Déise’s young guns learn a lesson from Cronin
As well as having five members of the Waterford minor panel (Shane Bennett, Cian Leamy, Colm Roche, Michael Kearney and David Prendergast) currently attending the school, another Déise player, Stephen Bennett, completed the Leaving Cert there in June. On top of that, Cork senior captain Pa Cronin teaches woodwork and technical drawing there, and principal Denis Ring admits there is a “great buzz” around the corridors.
“It’s a big deal, particularly with the lads still in school. As well, we had five of the Waterford U16 camogie side which lost to Cork in the All-Ireland final recently and seven of the Waterford senior panel would have attended the school. It’s good to be getting that kind of recognition, but it must be said that East Cork and West Waterford are good hurling areas.”
The close relationship between a school’s good performances and that of the county is something Ring can readily identify with.
Previously, he taught at St Colman’s in Fermoy and helped them to Harty Cup wins as well as being involved on successful Cork minor hurling management teams.
Considering the school’s brief existence, the leaps made have been very impressive.
“It opened 10 years ago and we have been very pleased with the progress,” Ring said.
“We started off at C level in hurling and won the Munster and All-Ireland in that, then we won both at B in 2008 and we’ve been playing in the Harty Cup since. In our first year up, 2009, we lost to Thurles in the semi-final and they went on to win the All-Ireland, and last year we only lost by three points to Dungarvan in the quarter-final and were probably the only team to get near them.”
The Harty performances are underpinned by sustainable growth at lower age-grade, but Ring is keen to point out that it is not just hurling where the school shines.
“We’ve got to four Dean Ryan Cup U16½A semi-finals in a row and we won that in 2012, and in camogie we went from Intermediate B level — the fifth tier — to Senior A in consecutive years, and only lost that final by a point.
“The Waterford team that won the All-Ireland junior camogie title in 2011 had 10 former pupils on the panel. It’s not all GAA or even all sport though.
“The school has won All-Irelands in ladies soccer and volleyball, but also drama and choral titles and world science and technology medals.
“The culture that we try to instil is that it’s not all about any one thing, pupils can be great on the pitch but they must do it in the classroom too. We’re lucky the staff buy into that.”
Cork skipper Cronin is a prime example of that, and his principal cannot speak highly enough of the Bishopstown man. “He’s a fantastic role model,” Ring said. “It’s easy to tell students to look at him as something to aspire to, that a guy can be modest and humble but then do his talking on the pitch. He helps coach underage teams and has spoken to the Harty team, we’re lucky to have him and it would be great to see him lift the MacCarthy Cup. It’d be a unique double for the school too as Amy O’Shea, who teaches PE here, captained Cork ladies to the 2011 All-Ireland.”
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