ALL-IRELAND CLUB FOOTBALL SEMI-FINALS Portlaoise v Crossmaglen: With all the hype surrounding Colm Parkinson you'd swear he alone was taking on Crossmaglen in Sunday's All-Ireland club semi-final. When it was announced last week that he was leaving for Australia once he was done with the club championship it seemed like he was on a personal crusade.
As captain and star of Portlaoise, though, Parkinson will play a pivotal role in Sunday's match at Parnell Park. His skill and athleticism frequently dazzled during the successful Leinster campaign and if there is such a thing as one player turning a game then Parkinson can definitely turn this one for Portlaoise.
Despite such high expectations he doesn't feel any pressure. "To be honest I don't feel I have to perform," he says. "I didn't have a great game in the Leinster final, and we definitely have enough players to take the thing on, if say I'm not playing well or Ian Fitzgerald is not playing well. I certainly believe any of our forwards can take the game by the scruff of the neck.
"And we played Rhode without Ian Fitzgerald and Martin Delaney. Kevin Fitzpatrick was out for the Kilmacud game, and Ian was gone again for the Leinster final. So we haven't actually had a full team in any game yet. Everyone is fit now so none us can have any excuses."
December's Leinster final victory over Meath champions Skryne gave the 1983 All-Ireland club champions a record sixth provincial title after a 17-year wait, while also raising their ambitions for the remainder of the season.
"That Leinster title was one of the best wins I ever had," says Parkinson. "Portlaoise have a fairly good tradition down through the years, and for us to do what teams before us did was brilliant. So I'd rate that win very highly. But now winning the All-Ireland is what we want to do. We're just one stop short of the final, and it was 1983 when Portlaoise last went all the way."
Parkinson acknowledges the current team is often compared to the Portlaoise teams of the past, but he welcomes the links. His manager Tommy Conroy was centre back on the team that had won the last Leinster title in 1987, and clearly their accomplishments remain a motivation.
"You'd never get sick of hearing that kind of stuff. Portlaoise have the best record in Leinster now, so you'd be proud of that. But this is a big challenge for us, no question about that. Crossmaglen are the top club team in Ireland by a mile. Even they can't deny that. Three All-Irelands over the last 10 years, that's their talent. So you could say it was a disaster of a draw for us."
While Parkinson rightfully builds up Crossmaglen's chances, Portlaoise clearly possess style and substance. Among that depth of talent is corner forward Peter McNulty, who was an All-Ireland minor with Laois in 2003 and is poised to join the senior panel.
"We see this as a two-horse race," says McNulty, "and we're not afraid of Crossmaglen either. They're definitely the most successful team in a long time and we know it's a big challenge. I've been watching that team since I was 12 or 13 and I've always thought Oisin McConville was one of the great players of the past five or six years.
"But all along we've taken each game as it came, and had the belief in ourselves that we were going to do it.
"That's not being overconfident, but you need to have that belief."
Like any Laois footballer he regrets the news that Parkinson is intent on missing the championship in order to satisfy his wanderlust, but that does make his services on Sunday all the more special.
"Colm has been brilliant for us. I think he was Laois' best player in the championship last year, and he's really set the standard for all of us. He's certainly been an inspiring captain."
