Down’s penalty scorer Pat Havern says he ushered away Ryan McEvoy when the Kilcoo man ran to take the Mourne County’s crucial spot kick in Sunday’s Ulster SFC win over Donegal.
Havern probably wouldn’t have taken the penalty had Odhran Murdock not been unavailable because of Down’s Ulster U20 Final against Derry on Wednesday.
“I stopped Ryan and said ‘I’ll take it’,” Havern told The GAA Social Extra.
“Everybody wants to score the penalty to win the game.”
Speaking on the BBC Sport NI GAA podcast immediately after Sunday’s contest, Havern added: “Yes you can miss but you have to take your chance when it comes.
“Ryan McEvoy I’m pretty sure would have put it in too. I wanted it so I took it.”
At 28, Saval club-man Havern believes he is in the shape of his life amid the regime that Conor Laverty has put in place since taking the Down job when the county was at arguably its lowest ebb last autumn.
But while Havern is now arriving at his peak as an inter-county footballer, he admits that there were a number of the Down squad who felt another chastening championship defeat could herald the end of their time in the red and black.
“Some of the players were discussing before the game that it’s now or never for some of us lads.
“Not myself. I’ve a couple of years left but there are boys in the squad that have been there five or six years and in their early 30s and they were thinking maybe [that could be their last chance],” continued Havern, who added that the desire to atone for the 2-25 to 1-12 Ulster Championship “clipping” by Donegal two years had also been in the players’ thoughts.
After Down’s struggles over recent years, Havern admitted that he was “sceptical” whether even as highly regarded a coach as Conor Laverty could turn around the fortunes of the five-time All-Ireland winners.
However, those doubts soon disappeared added the forward, who hit 1-3 in Sunday’s 2-13 to 1-11 triumph.
“He just brings that winning mentality. After Donegal scored that early goal, most Down teams would have just backed off but with Laverty, you believe in yourself.
‘Intense Laverty a born winner’
“He is intense. He makes you work. He’s a born winner and you believe in yourself,” added Havern.
“They say that you are coming into your prime around 28 or 29 and I feel like I’m getting better most games. Obviously with Laverty, the fitness work that he has us doing, I feel fitter, strong and faster.
“He’s the most intelligent man I’ve met in terms of management. You look at some of the stuff he says sometimes and you just say ‘wow’.
“He always says, he wants trophies. He’s not here just to buy time. He wants to win and he wants players that want to win.”
Sunday’s win saw Division Three Down beat a Donegal that suffered relegation from Division One this year and that will be the match-up again when the Mournemen face Armagh in the provincial semi-final at Clones on Sunday.
“Armagh are a great side with great players but hopefully we can push on next week and we’ll not fear Armagh.
“These are the moments you live for. An Ulster semi-final against a derby team and a big crowd.
“I think in the league last year, there was a couple of hundred people going to games. Look at the turnout today. That’s what you want. People coming out of their houses to come and watch you.”
‘Retirement 100% the right decision’ – Murphy
Donegal star Michael Murphy, filling in for the otherwise occupied Wicklow manager Oisin McConville on The GAA Social Extra, said he remains convinced that his decision to quit the inter-county game was the correct one despite this latest dismal day for his county in 2023.
“Yes it’s the right decision 100% for me,” Murphy told Thomas Niblock after being part of BBC Sport NI’s Championship TV and iPlayer coverage on Sunday.
“And this is going to sound a slight bit selfish but when it’s the right decision for me and I can’t give the most to get myself in the right position, it’s the right decision for Donegal. I’m not going to give the best of myself for Donegal when I can’t do that.”
Murphy now expects the morale-sapped Donegal players to be given some time back with their clubs before coming together again in a few weeks in an attempt to regroup for the newly formulated All-Ireland series.
“We’ll be playing Division Two next year…..this [the All-Ireland series] is just a chance to have a crack at things.
“There are so many questions over a lot of things within the county at the moment that are hopefully going to get resolved and hopefully get us back on a path again.”