There was a hero’s welcome for home Town boy Zach Tuohy to mark the launch of his sports memoir, The Irish Experiment, at the Midlands Park Hotel in Portlaoise last night.
It was a freezing night outside but a warm reception in the O’ More Suite for one of the county’s most successful ever sports stars.
A bashful and modest Tuohy certainly doesn’t tout his celebrity, but he has a rock star status Down Under in Oz where he is feted as a fan and media favourite, even by rival supporters.
He tells a story like he played footie, a tough, honest player, who takes everything bar himself seriously, respects others and gets on with it, sporting his trademark whiskers and sense of humour.
The Geelong great is no stranger to playing on the big stage in front of 80,000 fans in the famed Melbourne MCG stadium but you could see that it meant every bit as much to him to be …