Despite the fact that the winning margin in last weekend’s Ulster Club final between Glen and Kilcoo was six points, in my opinion this was not a fair reflection of how evenly matched both teams were.
Trust me, Glen, Maghera had to win this game twice.
Malachy O’Rourke goes down as one of the best team managers of this generation given what he has achieved in Monaghan and, now, with Glen.
His team played a perfect game in the first 15 minutes of the Ulster Club final.
Racing into a five-point lead, the Magpies looked as if they had been caught in the headlights.
Aaron Brannigan’s goal changed the game and, from then on, Kilcoo were every bit the match against the Derry men.
Again, championships swing on such moments and Paul Devlin’s missed penalty before half-time could have changed the entire outcome.
For me, it was a penalty. We could argue all day whether it was inside the box or not but, regardless, had Jerome Johnston not been hauled down, his record in similar one-on-one goal chances would make me think that it would have been a certain goal.
Had it been scored, a huge psychological blow would have befallen Glen – in many ways, having dominated the first 15 minutes and been five points up, going in at half-time a point down, would have been mentally testing to even the strongest of characters.
Sometimes, the luck on the day is not with you and Kilcoo are a mature enough team to understand the element of fine margins and winning inches.
I have heard more than a few say since that they expect Kilcoo will now melt away, with a few Ulster club titles and an All-Ireland to their name. I don’t see it this way.
If Glen, Maghera look to be the new boys on the block, in reality, the fact that a kick of the ball separated both these two teams would indicate to me that the Magpies will remain a force over the next few years, certainly in Down and Ulster terms anyway.
It is no coincidence that Conor Glass remains, for me, one of the most influential players in Ulster.
Forgetting his influence in midfield, his tackling and blocking (a rapidly disappearing skill in the modern game) were outstanding and his ability to kick points from 40 meters is Tohill-esque.
My assertion is always the same.
Great players are normally always the hardest workers, both on and off the field – Glass is certainly this.
Another individual who performed outstandingly last weekend was Conleth McGuckian – his influence on Watty Graham’s winning this game cannot be underestimated.
If Conor Laverty is at the opposite end of his club career to McGuckian, the similarities between both men is stark as Cahair O’Kane rightly pointed out in his column on Tuesday.
Locally of course, the question will now be asked can Laverty continue to play for his beloved Kilcoo and be county manager of Down.
Personally speaking, I believe he can.
Laverty is smart enough and experienced enough to be able to separate club rivalries from county football at different times of the year.
In this regard, the split season works to his advantage.
He also has good men around him in Marty Clarke, Declan Morgan and Mickey Donnelly.
There is no way any of the aforementioned individuals would facilitate bias against certain clubs or players.
What Down clubs need to do is to row in behind the county team and squad.
I have always maintained, regardless of whoever holds the top job, you commit to your county.
We are all stakeholders in it and it belongs to all of us.
Kilcoo have been on the go a long time now and while the bitter disappointment of an Ulster final defeat will be hard to shake – the opportunity to rest and re-charge the batteries could be a blessing in disguise.
It will also be impressed upon Conor Laverty that, in practical terms, the Kilcoo playing contingent who will be called up into the Down squad should be afforded some time to rest and recuperate.
Unfortunately, given the packed 2023 calendar and the fact that the National League starts in late January, it is hard to believe that the weather we are currently experiencing may well not be that different in five weeks’ time, when the competitive action is due to start.
Laverty will want (and need) Magpie representation in their first league game.
It is really quite astonishing to think that in our game, an amateur one, professional players in soccer and rugby are afforded more of an off-season (six weeks) than GAA players in some instances. But that’s our life.
I suppose I am talking from experience and mistakes I personally made.
I seldom took enough time off in the closed-season and kept training right through – obsessively thinking I was doing right.
However, I would go on to learn that, as important as training is, it is the sleeping, resting and diet that becomes more important the older you become.
The body paid the price – as did the mind.
As a Down fan and someone familiar with the footballing landscape in the county, we have to be realistic about where we currently are and what success looks like.
Right now, it is about building a young squad that understand what commitment looks like at elite level – what standards look like, in order to achieve success in the future.
It is about being consistent and ambitious – the theme being what ‘can’ be achieved if everyone pulls in the right direction. It does not happen overnight.
For many of us former inter-county players, it took perhaps between five and seven years before we reached a maturity level as a squad that enabled us to compete with the best teams in the country.
Rome wasn’t built in a day – patience is key.
The construction of a GAA centre of excellence in Ballykinlar will at least give Down a ‘home’ – a feeling of belonging.
The sooner this is started, the better.
For many, the location will always be a bone of contention. However, I do recall Tyrone having the same internal arguments around Garvaghey all those years ago.
For many, to explain away failure and loss, there will always be an excuse.
To me, training fields, coaches and facilities all influence performance but, by and large, it is the individual themselves that dictate winning and losing.
When collective minds come together and remove the excuse culture, this is what makes championship-winning teams what they are.
Glen and Kilcoo are both reflective of such engrained cultures, as they demonstrated last weekend.
Congratulations to Glen, Maghera.
