There were emotional scenes in Athlone yesterday when the all-conquering Galway women footballers carried the All-Ireland Cup over the River Shannon.
The symbolic 200-yard walk is an old and revered tradition, and yesterday was the first time the women of Galway escorted the Brendan Martin Cup into the province of Connacht.
Led by team captain Annette Clarke, a student garda who until recently was attached to the local Garda station, the team was acclaimed by their supporters as they made the historic walk.
They defeated Dublin in Sunday's Croke Park final, which has already gone down in the annals as one of the greatest women's football finals ever played.
The ecstatic women sang their theme song, To Win Just Once by The Saw Doctors, as they transported the cup into their home province. It is the fifth time in six years the cup will spend the year in Connacht - Mayo won it in 1999, 2000, 2002 and 2003.
"This is unbelievable. It is a brilliant feeling to carry the cup across the Shannon, like so many great Galway teams did in years gone by," said Clarke. "People have really come out in support of this team and hopefully there will be more titles in the years to come."
Team manager P.J. Fahey paid tribute to the team and to his fellow selectors Richard Bowles and Mick O'Connell. "The reception the girls are receiving here and will get over the next few days throughout Galway is a reward for all the hard work they have put in," he said.
"They are a great bunch of girls and they just wouldn't take no for an answer in the final against Dublin."
Bonfires blazed on the roadsides last night as thousands of fans turned up in Ballinasloe and other Galway towns and villages to cheer the triumphant team.