Rathnew boss ready for another test for his troops

ALL eyes will settle on Newbridge this Sunday as Rathnew and Dunshaughlin commence a new chapter in their Leinster club championship history.

So, it’s certainly no step into the unknown for Harry Murphy and his side. The Rathnew manager says Sunday will be another of those tough encounters, heavy hitting that goes down to the wire, something akin to the manner of their previous six duets.

And a year on from their shock defeat of Na Fianna, Murphy still believes Dunshaughlin offered his team their sternest examination in last year’s provincial saga.

“They were the most complete side we played last season. I still believe that. The strongest team as regards team spirit. And they have only improved since last year.

“I am concerned about Sunday. They have improved a lot since last year, and there was only a kick of the ball between us then. We won’t fear them going into the game, but we do have a healthy respect for them.”

Meath opponents seem to be forever linked to Rathnew who have scored 6-57 over the previous six games, two points less than Dunshaughlin’s total of 6-59.

However, long before Dunshaughlin ever appeared on their horizon, Murphy remembers ding dong battles with O’Mahony’s of Navan.

The toughness of Meath football has been long admired in Wicklow, and Murphy knows the magnitude of Dunshaughlin winning three county titles in a row. “That’s no mean feat, and they know they haven’t done themselves justice in Leinster. Even a few weeks back, I thought Dunshaughlin would be the team to beat. And nothing has happened to change my mind since.”

Although only Tommy Gill provided the scores last Sunday to see off UCD by a point, Murphy says the Wicklow side defeating the Dublin representatives for two years in a row has been a real boost not just to his team but for football in the county as a whole.

“That was the real achievement last Sunday. Beating UCD in itself, because they were heavy favourites, was good. But for us to have beaten the Dublin champions two years in a row now.” With John O’Leary having re commenced training the intercounty seniors, Murphy hopes last Sunday’s victory proved last year was no fluke, and gives Wicklow a badly needed injection of confidence. With the likes of Gill around, it should.

“We are grateful to have Tommy, he is an exciting talent. And every team needs someone like that, someone like the Peter Canavan or the Colin Corkerys to pull them through sometimes. But, we have talent throughout this team. Tommy stole the headlines on Sunday, but it might be someone else’s turn in Newbridge.”

Given their dominance over Wicklow football in the recent past, it is easy to forget that Rathnew is wrought from a very small pick. With three other clubs within their vicinity, they have no townland or hamlets to scour for players. It is all within the village. It is good in some regards says Murphy, “when it comes to this time of year, the bond of small clubs and small parishes can pull you through”.

But it is not so good in other regards as Murphy admits the size of his team can mitigate against such grandiose goals of All Ireland club finals.

“Because of our small pool of players, we can’t set goals like that at the start of the year. We have only to be realistic. We have a panel of 25 lads, if we lost five or six of them through

injury, we would be struggling. So, our goal every year is to win Wicklow and take everything after that just as it comes. The size of our squad means we can’t plan too far ahead.

“After winning the province last winter, people thought Rathnew mightn’t be heard of for a while.

Although their supremacy was always likely to go untouched in Wicklow, some felt they might get gobbled up by the bigger clubs outside the county. Not a chance. “These lads respond to every year as a different challenge and a new challenge. And that brings out the best in them. They wanted the record of Wicklow county titles and now they want to retain their Leinster club title. Every year too, we bring in a few new lads to keep thing's fresh.

“The hunger was evident against UCD. To come back at a team with all those big names, and with 14 men, that just showed these lads are not

going to lie down. They are going to work their socks off for each other until the final whistle. Of course, we know from experience that Dunshaughlin do exactly the same.”