In recent years, there has been an upsurge in the number of GAA books chronicling events first hand, talking to those who matter and who were there when it mattered. Some were confined to within one county, some beyond. The theme of high profile failures brought us ‘House of Pain’ and ‘Unlimited Heartbreak’. The success of Cork brought us ‘Blood Brothers’. Now, Waterford-based Damien Tiernan has brought a new dimension, combining the two within one book, but it is clear that the pain of failure far outweighs the sweet balm of success. In fact, upon reading the book, it seems that every Waterford victory came about by chance. They will regret the near misses, but the reality is, based on the first hand accounts in the book, that with a few tweaks here and there, a lot of the heartache might have been spared.

‘The Ecstasy and the Agony’ gives an excellent account of the journey of Waterford hurling, predominantly from 1998 to the present day, with a couple of early chapters on previous decades. Where managers are concerned, the opinion of the players seems to lack balance somewhat in that Gerald McCarthy is perceived as being downright unlucky in his term as manager. On the other hand, from reading the book, it appears rightly or wrongly as though Justin McCarthy, while not being blatantly accused of being a barrier to success, it is clear the players feel he did not always facilitate success.

Surely, a strange assertion, considering most of the Waterford players won four meaningful medals under his watch? But successful managers aren’t necessarily good man managers. One of the greatest charges levelled against him is the class distinction between the players in how he spoke to them and how he seems to have treated them. The major gripe supporters of Justin would have with the book is that he did not get to defend himself, precisely within the chapters where his management was questioned. He is interviewed at length in the final chapter, but perhaps he didn’t make himself available for interview until August 2010, and by then the rest of the book would have been finalised.

The most astonishing feature of the book is the level of drinking, ill-discipline, and indeed choices of lifestyle that would be anything but conducive to success. And we ain’t talking about the bad old days either. 2002 and 2004 were years when the boat appears to have been well pushed out, with training weekends becoming heavy drinking sessions. A weekend in Ballycastle a couple of weeks before the 2004 Munster final, when most of the Waterford players were described as ‘worse for wear’, is not what the Cork players would approve of. But Cork were beaten in that match. Sixteen days before the 2002 Munster semi final, again against Cork, the Waterford boys were in Ballycastle as well, and did not quite stick to the mineral water either.

Another feature of the book is the astonishing fact that Waterford got their travel arrangements so horribly wrong on so many big days. Buses getting delayed in traffic, players having too much free time on occasions when they stayed overnight in hotels, even getting lost on the way to Croke Park. You name it, it happened. One player even slept in a bath the night before a big game.

There are strong contributors in the book. Paul Flynn is a big player in it and a man not short of an opinion. Dan Shanahan has his say too, even though he has his own book coming out, which promises to be a humdinger. The entire full back line of 2002, namely Brian Flannery, Tom Feeney, and Brian Greene, have their say, and are not shy. It would have been nice to have had the views of Brian Wall who disappeared after 2004. Space might have been a premium, but the transfers of Brian Flannery and Andy Moloney warranted greater depth. The managerial appointment and departure of Joe McGrath in the early 1990s warranted greater mention, as did the mooted offer of the hurling job to a well-known and well-travelled intercounty football manager.

The county board also appear to have been sacrosanct for whatever reason as the focus is firmly on preparations on and off the field with little reference to the boardroom. The points made on the impact of the industrial sector on Waterford hurling in the 1970s were very worthwhile and merited inclusion. Seamie Hannon has a major role in the book, and it is striking that he has a major gripe with the non-attendance of many players at his mother’s funeral. It is a feature of modern society, that attending funerals is not the priority that it once was, in times gone by, no matter how close the grieving family might be. But that should be accepted as a fact of modern life, rather than taken as an offence or a snub by Hannon. In their defence, the Waterford hurlers would not be alone in that regard.

Nevertheless, ’The Ecstasy and the Agony’ is a compelling read, though some people closer the scene in Waterford have already raised gripes on this forum in terms of some mistakes. In defence of the author (a) He is not a native of Waterford which means that he might not have had the first hand memory of some of the games or events that a diehard might have and player memories of certain events can be rather sketchy at times (b) It is hard to detach oneself from the content meaning that blatant mistakes staring you in the face almost pass you by. (c) When a book has the potential to be contentious, it can be very difficult to secure the secrecy of an independent proof reader with the first hand knowledge required, (or at least the determination to double check old facts from old newspapers). Nevertheless, people reading ’The Ecstasy and the Agony’ should live with the mistakes, and read the book in its overall context.

I would recommend this book to anyone from any county with a vague familiarity with Waterford hurling. It explains some of the unexplainable, and the contributors should be lauded for their refreshing honesty and, quite simply, calling it as it is. The standard of GAA books this winter to date seems well below the standard in 2009, with a number of books attempting to sell on their name and milk the stocking filler market, without providing any meaningful substance, or at least without developing to their true potential. Catching the eye of the wife, girlfriend or mother to maximise sales is one thing (and I guess money talks in a recession), but the reader at the end of the day deserves a book with substance. ’The Ecstasy and the Agony’ is a book of some substance, and would have more than held its own in the 2009 market. We were spoiled in 2009, unless a couple of blockbusters come to the table late on, 2010 could prove to be a massive disappointment.

Don’t just sit there reading this, get out and spend the shillings!



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