AFTER the seemingly interminable wait to first decide their opponents, then the date before taking their case to the clubs of Clare, the road is now clear for the minor hurlers to hone in on neighbours Galway in this much anticipated last four clash.
And for selector Eamon Fennessy who has served in numerous roles for both club and county and is currently Clare GAA’s Coaching Officer, the mood is the camp is heartening ahead of the knock-out tie.
“Really we are delighted it is on this weekend and therefore sooner rather than later because we have a clean bill of health at the moment and clubs have been good to us in putting back fixtures. We are grateful for that because we have a full week’s run of training which is huge. Ideally we would have liked two weeks but it’s a good compromise being one week. If the 14th was the option, then there was definitely going to be a round of fixtures around the 5th, 6th and 7th that would have been detrimental to us because you would have fatigue and the possibility of injuries so we are happy with where we are.”
On entering their domain, there is always a distinct family type atmosphere that permeates the county minor camp, with a huge mutual respect and admiration between players and management that has built up over the last three years. And that strong bond has in turn reflected in the squad’s performances, according to the Sixmilebridge clubman, to where they are now the undisputed kingpins of Munster with back-to-back titles for the first time in the county’s history.
“The thing about it is that no training session is the same. The players don’t know what’s happening until they come in and they go away afterwards nice and happy and I think that’s been the thing that Paul [Kinnerk] has brought to it really. His sessions are never the same and there is a different intensity and a different level of focus required on the players and anyone that doesn’t behave or have their diet in proper shape before they come in, they know then that they are in for a tough evening. It’s never mundane and that’s one thing we’ve tried to do is keep it fresh so that nobody is going to go home totally fed up or bored so the whole lot of us really have worked hard on that to try and ensure that there is a positive atmosphere from all of us.
“The encouragement is there from everybody. They encourage each other in the dressing room when they are getting ready to go out in the session, we encourage them during the session and afterwards we explain where they have gone wrong and how they can improve themselves and it’s never a case of giving a player a rollicking. We give them constructive criticism and they take it on the chin and equally they give it back to us and they tell us where they feel that sometimes play is breaking down and it’s a two way thing.
“And with that there is trust there and I think trust is key. They trust us on the line and we trust them to go out and do a job and whatever 15 are picked, the other 15 on the panel know that those guys are picked because of the effort that they have put in. For instance we had a full length game in training on Friday and we wanted to see how players are going in certain positions, what our Plan A is, what our Plan B and Plan C is and they know that. They know that they have the opportunity to prove themselves and I think they are honest enough to admit that.”
That competition for places will be vital ahead of the squad’s toughest test to date in this derby clash. And for Fennessy and Co, Galway have been the side they would have outlined out as the county to watch out for since the outset of the championship, having played them twice in challenge games during the year.
“We always picked out Galway and even when they came down here to play us, they showed that they are a big powerful team. People have made us favourites for the All-Ireland but we are saying ‘look hang on a second, we have a new panel’ and okay we have lost an All-Ireland but Galway are the form team that have All-Ireland’s won, especially under Mattie Murphy. He never picks a team that are just going to turn up. We know that they are a formidable outfit. They came down here and played us and it was helter skelter until half-time and they give us a lesson on where we needed to be.
“And the one thing we knew from last year was that from the Munster final, there is a huge step up to an All-Ireland semi-final. People thought we are just playing Dublin but no, it was a complete step up again and that’s the education that these fellas got and the players that are lucky enough to have been on the panel since last year are reflecting that back to the new guys. They are saying that ‘hang on now, whatever you thought of playing in Cork, Croke Park is a different animal’ and Galway are definitely the team, as far as I’m concerned, to beat. They are the form team and we would have put them in there with Waterford from the start. Kilkenny are always an unknown entity until you get them out onto the field but Galway are the ones we have been targetting all year, as well as Dublin to be fair.”
Facing Galway is a daunting task in itself but there is also the Croke Park factor that inevitably brings with it an intensity far greater that anything this year’s side have faced up to this point.
“It is a nervous thing. I think when you go to Croke Park, you suddenly realise that it is a different level, a different pace, a different intensity, a different physicality and it’s an education for these fellas. We have planned to go up there beforehand and take them all out there for a walk and explain to them about last year. We will also get the players that were there last year to explain to them where they felt they went wrong so we are hoping that this time our preparation will be better and that we are more prepared for it. The players themselves from last year will be able to pass on the advise of the higher intensity that is needed and focus that is needed from now on.”
And Fennessy is confident that Clare can hit the ground running, just as they did for the majority of the Munster final against Waterford last time out.
“People said our second half against Waterford was poor but people hadn’t realised that Tony Kelly was in hospital for 24 hours, that Colm Galvin hadn’t trained since the Tipp game and there was always going to be a period of the game where fatigue was going to set in but we know now, that for the full 70 minutes aainst Galway that we just can’t afford to take our foot off the pedal. If we go a goal down, two goals down or even three goals, we still have to keep hammering away. If we get the start that we did against Waterford, which is always out focus in training, then there is no reason why we won’t give Galway a good game of it.”
The waiting is over. It’s time to let their hurling do the talking in the country’s biggest stage.