Clancy says Laois have learned lessons

IT’S been a week for serious straight talking and soul searching in Laois. O’Dwyer’s rejigged team-sheet, like his hastily enforced changes in the first game, is evidence of lessons learnt.

The players admit as much too.

The team has been as accessible as ever this week, refusing to take the easy option by going to ground.

“We’ve done a lot of talking about the game amongst ourselves,” midfielder Padraig Clancy said yesterday.

“There’s less than a week between the two games so there isn’t a whole lot you can do, really.

“Micko has said a lot to us since. We kicked an awful lot of silly wides. I kicked a few myself. It’s things like that we need to avoid tomorrow.”

Laois’s waywardness in front of goal was in stark contrast to last year.

The pace of the game last Sunday might go some way to explaining that, but it was never going to be any different, according to Clancy.

“It was quick out there but both teams play the running game and it was always going to be like that. There’s no blanket defence from either team. It was a case of whoever won the ball in midfield was nearly always going to go on and have a chance to kick a score. And that’s how it went.”

It was the Timahoe man’s first full game at midfield since sustaining a serious thumb injury in the spring. He and Garvan had a productive opening spell in the centre but once Rory O’Connell entered the fray, the pendulum swung in Westmeath’s favour.

Was it a greater hunger that saw Westmeath win the battle in the trenches? Clancy isn’t convinced.

“We came out with most of the breaks for the first 20 minutes and then they started to get the breaks when O’Connell came on. He settled them down. He’s been their major player for the last number of years and was always going to have that effect.”

That Laois will travel to Croke Park tomorrow still Leinster champions is down in large part to their defence.

When three defenders were awarded All Stars last year eyebrows were raised, but last week’s display will have helped to silence the doubters.

“They should’ve really put us away. Luckily for us, Joe Higgins was superb and all the backs kept us in it. We can play better as a team though.

“We’ve kinda reverted back to last year’s half-back line with Kevin Fitzpatrick moving back and he’ll be good to have around that area with balls dropping down. You’d feel sorry for Colm [Byrne] though. It’s Micko and the selectors’ jobs to be making those decisions as to who plays so I’m not going to say the changes make us stronger or not. It could be me the next time. You just can’t say.”

Possibly the biggest boost to Laois’s morale this week has been the inclusion of Ross Munnelly in the team.

“Ross has recovered well. There is no serious swelling and he was back walking the day after the game,” said selector Declan O’Loughlin.

“We’re happy he’ll be okay by tomorrow. If he’s not, Ross would be the first to tell us.”