The hurlers of Tooreen return to Croke Park for the second time in three years this weekend when All-Ireland intermediate glory will be the prize on offer.
Tipperary's Upperchurch-Drombane will provide the opposition and while to outsiders it might seem like the Mayo club are well used to the surroundings of GAA HQ, nothing could be further from the truth.
Despite dominating Connacht with half a dozen titles since 2017 when they became the first club from outside Galway to win the competition, it has been regular All-Ireland semi-final and final heartbreak.
The 2023 defeat to Monaleen was a bitter pill to swallow, leading all the way until the Limerick club finished strong in the final five minutes.
Fergal Boland, better known nationally as a Mayo footballer, has been a key part of the Tooreen journey. While Andy Moran is getting to grips with his role as Mayo football manager and putting the panel through its paces, Boland has switched focus to the small ball. Returning to training Tuesday night with an All-Ireland medal in the back pocket is the dream.
For everything he has achieved in the Green and Red however, the pinnacle of his career came in blue and white of Tooreen.
"It was probably the proudest day of my life, walking out in Croke Park with my team-mates, best friends and brother (Shane)," he told RTÉ Sport.
"You think it might be the only time you get to play there, but to get the second opportunity at Croke Park is unbelievable. I know other clubs are not as lucky as that. I'm hugely grateful for it, but obviously, we want to, we want to go up and do a job. We don't want to just show up and take part."
The Boland brothers backbone the team's attacking arsenal. The pair combined for 3-18 in a facile 38-point county semi-final victory, while Shane’s goal deep into injury-time against Ballyhaunis secured a fifth Mayo title on the spin.
Galway’s Meelick-Eyrecourt put up little resistance in the Connacht decider, while a devastating second-half display put paid to Eire Óg, Carrickmore of Tyrone in last month’s All-Ireland semi-final.
After the recent near misses, is now the time they must deliver?
"When you get to an All-Ireland final, you're always trying to deliver," Boland said. "I suppose we're trying to not think about it too much as a burden, but as an opportunity to perform on the big day.
"There's going to be life after this as well, but obviously winning on Saturday would be unbelievable. We don't dwell on our defeats too much. The build-up to the game (2023) was big, the first time the club got to Croke Park.
"The experience of the day as a whole will give us another percentage here with the weekend, but it's not going to get us over the line."
The 29-year-old’s playing experiences of Croke Park are mainly through the prism of a footballer – he played once on the hallowed turf for the Mayo hurlers prior to the All-Ireland club final defeat – and says little things can only be learned through experience.
The surface plays quicker with the ball skipping off the ground, while shooting requires a certain recalibration.
"The goals seem closer than you think because of the stand behind the goal."
While the will to land an All-Ireland title is there, the challenge they face is a stern one. Upperchurch-Drombane were a senior club in Tipperary as recently as two years ago and reached a senior semi-final in 2022.
They appeared to be heading for the championship exit door in their county round-robin clash with Ballina before Gavin Ryan’s long-range free ended up in the back of the net and they squeezed through by the bare minimum and haven’t looked back.
Boland says there has been great support from his Mayo team-mates. Captain Jack Coyne is a familiar foe with Ballyhaunis, while Aidan O’Shea and Robbie Hennelly have played in the past.
"They think I’m half mad, but they know how much it means to me. A lot of them would follow the games and go to them as well."
The biggest support naturally comes from within, with the hurling enclave in east Mayo ready for another trip to Dublin.
"It’s unbelievable. It's a sea of blue and white down in the village at the minute. We had a meet and greet last weekend with all the kids and it was unbelievable to see.
"It’s crazy. People think we're stone mad down there, but everyone just loves their hurling.
"It's what everyone talks about. We have no shop or pub in Tooreen. It's only the hurling pitch, the school or the church, so it's the centre of the community."
