From agony to ecstasy – the week that was for James Harris
James Harris (middle) celebrate's Athy's Towns Cup win with Karol Donohoe and Darragh Farrell Photo: Seb Daly/Sportsfile
Last week turned from agony into ecstasy for Kildare U20 captain, James Harris, as after suffering the agony of exiting the Leinster Championship to Meath in horrible condition in Ashbourne on the Tuesday night, the Castlemitchell player was part of the Athy RFC squad which captured the Bank of Ireland Provincial Towns Cup for the first time in 41 years in benign conditions in Naas RFC on the Sunday afternoon.
We caught up with the 20 year old Business Management Student in Maynooth, son of Declan and Mary Harris, as he reflected on that week of agony to ecstasy and talked about his GAA and rugby career so far, including, like his girlfriend, Amy Larn, a rugby career that has seen him capped at U18 level for Leinster and Ireland.
When did you first become involved with GAA, James?
I suppose I first went down to Castlemitchell at the age of four and then ever since I have been involved there so I would have played all the way up through the ranks there.
And when did the rugby come into it?
I played a small bit of rugby when I was young, maybe six or seven. I gave it up for a while and went back then at the start of first year and second year in school. So I probably started when I was around 13.
Was this your last year at underage level with Kildare?
Yeah, I was 20 last month but I was involved with the U20’s for the last three years. I started wing back on the team that won the All-Ireland in Brian Flanagan’s last year.
How will you reflect on this year’s Leinster U20 campaign in which you captained the Kildare team? You had good wins initially against Laois and Carlow and then Wexford.
We were motoring well really and we thought we were in a good place coming into the Meath game really.
If my memory serves me right some fella called James Harris kicked one or two inspirational points as well. You do like to get forward to have a pot?
Yeah, I suppose when I was younger, I was always more forward or a midfielder. I was never really in the half back line. Niall Cronin was the first one put me in at centre back and I have been in the half back line ever since.
That Meath game was on a horrible night, horrendous conditions. The pitch was bordering on unplayable?
It was probably the worst conditions I ever played in. We came in at half time and we weren't even really able to give any messages. We're were trying to get dry and get clean gear back on us and stuff. The ball didn’t bounce at all. They were sweeping the water off the pitch at half time.We were 1-2 to no score up and then we kind of lacked a bit of game management. Then we let them back in with two 2 pointers and then indiscipline with three up and three back, they got another two pointer from that. At half time we still felt we were in a good position with the elements at our back but we've never seen the push on in the second half.
So obviously it was a disappointing end to your career as an U20 player?
When you taste that success in the first year and you think it's going to be a better two years and then you get knocked out by the same team in the same stage the two years following that. Tasting that success at start you crave to get that again and you aspire to reach that pinnacle but it just never seemed to materialise.
Obviously you didn't have much time to dwell on the disappointed of the Tuesday as you were straight into a Town's Cup final with Athy. Did you get a chance to be involved in the build up to the Final?
Yeah, we lost the Tuesday and then the Wednesday I was back training with Athy so the disappointment was kind of glossed over for a short while?
We played Carlow I'd say four or five times in the last year or two and they've always been one score games, extremely tight. We know each other so well and then finals always add that bit of pressure and you don't know how teams are going to come out in a Final with nerves and stuff like that.
It was great build up, It was a great occasion for the for the club. You see the emotion on people's faces after like the President, Ger Brennan, Ollie Henry Brendan Markey, there's a lot of work to put in behind the scenes in Athy Rugby Club. I’m just delighted for all them for Athy to get over the line.
What was the feeling like in the club and among the players, a gap of 41 years to the last Towns Cup win? at stage.
There were a few rocky patches for Athy throughout those 41 years. There were times when we celebrated just one win in the Town's Cup and that would be like the celebrations on Sunday. But Athy have really progressed. There's great community at Athy and they're really pushing on now. They're top of junior rugby and they're hoping to push on into further things down the years.
Would AIL be an ambition?
Yeah, obviously AIL is an ambition. Yeah, definitely.
What will this win do for Athy?
As we have seen through the years, success breathes success. There's already huge numbers in a Athy it will even bring even more. Hopefully, instead of lads looking elsewhere for rugby and AIL clubs they stay in Athy and grow the club further.
There’s great rugby in Athy. When you see Joey Carbery, Jeremy Loughman and Mark Moloney all professional rugby players. There’s a big want for rugby around the area.
From a rugby point of view, what are your ambitions, James?
I was with Leinster U18’s and I was capped for Ireland at that level but that's as far as I got. I’d say the ship has now sailed as far as rugby is concerned but we’ll see how it goes. I’ll stay playing as much as I can I suppose but playing with the Kildare senior team would probably be more a target for the future.
You’re now playing at senior level for Castlemitchell too. How are things going at the club, the gap between the older, senior players and the younger players like yourself and Ross and others is narrowing?
We have a very young squad and we're kind of progressing nicely, trying to develop a few players into maybe to be a bit more physically stronger. There was a massive gap from our oldest player Enda Hyland and then to me and Ross and there was only a few in between that age, which doesn't help at times. Hopefully we’ll get out of junior this year. We’re looking to get into the top half of the Division and push for promotion after that. Junior Championship is a difficult one but we feel like we have the panel of players to push to compete this year and hopefully go a step or two further we did last year, losing to Ellistown in the semi-final.
Castlemitchell have great facilities down there and now you’re turning out to bea club for the future again?
Hopefully we can reach the success we had in 2015 and push even further, because definitely the quality is there. There are great people there like Mick Fennin and Eamonn Fennin and people like that who put endless work into the club.
