Goosebumps – WATCH Barry Keoghan Rousing Tribute to Katie Taylor

Irish actor and boxing fan Barry Keoghan has paid a rousing, heartfelt tribute to Ireland’s greatest ever athlete, Katie Taylor as her historic farewell inches closer.

Taylor will fight for the final time when she headlines in front of 80,000 at Dublin’s Croke Park this Saturday – live worldwide on the Global Home of Boxing, DAZN and non-exclusively in Ireland on RTÉ.

The London 2012 Olympic Gold Medallist bids to become a three-time Undisputed Champion, taking on France’s undefeated Flora Pili for the WBC, WBA, IBF, WBO and Ring Magazine Super Lightweight Titles.

And Hollywood mega star Keoghan – the BAFTA Award-winning actor of The Banshees of Inisherin, Peaky Blinders: The Immortal Man, Saltburn, Top Boy and more – has shared a spine-tingling message in homage to the Emerald Isle’s legendary hero, Taylor.

“You know, it’s a funny thing, greatness. It’s rarely found in the loudest voice. If you need to shout you’ve got it – you probably never had it in the first place,”says Keoghan, in the special presentation directed by Matchroom Boxing’s Alex Haines.

“See, back when the boxing world believed it belonged only to boys, a girl walks into a gym. Fighting not as Katie… but as Kay from Bray. They’ll say the rest is history, but it was never that simple.

“A path only exists because someone was willing to walk first. And before there was a path, there was Katie. With each step she tread new ground. First came Ireland. Then Europe. Then the World. Inspiring a generation as the golden girl of the Emerald Isle.

“But as the path diverged – Katie took the road less travelled. What followed changed the sport forever. So, when you’ve done all that, how do you top off a career of a lifetime? Is there a final chapter worthy of everything that came before? It’s Croke Park, Dublin, Ireland.

“Most journeys begin at home. The rare ones end there too. And so, Katie returns. For every fan who walked the journey beside her. For every young dreamer who dared to dream. For ALL Ireland.

“So, that years from now, when her story is passed through generations, You can say: I was there… I was there!

“And when they ask you about Katie You can begin with four simple words: Once upon a time.”