*Clare manager, Brian Lohan. Photograph: Gerard O’Neill
For the first time in his five year reign in charge of the Clare senior hurlers, Brian Lohan has a full hand to choose from, a fittingly opportune factor ahead of his biggest game as he leads out the Banner in Croke Park in Sunday’s All-Ireland decider against Cork (3.30pm).
Having won two of three All-Ireland finals (1995, 1997, 2002) he contested as a player, the four-time All-Star knows more than most about both the exhilaration and pitfalls attached to competing in such a prestigious and unprecedented occasion and feels that the build-up has to be embraced.
“There’s great excitement in it. You have to try and enjoy the excitement that’s there and embrace it while at the same time keeping in mind that this is a real competitive game and it’s a game that everyone wants to play in but no-one wants to be in a losing team in an All-Ireland Final. It’s worse than losing a semi-final or a quarter-final, it’s a bad place to be so while you’re conscious of enjoying it, you do want to stay concentrated and be tuned in to get the best out of yourself and show the best of your abilities on that big day”.
Having finally gotten over the line against Kilkenny at the third semi-final attempt a fortnight ago, it marked the first time that Clare had won a championship tie in Croke Park since their last All-Ireland Final appearance and famous replay triumph in 2013, making that breakthrough a necessity for this group to maintain their upward curve.
“It was a huge game, particularly after the last two years of not doing what we hoped that we would doing what we wanted to achieve so losing those two games, completely different games as it turned out, put us under pressure to make up for that and get the result by whatever means possible to get to the final.
“We didn’t play well in the first half but crucially we had to think on our feet so it was kind of a test of character as well to come back from being six points down so as it turned out it was a good way to win and we feel we can get better and obviously we have to get better as well”.
That required improvement initially stemmed from a successful National League campaign in which Lohan used 35 different players and managed to flesh out his championship options by providing invaluable big game experience to the likes of Conor Leen, Cian Galvin and Darragh Lohan. “It’s a big deal playing inter-county hurling now and when you coming up against any of the top teams, the way the competitions are tiered, there are big differences between the Munster League and National League and again from that to the championship.
“So we try to build a panel accordingly too. In the Munster League we try to give an opportunity to players who had done well in the club championship by giving them a Clare jersey and seeing how they perform. Some of them perform really well and are able to progress to a National League team and then hopefully a championship team.
“We’ve seen one or two examples of that this year and we’re delighted with that. After all we had a couple of high-profile injuries this year and did use the league to get more players on the field up against good quality opposition and good players. We didn’t have Ryan [Taylor], we didn’t have Tony [Kelly], we didn’t have Shane [O’Donnell] and David [McInerney], a lot of key guys so it was left to younger players who were only learning and only developing to get experience. And they did really well and we went onto win the league so we’ve progressed since then and happy with that”.
However, the return of the aforementioned quartet, most recently Ryan Taylor’s inspirational reintroduction last time out a full year after suffering a cruciate ligament injury at the same stage and up against the same opponent has given the squad that extra push to break new ground.
“Ryan’s comeback has been long but we had to be patient to make sure he was fully right. He got the all clear from the surgeon but often with players that are coming back from long term injuries they would be nervous going back into full contact but he wasn’t and went straight back into it. He played a couple of in-house matches at midfield and he was really excellent.
“For the Wexford game, he wasn’t on the panel, the physio felt that it was just a bit too early and that the cut and thrust of an All-Ireland quarter-final wasn’t a place for him and his development at that time. “However, he had a further two weeks after that and kept progressing so got the opportunity against Kilkenny and really played well so he’s a great addition at the right time.”
With both All-Ireland Semi-Finals going against the odds, an expected third successive showdown between Limerick and Kilkenny makes way for a refreshing All-Munster pairing of Clare and Cork.
“The best teams make it to the All-Ireland final,” outlined the Shannon native.
“We can have complaints going back looking at last year or the year before but at the end of the day the two best teams play in the All-Ireland final. It’s Cork now and they’re there on merit. They’ve beaten Limerick twice and I was in the stand watching the last day and it was just a brilliant experience and a brilliant game. The desire they had, the pace that they had, the spirit that they had. The levels of skill. Just the relentless running, the relentless attacking. It was just a real advertisement for hurling and everything that is good in Cork hurling”.
So will Clare’s previous victory over the Rebels in Páirc Uí Chaoimh three months ago have any bearing on Sunday’s rematch? “I thought that was a good game too, a really good game. We played really well and it was probably our best performance of the year so far, even though we went seven down just after half-time. So we had to be really good to win and being honest I don’t think we gotten to that level since then”.
Cork have clearly refined their playing style and team line-up since then but so have the Banner who have grown stronger in personnel and squad depth with every passing game. “I suppose that’s just the way it has unfolded and crucial as well that we have gotten games into some of those key players that really need that valuable game-time. We’re happy with where we’re at and obviously we know what’s in front of us as well this Sunday and also the levels that we have to get to”.
