Campbell will be forever indebted to Geezer

By Michael McMullan

WOULD Armagh be All-Ireland champions without Stefan Campbell? It’s hard to make a case for Sam Maguire heading north without his input.

If he picks up an All-Star on the back of his super-sub role, it wouldn’t be a huge shock.

It’s like the Kevin McMenamin punch from Dublin’s bench. Defenders with half spent legs were fair game.

Campbell’s 73rd minute equaliser in the group game against Galway, after coming in half-time, earned the draw that topped the group to lead them through the front door.

He followed it up with two points, also as a half-time change, in the next two appearances to help see off Roscommon and Kerry. It has been a trend. ‘Soupy’ was held until 10 minutes into the second half of the final and made Aaron McKay’s goal within minutes.

Teams are aware of Campbell’s impact but they can’t do anything about it. McGeeney decided it was another stamp on their passport to glory.

“You’ve got to believe him,” Campbell said. “He came to the club (Clan na nGael) maybe nine or 10 years ago to present me a player of the year award. He told me that night that I was going to win Sam Maguire and I’ll be forever indebted to him.”

Campbell backs up captain Aidan Forker’s words from his victory speech. Armagh wouldn’t be there with McGeeney. No way.

Standing outside the Armagh dressing room on Sunday, with an hour to digest becoming an All-Ireland winner, Campbell’s eyes are dancing. Yet, his words are well chosen. It’s the same composure Armagh have brought to the recent white heat of championship.

He doesn’t see himself as a hero to the next generation. Nor does he feel winning on Sunday was the be all or end all of to inspire the youth.

“You’ve seen the numbers that come out, you’ve seen the numbers that travel…that was the icing on the cake for them,” Campbell said of winning the All-Ireland.

Coming from a soccer background in Lurgan, Campbell was at the off game until the 2002. The players born in his era, 1991 and 1992, looked up at the 2002 team the Ulster successes to follow.

“Winning six or seven Ulsters in that 10-year period made me want to emulate them one day,” he said. “Let’s hope that day lives in the memory for all these kids and I have to come back to watch them. Hopefully it doesn’t take 22 or 23 years.”

Campbell, who scored 1-21 in league and championship this season, played down any suggestion that he was a hero among the Armagh fans. There was just glee at being part of Armagh’s second All-Ireland winning story and how the management team stuck by the group.

“I make no qualms about that, Geezer has been telling us for 10 years we’d climb the (Hogan Stand) steps one day,” Campbell said, referencing the feeling of being closer than many thought after taking Mayo all the way in a Castlebar in 2019.

Since then, he spoke of a “solid” group, a deeper panel with nobody dropping off.

“We had that consistency and Geezer’s been beating that drum,” he added. “I think when Star (Kieran Donaghy) came in, he said he wasn’t coming down the road for the crack.

“I’d say from 2019 onwards, you can really judge Kieran from there. Look at our record, we could easily have been going for three-in-a-row in Ulster.”

Now everything has changed. Thanks to Campbell and his fellow men coming in off the bench, Armagh made it all the way to the winners’ circle. His assist for Aaron McKay’s goal jolted their title charge into life.

“The game’s a wee bit more manic,” he said of the buzz playing in on the biggest day of the season.

“Obviously that’s our first full house because we’ve been caught in double headers and the crowd’s leaving. Today, it was a communication issue.”

It came down to hand signals for communication with any form of verbal instruction impossible to decipher in the din 82,000 screaming fans. Did he hear or see McKay’s call in the lead-up to the goal.

“I’ll say this for one laugh, I actually thought it was Rian coming in,” Campbell said with a smile.

“You can’t hear anybody out there. Unless it’s a slow attack and the crowd is not giving it or a break in play and you’re getting messages on from either end.

“You can’t hear a thing out there, so it’s almost down to most skilful, it can come down to a message from the line, a defensive tweak or a tweak in the system. It’s surreal, honestly, I am still lost for words.”

Check out our Monday review show as we look back at Sunday’s historic win for Armagh, the key moments and the special atmosphere at the homecoming.