*Conor Cleary. Photograph: Gerard O’Neill
ST JOSEPH’S Miltown manager Martin Guerin is hoping it won’t be a case of one Cleary twin returning and another exiting their squad.
Fresh from tasting success with Chicago Wolfe Tones in the North American championship final, Eoin Cleary touched down in Shannon Airport last week and is back with the St Joseph’s Miltown side as they prepare for a third round clash with Ennistymon, both sides having already guaranteed their place in the knockout stages but Sunday’s game will determine the placings.
Sunday’s game will be held in Cooraclare, the home club of Seán O’Donoghue who lined out on the opposing team to Cleary in the final Stateside.
With Eoin returning, it will automatically strengthen the Miltown team but a shoulder operation is looming for his twin brother Conor who was their man of the match in the second round win over Doonbeg and was influential in Kilmaley’s successful start to the Clare SHC.
Speaking to The Clare Echo, Miltown manager Martin Guerin expressed his hope to have both Clearys on the field. “As for this season I don’t know. Eoin will be back for the next game, we’ve really missed him but you can’t deny him going on his venture this year, he has been fantastic this year and has played really well for Chicago Wolfe Tones, any of the games I’ve seen he has been outstanding and probably their best player but we will be delighted to have him back, I hope we don’t lose one and gain one”.
They will definitely be without Oisin Looney, the two-time Clare SFC winner has relocated to Dubai for a teaching post. “Oisin Looney is going away to Dubai and he will be a big loss for us, he’s been very good for us at wing back, these are the ups and downs of club football with lads going away, we have to try cope with it as best we can, we have a good panel, the younger lads just need to step it up now and it’s as simple as that, places are there for everyone”.
When it was put to Guerin that Looney could return for the knockout stages if Miltown’s travel bill allows, he responded, “Let’s see what happens the next day and where we are in a month’s time, we’ll dip into the oil kitty and maybe bring him back from Dubai, let’s see where we are, we’ve another game to play, it is all to play for, there’s no point thinking too far ahead”.
Overcoming Doonbeg has got the ball rolling for the West Clare side. “We’re up and running now that the game is over and we were up and running in the second half, the first half not so much and we looked at trouble a lot of times, it looked like Cratloe all over again, we had loads of good chances, even a goal chance and we kept missing them, lads never dropped their heads and we totally dominated the second half. Our decision making and shot selection was better in the second half, I think that was the difference between winning and losing, we scored when we should have scored, lads kept going and we’re delighted to be up and running at this stage, nobody wants to lose a game, nobody definitely wants to lose two games, we’ve a win under our belts and a tough game again in two weeks time”.
There was an extra emphasis put on composure surrounding shot selection when they regrouped at half-time. “The message is always composure to be honest but it was doubled down on to be sure, we told them to remain calm that we were creating chances, we created loads of chances even in the first game against Cratloe and we created a load of chances in the first half against Doonbeg, we said we’d keep creating chances because we had the guys to carry the ball at speed and we have good footballers, it was to settle down a bit more and take the right decisions and settle a bit in front of goals. Our big players came into the game a bit more, Conor (Cleary) going to midfield in the second half was big and Brian (Curtin) going back as a sweeper helped, Cormac Murray kept going even though he was injured and it shows the character in the lads to step it up when it was needed”.
Kicking 2-6 in their second round may have been enough to get beyond the challenge of Doonbeg but Guerin was adamant such a return will not suffice in the remainder of the championship. “Six points is a poor return, two goals is a good target and any day you reach two goals you are happy, we have to at least be doubling on the six points, maybe in a knockout situation 1-9 or 1-10 will win a game but even the next day 2-6 I don’t think will win against a young Ennistymon team”.
