THE lure of more big Championship days at Corrigan Park played a big part in Darren Gleeson’s decision to lead Antrim into another campaign.
Gleeson, an All-Ireland winner with Tipperary during his playing days, first took up the reins in 2019, leading the Saffrons into Division 1B of the National Hurling League and twice winning the Joe McDonagh Cup.
The 420-mile round trip from home in Portroe is a major commitment, and Gleeson admitted he would take time to consider his future after Antrim’s All-Ireland Championship defeat to Cork - which came less than a week after McDonagh final success at Croke Park.
However, by the end of the summer he had agreed to stay on for another two years, and now the Saffrons are gearing up for a third year in Division 1B and a round robin Leinster Championship that will see them welcome some of hurling’s heavyweights to west Belfast.
“You be emotionally drained after it all,” said Gleeson when asked about the end of last season.
“We had to go from the high of being in Croke Park, winning a national title, trying to do the right thing, celebrate it, then cut it off and get ourselves going again on the Monday night to get ready for Cork.
“That was draining, going from such a high, back to the field to work, analysing another team. You were hoping to win the final and you knew Cork were next if you win, but you didn’t want to look past Kerry either. The next stage is giving the players belief going into the Cork game, and that’s all in a five-day period – it’s very hard to do.
“I was emotionally drained after that match. I genuinely had to sit down at home after and ask had I the energy to do that again, has everyone around me at home the energy to do this again, because you’re not just talking about Niamh, you’re talking about the three kids, the support we get from my own parents, from Niamh’s parents… that’s massive. It can’t be done without that.
“You’d be low for a month, six weeks after it, then you get reinvigorated. You look back at what you actually achieved over the year and then you look at the fixture schedule for next year – we get to bring Kilkenny and Dublin to Corrigan for Championship, we go on the road against Westmeath, Wexford and Galway.
“That’s exciting stuff, and you want to be part of it.”
It is exciting because it offers Antrim a proper chance to get a feel for the Leinster Championship, unlike the one-game shoot-out defeat to Dublin that followed their previous McDonagh Cup success in 2020.
Indeed, even competing in the pre-season Walsh Cup this year - beginning against the Dubs at Parnell Park on Saturday - is a consequence of the Saffrons’ elevated status coming into 2023.
“You need the games, you need the exposure all the time,” said Gleeson.
“A simple thing, and people mightn’t think much of it, but if you’re in the Leinster Championship you’re in the Walsh Cup as well. We were playing Kehoe Cup before that.
“They’re the games guys want to be playing in, and they’re the games you need to prepare properly.”
