Matt Gallagher was at the Millennium Stadium in 2006 and 2008 supporting Munster when they lifted the Heineken Cup.
Watching on, he hoped that one day he would get the chance to pull on the famous red jersey, but it seemed like a pipe dream back then.
But it became a reality last year when Gallagher joined Munster from Saracens, only for his first season with the club to not exactly go according to plan.
Covid-19 hit, which obviously made life tricky, before a shoulder injury led to a lengthy spell out.
However, one positive aspect of his move to Limerick has been the fact Gallagher has been able to keep an eye on his granny, who lives in Corbally.
“My granddad actually died about 20 years ago, so me coming back has been positive for her,” Gallagher said, ahead of Munster’s trip to Zebre tomorrow.
“I get to see her a bit more. During Covid as well, she’s been a bit isolated, so I try and get around whenever I can really.
“She has my uncle here as well as myself. As she’s getting older, it’s easier for my dad to stay in touch and know what’s going on.”
Although he spent plenty of time in Limerick on holiday as a youngster, Gallagher hasn’t yet had the chance to experience all that the city has to offer, but he is looking forward to doing so now that things are opening up again.
“It was a bit of a different time wasn’t it?” he smiled.
“Especially being in London the whole time, it’s a big city and I managed to get home for a couple of days during the season and almost felt a bit overwhelmed coming from Limerick.
“But no, I’m sure when Limerick and Cork open back up, it will be back to normal and everything will be good again.”
On the pitch, Gallagher is still waiting for his Munster career to take off, but he has shown glimpses of his quality from full-back.
The 24-year-old’s family haven’t yet seen him line out for Munster at Thomond Park, which is another thing to look forward to next season, at which point the competition in the back-three will have increased significantly with the arrival of Simon Zebo.
“I’d hope I do (thrive),” Gallagher added. “Being behind Alex (Goode) and Liam (Williams) in the past I know how to go about these things.
“You can learn from the likes of Simon who has been in a different environment for however many years and pick up what you want from him and use what you already know, and I can back myself to push on and really go for that No 1 spot.”