County finals can produce unusual stories, and Pauric Halpin’s route to the St Dominic’s senior team is certainly one of the more distinctive.
A native of Tarmonbarry, Halpin plays football with St Barry’s, but with his father originally from Waterford, he always had a strong desire to play hurling.
When he looked at the map, he discovered that St Dominic’s was the nearest hurling club to him. He knew nobody at the club, but was welcomed into the St Dominic’s fold and progressed through the underage ranks.
A doctor working in Sligo University Hospital, Halpin admits that he “fell out of love” with hurling a couple of years ago and stepped away from the game. But his enthusiasm returned, and he is now back in the senior team with an opportunity to help St Dominic’s chase a first county title since 1999.
“Thady Beirne has been unbelievable to me. I’m from Tarmonbarry, which is 30 minutes from Dominic’s. There is no hurling in St Barry’s.
“But there is never a problem with Dominic’s. If I am playing football for Barry’s, then there is no problem at all.
“Apart from Thady, everyone in Dominic’s has been so good to me over the years. From Naos Connaughton’s father Joe, his mother Ann, Ronan Kilcline, Pronsias Killion and many more, they could not have treated me any better.
“And remember, I had no connection with the club at all before I came here.”
His love of hurling began through his father’s Waterford roots.
“My Dad is from Waterford, just outside Dungarvan. I went to numerous Munster hurling championship games over the years and that’s where I got my love for the game. I just wanted to play.”
There was a time, however, when the demands of life led Halpin to step away.
“It’s just the way things were at the time. Busy life, the long commute, and everything got to me.
“I was there in 2024 at the county final on the sidelines as the team doctor and I had made peace with retirement. I wanted Dominic’s to win desperately.
“But we lost a league final after that and I said to Thady that I’d like to come back.”
His motivation is now very clear.
“I wanted to achieve something for Dominic’s. I was born in 1999, the year Dominic’s last won the title, and I look at what a great club Dominic’s is.
“There are great people there. It would be great for them to win this title.
“As a Barry’s man, I had no affiliation with the club at all, but they deserve success. I actually played against them in the football championship this year, which was strange, but that’s just the way it is.”
Halpin is also keen to acknowledge the commitment of his parents, Anne and Pat, who supported his hurling career from the beginning.
“The commitment that they put in was phenomenal over the years. When I was underage, they drove down here for 30 minutes, waited an hour and a half for training and drove me back home again a few times a week, and that went on for eight years.
“It was an incredible commitment to make.”
Halpin believes his own story highlights a wider issue for hurling in Roscommon, particularly in the northern part of the county.
“There are huge parts of the county that are ignored, especially in North Roscommon. I know there are hurlers there.
“Take, for instance, John McGowan in Tarmonbarry. He is always talking to me about hurling. You go down training for Barry’s during the summer and there are always six or seven young lads with hurleys playing there. They have no club to play for.”
He believes there is good work being done at introductory levels but that a stronger pathway is needed as players get older.
“Cathal Cregg is doing great work at Connacht level. My own Dad, Pronsias Killion, Micheál Hussey’s Dad and many more are working at U-10 and U-12 level, but after that there is nothing.
“There are hurlers in every single school in Roscommon and we have to provide a pathway for them. It’s something that needs to be done. We need to get the kids out hurling.”
For all the wider issues, however, Halpin knows that Sunday is ultimately about one thing.
“We are under no illusions about this whatsoever. We are going to have to up our performance immensely to match Four Roads and we will need a bit of luck too.
“We just hope that we can perform on the day. If we come off the field and can say we left no stone unturned, we will have no regrets.
“Hopefully we will get over the line this time.”
