FAI CUP FINAL 2026 COUNTDOWN: David Breen has Aviva unfinished business
David Breen centre with Lee Bullen and Brian Murphy at the Reg ahead of the FAI Cup Final. Photos: Noel Browne
When David Breen walks into the Aviva Stadium on Sunday afternoon, he will do so carrying memories that have never fully left him.
The Waterford FC coach knows exactly what an FAI Cup final feels like. He knows the excitement that builds in the weeks beforehand, the buzz that sweeps through the city, the anticipation of walking out onto the biggest stage in Irish football and hearing your supporters roar from the stands.
He also knows what it feels like when it slips away.
Breen was part of the Waterford United side beaten 2-1 by Longford Town in the 2004 FAI Cup Final at Lansdowne Road. For long periods that day, it looked as though the Blues would end their long wait for cup glory. Instead, they were left heartbroken.
22 years later, Breen returns to a cup final as part of Graham Coughlan's coaching team, hoping to help deliver the success that eluded him as a player.
"It never goes away as a footballer. You remember all the bad ones, to be fair. You don't remember the good times as much as you do the bad ones and that's one that sticks out as a sore one.
"This is a completely different group now. They've done ever so well to get to the final. From where we were in the first three months of the season compared to where we are now, it's a completely different team and one that's fully focused on bringing the cup home."
For Breen, the story begins in 2004, a season that generated excitement unlike anything Waterford supporters had experienced in years.
The Blues had returned to the Premier Division and there was a renewed energy around the club. Alan Reynolds had taken charge while Republic of Ireland legend Paul McGrath arrived in a set-up that also included Giles Cheevers. The involvement of such high-profile figures generated national attention and gave supporters genuine reason for optimism.
"The set-up was great. We had bounced into the Premier Division that year and I thought we'd done okay throughout the season. We held our own.
"We had some tough years in Waterford, to be fair, but that year in particular was memorable because we'd done so well and the club was going in the right direction at the time.
"It generated some publicity as well. I remember the unveiling of Rennie and Paul. Sky Sports were over at the Woodlands and it really captured the football imagination, not only in Ireland but across the water as well because of Paul's connection with Aston Villa.
"Paul was an Irish legend obviously and would have been an idol of mine. My eyes were open every time I saw him. I was starstruck.
"But Paul was fantastic. He was great around the group and good for the club. He created a lot of noise around the place and everything felt like it was going in the right direction."
That wave of optimism carried Waterford all the way to the FAI Cup Final.
For Breen, some of the happiest memories from that year were created before a ball was even kicked at Lansdowne Road.
"The build-up was fantastic. The buzz around the club, the buzz around the county, friends and family all waiting to get up there.
"None of us had really played in Lansdowne Road before. I certainly hadn't. That whole background to it, playing in Lansdowne, the old Lansdowne obviously, it was stuff dreams were made of.
"We went up the day before and went into the ground. We had a little kick of a ball, not too dissimilar to what we'll be doing this time around. It was just to get a feel for the ground and not be overawed when you walk into a massive stadium on the day of the game.
"Everything was done right. The build-up, the travel and everything we'd done. We had our suits and we all looked great going up the road.
"They're great memories. Unfortunately, the day itself didn't end the way we wanted."
Waterford looked set for glory when Daryl Murphy flicked on for Willie Bruton to put the Blues in front early in the second half.
Instead, a moment Breen can still picture vividly changed everything.
"It was always going to be a cagey game. It wasn't a great spectacle from what I can remember. It was nil-all at half-time and neither team wanted to lose the game.
"Then we score through Willie and obviously the buzz is unbelievable. We're hanging in there but there was a second ball on the pitch.
"To be fair, we shouldn't have stopped. You can point fingers but you're taught from schoolboy football not to stop until the whistle blows. Too many of us stopped and they score.
"Momentum was with them after that. I think we dropped and lost concentration a little bit and unfortunately they go and score again.
"You lose 2-1. It's one that sticks out. You remember those ones."
That experience has given Breen a unique appreciation of the opportunity facing the current Waterford squad.
Unlike the side he played in, this team contains players who understand the demands of the occasion. Tommy Lonergan, Benny Couto and Evan McLaughlin have all experienced cup-final football, while Kevin Long and Padraig Amond provide leadership within the dressing room.
"The experienced lads in the room will help, that's for sure. They'll tell the younger players what to expect.
"But listen, take all the noise away from it and it's another game of football. There's nervousness before every game, of course there is, but once that whistle blows you're focused.
"It's like a normal game of football. We've got enough experience in the dressing room and I don't think the occasion will phase our lads.
"They've done ever so well to get to the final and from where we were in the first few months of the season compared to where we are now, it's a completely different team."
For Breen, however, Sunday brings a different challenge.
In 2004 he was a player. This weekend he will be part of the coaching staff, forced to watch events unfold from the touchline.
"I'd much rather be out playing. It's tough looking out there because you can't really affect it.
"You can prepare the lads and work with them all week but once they step over that white line there's not much more you can do.
"The lads are in a good place. They know how the manager wants them to play and to be fair we've gotten results because of that.
"We won't change now. It's cup final football and it'll come down to what happens on the day."
Football itself has evolved dramatically since Breen's playing days. Analysis and technology now play a central role in preparation, with Shane Nolan feeding information to the coaching staff from high in the stands.
"Shane has been brilliant. I'll have an earpiece in and he'll be talking down to me and then I'll relay that information on.
"It's great because when you're down at pitch level there are things you can miss. You can see things from up high that are harder to spot from the side of the pitch.
"The game has changed massively since 2004. The speed of the game is different, the players are fitter and there's much more analysis.
"But you still can't get away from the basics."
Nor is Breen concerned by suggestions that the Aviva Stadium's wider dimensions could favour Derry City.
"You're only talking a few yards either side and the same with the lengths. That shouldn't change our mindset.
"We'll keep doing what we've been doing and what has brought us success. We've got goals in our team, we've got quality in our team and we need to focus on what we do, not worry about them."
If there was one subject that truly brought Breen to life, it was Waterford's supporters.
He has seen the club through some of its highest highs and lowest lows. He has played in front of thousands and, as he points out himself, in front of only a few hundred.
That perspective allows him to fully appreciate what Sunday's occasion means.
"It's brilliant for families, friends and supporters of the club. The support has been fantastic all year. Whether it's home or away, they've travelled and backed the lads. We need them again because they really do drive the players on.
"I think we had about 4,000 travel from Waterford for the cup final in 2004 and now we've probably tripled that. It's brilliant for the city, the county and everyone connected with the club.
"Some of our lads have played in cup finals before and some haven't. We've got good experience through the team and the support will hopefully help us on the day.
"They've been great all year, particularly away from home. Going up to Galway and places like that, they were fantastic and we need them again because they do drive the lads on.
"I've played in front of 200 people here. The support base is huge for any club. It's the heartbeat of the club. It's the DNA of the club. The fans are everything.
"They've backed us through a difficult start to the season. It could have gone the other way but they stayed with us.
"They've backed us with their numbers and they've backed us with their voices. That's all you can ask and hopefully we can do it for them.
"I know by the amount of tickets sold that they're looking to back us. We've waited a long time for this and I think our fans will be nice and loud throughout the whole game."
Back in 2004, Breen left Lansdowne Road with the crushing disappointment that only a cup-final defeat can bring.
Twenty-two years later, he returns with another chance. Not as a player, but as a coach.
The hurt of that afternoon has never completely disappeared, nor should it. It serves as a reminder of how rare these occasions are and how much they matter.
And if Waterford finally end their wait for FAI Cup glory on Sunday, few people inside the Aviva Stadium will appreciate the significance of the achievement more than the man who knows exactly how painful the alternative can be.
