Much of the blame for that 5-7 to 1-13 reverse was planted on his doorstep, with the young custodian subjected to shocking levels of online abuse in the days after the game.

“There was one comment on twitter that said I should have been in the Mayo team photo,” Casey said at that time.

There were no such remarks made in the aftermath of Sunday’s game at Páirc Uí Rinn and it is extremely doubtful if Fermoy would have allowed him into their team photo given he was the rock on which their title aspirations, ultimately, perished.

Trailing by 2-4 to 0-5 approaching half-time, Fermoy midfielder Pádraig de Róiste, having been put through on goal, produced a low shot that Casey deflected out for a ‘45. A goal then and who knows how the game would have gone.

He further frustrated Fermoy in the second period, with Martin Brennan and de Róiste again denied.

Turning on the mobile phone departing Páirc Uí Rinn, his inbox was brimming with congratulatory messages.

A far cry from what he encountered when heading out of Cusack Park five-and-a-half months ago.

“Sunday’s win was that bit sweeter given what went on after the All-Ireland U21 final defeat,” Casey said yesterday.

“I got a lot of guff and a lot of grief over the final in Ennis. It was nice just to show those keyboard warriors that I was able to turn around, to do my part for Kiskeam and to show that day in Ennis didn’t define me and won’t define me. I just wanted to drive on and I have.”

He added: “I remember the save before half-time, a one-on-one, and the ball hit my leg. That could have gone either way. I didn’t know a whole pile about the shot. Thankfully, it hit my leg. It could have been different on another day.”

The 2-12 to 0-14 triumph sparked scenes of wild celebration and it was 9pm before the team bus pulled into the local churchyard where they were ushered onto an open-sided lorry.

Joining them was club president John Paddy Joe Murphy.

“He’s in his early nineties, I think, and he came up onto the stage with us. He was part of the 1964 team that won the Cork junior title. He is the life and soul of the club.

“He didn’t attend on Sunday. He thinks he is an unlucky charm.

“He was listening on the radio and is always in touch with us to wish us well ahead of a particular game or to see how injuries are healing.

“He is a Kiskeam man to the bone. For him to be able to join in the celebrations is the kind of special moment that defines a county final win.

“When you see people of his age coming out to support you, it just shows how tight this community is and how much football means to the people of Kiskeam.”

For a community of no more than 600 people, where players double up as club officials, their ascension to the top table of Cork football, according to Casey, is a pretty “remarkable” achievement.

“We had to get a Garda escort back to the village on Sunday. There were cars parked way out the road. Something we’d never seen before.

“Nobody realises how small we are. If you blinked when driving through the village, you’d miss it.

“We are still pinching ourselves. This is what we were all dreaming of for so long.

“It was what everyone wanted. It is what past players and officers wanted. We still can’t believe we are up senior.”

It was confirmed yesterday that they will meet the Limerick champions Adare in the Munster semi-final to be played on the weekend of November 12/13 given that Waterford’s intermediate championship will not be concluded by then.

“They are another big town, but it will be hard to beat the spirit we have in the club. It is something special.”