All one big happy family in Castlehaven

CORK SFC Final

The tea is poured, the ham sandwiches — wrapped in enough cling film to cover a turkey — are circulated, while the three packets of chocolate digestive biscuits are quickly devoured.

“Tisn’t anything fancy but it will do,” he remarks.

At the far end of the room, Paudie Hurley is stretchered on the physio’s table. A couple of jibes are thrown in the goalkeeper’s direction, laughs all round. It’s a close knit set-up down here. That much is instantly evident.

“At the end of the day this is our social life,” says corner-back Liam Collins, Christy’s son. “We go out to train hard because we love our football. It is central to our community. It is important to us. It is difficult for us to go out to the pub and then drive home. You can’t do that anymore so we meet the lads at training and have the crack.”

You’ll have read and heard plenty this week about the contribution of the Cahalane’s, on and off the field, the four Hurley brothers. In essence, they are Castlehaven’s equivalent of the Hayes’ and the Cannings; the Reids and the Fennellys. The imprint of the Collins clan however, is just as, if not stronger.

Christy, as noted, is chairman, Liam will occupy the number two shirt tomorrow, while Bernie, another son, is part of the backroom team. Bernie was enjoying himself at last January’s club social when Finbarr Santry approached him with the offer to join the set-up as a selector. That was one more Collins into the equation.

“I hung up the boots after the 2011 county final,” recounted Bernie. “It is the next best thing to playing to be involved with the team. You get a lot of pleasure out of that, a lot of enjoyment. When you are not playing it is great to be involved in some way. It is the one thing I missed when I gave up playing, was not being involved, not meeting the lads. It replaces that.”

Bernie was full-forward in the 2003 victory over Clonakilty, a side captained by Liam, but the older brother is adamant there has been no difficulties now that one has swapped the jersey for the bib.

“I was actually a player/selector in 2003 so we have some experience of this. No it doesn’t really make any bit of difference. You are there to do your job. Nothing else gets in the way of that.

“Liam does his job and I mine. This is why we are involved, to try and be in finals. It is great to be there. That is where we want to be, to go and win it now is the next step.

“What has helped this bunch is that they are so close. I suppose the one thing in Castlehaven is that we don’t have massive playing numbers and that is why you have so many brothers and cousins playing.

“We don’t have the numbers for anything else. Lads have to play their part. You try not to let anyone get away coming up the ranks.”

Tomorrow’s fixture aside, Christy beams with pride when listing the club’s success of late. “Sure we have the U16 final on Saturday and then the senior on Sunday. Didn’t we win the West Cork minor title last Sunday, not to mention our appearance in the U21 decider. From all the different age groups we have been there or thereabouts.”

So, what’s their secret down in this corner of the county. “It’s simple,” he laughs. “Castlehaven have produced a lot of good teams, a lot of good players in the last 30 or 40 years. The ex-players are now putting huge work into coaching. We have Niall (Cahalane) and John (Cleary) at senior level and sure John has done the world of work at underage down through the years. It is really paying off. He is a great man to have involved in a team. Sean Nolan is the minor manager and you have Roland Whelton, centre-back tomorrow, helping him out.

“If the current players are free we encourage them to help out as much as they could. Paudie Hurley has been involved at underage in coaching and it is very welcome. “You’d see Paudie out on the weekend mornings helping the U6s and U8s. It is nearly as good as having them playing. They get great respect from the younger lads.”

As you would expect, the chairman himself is no exception.

Having lined out with Carbery in the successive county finals defeat of 1973 and ’74, Christy played at midfield on that autumn afternoon in ‘79 when Castlehaven featured in the showpiece event for the first time. Success arrived a decade later while Christy was on the line when a second county title was annexed at the expense of O’Donovan Rossa in ’94.

“I was a selector that day. Jim Nolan was the second selector and completing the line-up was goalkeeper Mike Maguire. It was just the three of us. I coached the team in 1997. We lost the final to Beara, but we won the Munster championship which was some bit of consolation for the year.

“Nothing really compares to these last few years though.

“The club is on a high. It is great to be involved with Castlehaven at the moment. There is something every week. When you are successful, the winter is nearly over before you realise it.”

In parting company, Liam sums up the family attitude perfectly: “Where else would you rather be in October than in a county final with the lads you grew up with, under the guidance of those you admired for so long.”

The tea is drank, the box of sandwiches emptied, the biscuits crumbs scattered across the table.

Lights out in Castlehaven...for now.