Sean Barrett (Independent) | Oireachtas source

It is normal also that when a person achieves international success, he or she receives kudos for his or her performance. When Shane Long scored a goal against the world champions, people in Tipperary could have said they washed the jerseys and pumped up the footballs when he was playing as an under ten but, for better or worse, it was Martin O'Neill, the manager of the team - who sent Shane Long onto the pitch as a substitute just before he scored - who was recognised. Is this not the nature of sport, that success at the highest level gets media attention and reward? We need the under tens in boxing and football because their efforts inevitably feed in to international success.