Dublin fan’s ballad breathes life into All-Ireland dream

Dubs supporter Deirdre Flynn had never written a song before she was challenged to come up with one to celebrate her team’s appearance in this year’s All-Ireland final.

A Little Boy's Dream took her all of two hours to write. She handed the lyric sheet and music to ballad group The Invincibles on a Saturday evening and the song plus video was on YouTube the following Monday morning.

The band’s lead singer Paul Stone was the one who challenged her to write the song when he confessed to having none of his own about Dublin’s march to another final.

Flynn (39) can play a tin whistle and is also taking guitar lessons, but never considered writing a song before let alone having one recorded.

“I sat down with a piece of paper and a pen and the words just came out on the page,” she said, “I don’t know where it came from. Writing songs is a confidence thing. I just have to work on it. I never thought I’d ever see it recorded.”

GAA mad

The song tells the story of a GAA mad Dublin lad who grows up with a dream: “When he was a little lad, he heard his father roar, ‘where’s me Dublin jersey?’, Jaysus, what’s the score?”

As he is growing up, he has to choose between Gaelic football and hurling. He chooses Gaelic football and, of course, fulfils his boyhood dream of bringing home Sam.

Deirdre says the song was from the heart. “When the GAA is put into you as a child, it just becomes part of your blood and you love it, you live it and breathe it.”

Deirdre is such a fan that she managed to infiltrate the Dublin training camp at Powerscourt. Forward Dean Rock had already heard the song. “He said to me, ‘that’s me living my dream’. Everybody says that Kevin McManamon is going to sing it on Sunday.”

Ms Flynn is a mother of five children, four girls and one boy. “The song might be a little bit sexist because ever child wants to play for their county and my girls are no different.”

Ms Flynn, from Finglas, is a mature student who is about to graduate from All Hallows College with a degree in liberal arts and adult education. She hopes to start her HDip in Marino College this year.

She grew up with the Dublin team that, after many heartbreaks, finally won the Sam Maguire Cup in 1995 after a wait of 12 years. It was another 16 before they won it back in 2011 with that heart-stopping pointed free from Stephen Cluxton.

‘Absolutely gutted’

“Each time I was on the Hill, but I don’t have a ticket for Sunday. I’m absolutely gutted,” she said.

Davan Nagle, the owner of Popstars studio, said the song was “incredibly lashed together”, but was all the better for that as it had the feel of a singalong pub ballad.

“I’m a songwriter myself so I know what’s terrible and what’s good and Deirdre is an excellent writer,” he said.

The song is being recorded in aid of the Make A Wish Foundation. Deirdre and some friends will be going to the Sunnybank pub in Glasnevin after the match on Sunday to collect funds for the charity.