It's time for the next generation of Tipperary players to step up and preserve the legacy of the departing Padraic Maher.
That was the message from forward Jake Morris, following the shock announcement of the six-time All-Star's inter-county retirement on Tuesday.
He was the second triple All-Ireland winner to retire in a matter of months after former captain Brendan Maher’s also called it a day at the end of last season.
"Paudie Maher would probably have made any Tipperary team ever," Morris told RTÉ Sport. "He was such a monster at wing-back or anywhere else he lined out. I can’t remember him having a bad day at the office.
"He set standards for us inside, showing us how to train every night and how to look after your body, how to attack a match on match day in front of 40,000 people. Everyone has massive respect for him and we wish him all the best and we’re going to try our best to continue his legacy.
"I think the best memory I have of him is when we played the minor All-Ireland in 2016 and were sitting down in the Hogan Stand after and Pádraic Maher nailed Joe Canning with a shoulder across the line out in front of us. I’ll never forget the crunch of that shoulder, which was the turning point that day.
"I was called into the Tipp team in 2018 and I remember thinking to myself as a light 18-year-old 'I’d better not go near Pádraic Maher or he’ll throw me out over the line’.
"The best thing we can do now is continue on his levels of honesty, and the way he treated the Tipperary jersey, and he can be happy with that.
"We have a competitive squad inside in Tipp and I think everyone just needs to raise the levels a small bit to fill Paudie’s void from ow on. It’s going to be a big void but together if we get up the standard of
Read more on rte.ie
rte.ie
