Being part of the Tipperary camp on Sunday helped to purge a few demons for Tommy Dunne.
The Toomevara man is one of the most respected coaches in the game but his previous stint with the Tipperary seniors, and especially how it ended, left a residue which has now been largely washed away.
He was manager Declan Ryan’s right-hand man after Liam Sheedy stepped aside in 2010 and while they won two Munster titles, defeats to Kilkenny in the 2011 All-Ireland final and particularly the semi-final the following year are what define that two-year tenure more than anything.
The 2012 loss was galling, with the 18-point margin an all-time record defeat for Tipperary in Championship hurling.
The management team was panned in the aftermath, particularly for the tactic of having Lar Corbett mark Kilkenny defender Tommy Walsh, and Ryan inevitably resigned.
In the meantime, Dunne made a very positive impact during a stint with the Dublin hurlers and was back with the Tipp minors more recently but nothing was going to square the circle more than being involved with a successful Tipperary senior side.
“Yeah, yeah, they were tough,” he said, reflecting on the couple of years he put in with Ryan.
“It closes a little bit for me from a coaching point of view [after Sunday]. Listen, in sport, there are always ups and downs. They were tough, particularly 2012 and all that went with it.
“Declan Ryan is a really great friend of mine. A Tipperary icon in so many ways. They were tough days. To get an opportunity to come back and be on the sideline when Tipp win an All-Ireland is a very special feeling.
“It did cross my mind a few times yesterday, particularly after the match, that it has been a bit of a journey from that time to this. It’s a nice feeling.”
When asked how long it took him to recover from 2011-12, Dunne replied: “Took a long time, yeah. A long time. Left a heavy imprint for a long time.”
And he hopes that Ryan, a three-time All-Ireland winner as a player, will ultimately be judged more sympathetically.
“I’ve no doubt history will be kinder to him. Why wouldn’t it? Absolutely.”
Although he was managing the county minors, when Sheedy got in touch late last year, Dunne was never likely to say no.
“The minors was a lovely experience and when Liam called it was unexpected somewhat. I was delighted to get the opportunity because I knew he would put a really good system in place and the team would be hurting from the year before so there was an opportunity there.
“When someone of Liam’s stature calls you it is a fantastic phone call to get. There was a hint of regret not being able to do another year with the minors.”
It was a broad coaching set up with Darragh Egan and Eamon O’Shea also involved, though they didn’t step on each other’s toes.
Dunne added: “Myself and Darragh did most of the coaching in the pre-season and after Christmas, and then Eamon came in.
“Eamon has a very strong connection with Liam over many years so it was a terrific boost for us all to see Eamon coming in.
“We just kind of let it flow and felt it out amongst ourselves. The dynamic and chemistry was good from the very start.”
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