You know what they say about great debut albums in the music business. The follow-ups are more often than not trash.
So when Brian Fenton talks utterly selflessly about the fact he's just followed up his debut season as a Dublin footballer with something even better, then you know the politeness is not feigned: nothing about his 2015 All-Ireland title was taken for granted, so there's no way Saturday evening's victory will be either.
At 23 Fenton also boasts the remarkable claim of never losing a game with Dublin, as he made his first start in last year’s league, at which stage Dublin had already started their now-unbeaten 29-game run.
“Yeah, I’ve yet to lose a match with Dublin,” he says, “which is probably something I’m going to have to get used to over the coming years.
“This won’t last forever, the success won’t last forever. For now I’m enjoying the wins and enjoying the draws and enjoying these special occasions really, just delighted.
“It’s insane, it’s madness. This time 18 months ago I made my league debut and I was just hoping to start last year. Now look at us. Two Sam Maguires, couple of Leinsters, it’s incredible. But to be fair, a couple of those lads have four All-Irelands now at this stage, so it’s only something I can aspire to and hopefully achieve. It’s special, special times.”
Man of the match in last year's final win over Kerry, Fenton was also named 2016 player of the year by the RTÉ Sunday Game panel, his performance in Saturday evening's replay win over Mayo capping off a season of hotly simmering consistency around midfield.
"That's incredible, to be honest. It's such a pleasure and privilege. We didn't actually watch it [the Sunday Game] live, we couldn't, but I was told afterwards.
"Listen, it's a huge honour and privilege, you feel you're playing alongside the likes of Diarmuid Connolly and Ciarán [Kilkenny] and these lads. I don't know why they're not getting the plaudits. They're just probably better footballers than me. It's just special for me and my family and my club. On Saturday evening, it wasn't to win RTÉ player of the year, it was to win Sam Maguire. Once we got through that, it was job done for me – all the other stuff comes second after that."
Fortunate
The Raheny player also knows how fortunate he is to have won two All-Irelands within his first two seasons, especially as his clubmate, Ciarán Whelan, won none after a nonetheless stellar career.
“No doubt. Ciarán Whelan was one of the best players and played in such a barren period. Someone said it to me last night, just as we were having our meal, that some of the best players who ever played for Dublin played in that time, and didn’t get an All-Ireland. So I won’t take it for granted. It’s very special. I know as I said it won’t last forever. We’ll just enjoy these days.”
There is the sense his 2016 All-Ireland championship was a harder-fought battle, especially given the replay, yet either way Fenton never looked beyond the immediate prize, the old cliche of taking each game as it came.
“There were a lot of questions thrown our way, after the drawn game. Were we as good as people thought? It’s just great to answer those questions, and get the win. It’s special to get the two in a row, something you really have to pinch yourself and realise how special it is, really.”
