going to get too carried away and I think our confidence is definitely higher than it was before the match. After beating Belgium we know that if we're in good form we have the potential to beat anyone but the matches against India and Australia are also going to be very tough. But anyway, I hope all the players go into each match knowing that if they perform at their best they have the potential to get a result.”
Walsh now has 104 caps under his belt but playing for Ireland at the Olympics would be, in his own words, his “greatest moment”.
“For me I guess it started with Usain Bolt and the athletics events in Beijing (2008) when he first appeared. To be fair it wasn't hockey but at that age I played a lot of sport – football, GAA, rugby and hockey.”
“Then when I was 14, 15 and started focusing on hockey, I thought the Rio Olympics was the pinnacle of our sport. Once I started focusing on hockey, it just got bigger and bigger. And playing in the 1924 stadium is pretty cool with all that history.”
