The underdogs of Antrim are responding to Cahill’s call

SOME feel Antrim’s presence in Croke Park on Sunday is just to make up numbers, to ensure the full quarter-final complement is met.

Dinny Cahill knows it. “Nobody is giving us much of a chance, even though we kept in touch with Tipperary for over 60 minutes last year.

“And the lads learnt from that game. Tipp just showed their experience in being able to pull away in the last few minutes. We missed a couple of good chances and that was that. Tipp put away the chances when they presented themselves.”

The story of Antrim’s annual trip to Croker over the past couple of summers has been embellished by the presence of Cahill himself. This is a man who leaves his Tipperary home just after lunch on Tuesday and returns sometime in the early hours of Wednesday, each and every week, to make Antrim a force in the game. There is no such thing as a free weekend for Dinny, as they are spent it in the Glens, fine-tuning the county hurlers.

Worth it? “Well, this is my second year doing it and the road hasn’t got any shorter. But when I came to Antrim, I came with a three-year plan and told the county board that if we won the All-Ireland before my three years were up, I would go.

“People tell me I am crazy to do all the travelling, but the way I see it, if you are doing a job, you have to do it right. And my job is to improve the standard of hurling in Antrim. I know Dinny Cahill is not going to be with Antrim forever, financially and physically, that is just not possible. But while I am here, I am determined to do the best possible job. When you shake somebody’s hand at the end of the game, you want to do so in the knowledge you have done the best possible job.”

And Cahill believes his team will win on Sunday. Obviously, it goes without saying that any team who enter the hallowed turf of Croke Park believe they are going to win. But there is conviction in the Tipp man’s voice when he speaks of Sunday’s game. “There isn’t too much between ourselves and Wexford. Okay, Wexford were very impressive last Saturday, and they have some players with All-Ireland medals. But Sunday may just be a question of hunger and I have no doubt we will have the greater hunger.”

Seasoned observers of Antrim hurling are encouraged by the spirit Cahill has managed to build in the camp. Team morale and camaraderie were never strong points in Antrim, because of their geographical isolation, club hurling is their main taste of competitive hurling for most of the year. Thus, the rivalries are much more bluntly forged. In past years, Antrim teams have gone onto the Croker stage with Cushendall and Dunloy players not talking to each other. Cahill has managed to rid the county of that.

“This is something we talked about last winter, and we made a conscious decision not to mention club hurling at training sessions. That has held Antrim hurling back in the past.

A lot of the times Antrim teams went down to Croke Park but there was no team effort, no sense that everyone was pulling for everyone else. Now, each and every one of the 30 players on my panel are focused on doing their best for Antrim hurling, for getting this team as far as they can. We are all for one thing and one thing only.”

Despite the hard nature of recent training sessions, players are receiving ahill’s instructions with smiles on their faces. It gives the manager a warm feeling of satisfaction that keeps him company for part of the 200 miles home on Tuesday night.

Cahill uses phrases like “when we beat Cork or Kilkenny,” “you know you can beat Tipp.” Last year, he strove to instil the self-belief and confidence that was missing from the final ten minutes against Tipperary last year.

“There is not one of my players going out onto Croke Park on Sunday who doesn’t believe they will beat Wexford. That is where we have to start. If Antrim hurlers believe they can win an All-Ireland, you will see the improvement. The success of Dunloy in the spring will help, but that is in the past now. If Antrim can go out and win on Sunday, that will give such a boost to this county.

Although, Cahill discovered some new talent as he led Antrim to the Division 2 title, the team remains the same that scared the bejaysus out of Tipperary for 40 minutes last July. The burly Greg O’Kane stands at the pinhead of attack, supported ably by the immensely talented, but hot-headed, Liam Watson. Jim Connolly is playing the hurling of his life in midfield, while Antrim, and all the neutrals, will be hoping Kieran Kelly can repeat his heroics against Tipp last year against a flying Paul Codd.

The script hasn’t really varied for Ulster teams in the hurling quarter-finals in recent years. Whether it has been Antrim or Derry, the teams have stayed in touch with the bigger boys until the final 10 to 15 minutes. Then a four-point gap morphs into a ten or twelve point losing margin. But Dinny Cahill has travelled hundreds of miles each and every week, planning a way to tear up that dog-eared script. Sunday might be the best chance.