On August Bank Holiday Monday, popular Knockbridge and Louth hurler Paul Dunne fulfilled a lifetime ambition, claiming national glory by winning the Poc Fada na hEireann competition. Gerry Robinson caught up with the Wee County's latest All-Ireland champion to discuss this remarkable achievement. The best exponents of the long-puck discipline take to Annaverna Mountain in Cooley every August Bank Holiday weekend to compete for the coveted M Donnelly Poc Fada Craobh na hEireann tournament. It was business as usual in 2003 but this time the 'home' crowd had a spectacular success to celebrate when Knockbridge's Paul Dunne completed the treacherous course in 54 pocs and stormed to a glorious victory, leaving a strong field of big hitters trailing in his wake. In the process, our local hero became the first Louthman to win the competition since its inception in 1961. He also became the first ever Louth hurler to win a senior All-Ireland and the Wee County's first senior All-Ireland medalist since 1957. Furthermore, the newly-crowned 'King of the Mountains' was the only Louth gael to receive All-Ireland recognition in 2003. The story of Paul's success is as incredible as it is noteworthy: he only discovered four days before the event that he'd be taking part! On any list of the Wee County's GAA achievements in '03, Paul Dunne's accomplishment must rank at the very top. We spoke to the man from Dunbin about the stunning events of August 4th and found that, despite his newfound status, he remains as modest as ever... Congratulations Paul! It was a wonderful achievement both for yourself and Louth GAA. You must be thrilled? It was a shock the way it worked out after being invited in so late. I wasn't expecting too much this time because I hadn't prepared nearly as well as usual. But I put in a big effort on the day and luckily everything worked out. Your name didn't feature on the original list of participants. How did you end up taking part? Usually I have to qualify through the county and then Leinster but this time I was called in as a late replacement for Damien Fitzhenry on the Thursday. It didn't leave a lot of time for practice but I went around the course on Friday, Saturday and Sunday mornings." Justice was served in the end because it was through no fault of your own that you failed to qualify through the conventional route:.. At the start of the year I did my usual preparations in the gym for a couple of months but because of a mix-up with dates I missed the qualifiers in June, which was a big disappointment at the time. I had already decided that this was going to be my last year taking part in the competition, so I felt that I had missed out on my last chance of winning the Poc Fada title. You mentioned the gym ... how big a part does physical strength play in this competition? Of course, technique is important, but you also need a lot of upper body strength - shoulders, upper arms and even the stomach as well - because brute force does actually play a part! As nearly all the lads in the competition tend to be big and very strong I decided to concentrate on that aspect to try to gain an advantage. Practising the big shots with the long hurl was another important part of the practice routine. Is the long puck an art you're born with or can it be learned through practice? You can definitely improve through practice and you can work on your technique, but I suppose some people have a better natural technique than others and that's something you can't teach. I had a young lad up on the mountain practising with me and he could hit the ball nearly as far as me! Up until last year I was playing full back with the club and was taking all the puck-outs as well as the long-range frees and that was a help. Is strength as crucial as technique? A lot of it is technique and I'd say that's more important, but the strength is a help. There are no set rules ... everybody has their own way of walking and by the same token everyone has their own way of striking the ball. Some are more effective than others. Then when the big day comes it's all about brute force and trying not to make any mistakes! You don't need to be an outstanding hurler to win. If you weren't an exceptional hurler, it wouldn't rule you out. I'm a prime example of that! You entered the competition four times previously and you know the course well. Was that an important factor? Definitely. You need experience of the mountaintop, and understanding the lie of the land is important - the rucks, the heather, the downslopes and streams, where the best lies are. I had an advantage because I got to know the geography of the place. I also took a lot of practise runs before taking each shot just to make sure I got it right every time. If you slip at all it'll mess the shot up and it's difficult to recover from a bad hit. By preparing each shot as carefully as possible, I was pretty confident that I was going to lose my footing at a crucial stage. The weather could hardly be described as ideal, but it wasn't bad either... The weather was grand. The record was never going to be broken because there was a small headwind going up the mountain and that was enough to have you down a shot at the first checkpoint but it was okay for the rest of the course. The win secured hero status overnight. Were you surprised by the reaction? Everyone in the media wanted the story ... and I hounded you for a month! I was very surprised by the response, to be honest. I knew there'd be a picture in the paper but that was all. I couldn't believe it when people started coming up to me in the street and congratulating me. I received a lot of goodwill and good wishes and I think the people of Louth are genuinely proud to have an All-Ireland hurling medal in the county. Breaking Ball paid a visit too... Yeah, they came up and asked me to show them around the course which, again, was a surprise. It was easier to handle the course on Bank Holiday Monday than it was the media afterwards! But I'm not complaining ... it all goes with the territory and I'm delighted. How did you do in your previous attempts to conquer the mountain? My first year was '96 and I came second. In '97 I came joint third. Then I came joint fourth and sixth last year. Then you won it out of the blue, with less preparation than usual. Remarkable. What was the secret? I'd been carrying hand injuries in the past, but this time I was 100% injury-free and that made a huge difference. It was a decent year on the hurling front with Knockbridge too... Yes, we got our county championship back after losing it last year, so that rounded off a good year. You said at the top that originally this was going to be your last year entering the Poc Fada competition. Have you reconsidered since clinching the national crown? Well, I'll be invited back next year to defend the title so I'll be giving it another lash... Nice one Paul! Thanks for your time and congratulations once again from everybody in Louth! Tweet

Most Read Stories