Nationwide presenter Blathnaid Ni Chofaigh has spoken of how proud she is of her son Peader while joking that she wants to "kill" anyone who hurts him while he plays for Dublin.
The Meath native regularly revealed that she puts her face in her hands because she finds it hard to watch her son Peadar in action for Dublin on the pitch.
The 6ft 6in midfielder played a starring role as the Dubs reached the All-Ireland U/20 Championship final last summer before linking up with the senior side for their super 8's campaign.
She told RSVP Magazine: "It is hard to watch as a mother though; if they get a belt, you want to kill the person that hit them, it is human nature.
"If the referee is talking to him, you are wondering what he said.
"The younger lads are playing together on the club minor team as well, pride is a great thing.
"My daughter Síle played basketball as well and that was strange because you are so close to the action, you can hear every breath and it is such a vocal sport."
Bláthnaid is keen to see him link up with Dessie Farrell this year but injuries are always a worry for her as a mother.
She added: "When I think of Peadar, I think of all his pals and of course you want them to continue.
"When you are in the thick, everything is important but you take the next thing as it comes because there are injuries. He is very competitive and happy, and he is good at football."
Blathnaid and her husband Ciaran loved hitting the road to support Peadar around the country,
"I actually said to someone the other day that we had the best summer last year," she said. "Peadar goes ahead of us with the team, we are filling the flask of coffee and everyone is killing each other.
"You have the wet gear just in case, rushing out the door and then it is all calm once you are in the car. It also takes ages to get there and back, you are never back on time."
Bláthnaid and Ciarán are also taking care of their own health at the moment and they recently began exercising early in the morning before work, which has had mixed results for the couple.
She joked: "I just keep talking and it drives him mad, talking at 6am is not really what he wants to do which is fair enough.
"I said nothing the other morning and he turned to me and said, 'Are you alright? You are really quiet?'- Oh my God, I can’t win. It sounds a bit silly, but it is nice to do something together that doesn’t involve the kids."
