Blueblood Pádraic Joyce seeking to enhance Galway tradition

It would be difficult to find a more perfect embodiment of the Galway footballing blueblood tradition than Pádraic Joyce.

His career reads like a how-to manual in becoming a Galway football icon, as scripted by one of the 20th century elders in St Jarlath's.

Become a star player on a Jarlath's Hogan Cup winning team, win a bunch of Connacht titles, win your couple of All-Irelands, get Man of the Match in one of the finals, hug Sean Purcell in the dressing room afterwards.

Add in four county titles with Killererin - needless to say, Joyce was the chief orchestrator on the field for all of these - and now a stint as manager, where he's led the county to the cusp of glory.

Born in the village of Bearna Dhearg, just south of Tuam, also birthplace to a certain Sunday Game presenter of 35 years standing, Joyce's family home was occasionally a stop-off for Galway football legends from the black and white era.

"My father, God rest him, didn't really play much football but my uncle Billy would have played at lot. You'd always kind of be steeped in that kind of stuff.

"When we made our communion, we put our money towards a pool table in the house - something really worthwhile!

"Billy could land in there any time of the day with God knows who. I remember one particular night he came in with Mattie McDonagh.

"Me and Tommy (brother) and Billy and Mattie were playing doubles in pool all night and just talking football.

"I've always been in that football environment. Football has been a huge part of my life."

The peak years of Joyce's inter-county career were the early ones. He was marginally the top scorer in a thrilling ensemble forward line in 1998.

Watching Match of the Day in the Berkeley Court Hotel on the eve of the final, his roommate