Ecstatic Bowen salutes Erins Own ‘maturity’

FOR 14 years Erins Own have waited for a second chance to contest the AIB Munster club hurling championship decider and finally they realised their ambition in Pairc Ui Chaoimh yesterday.

In 1992, after winning the Cork title for the first time, they were held to a draw by Kilmallock in their home pitch before bowing out by eight points in the replay.

“It was a long time to wait. When we lost that match, we felt we’d be back a lot sooner,” commented team manager Martin Bowen. “It’s great to be in the final. That was our aim. It will be a massive occasion for the club.”

Bowen attributed their five-point victory over Wolfe Tones (champions in 1996 and later runners-up in the All-Ireland final) to a number of factors. Their players showed maturity, he pointed out, and they gained vital grips at midfield and in defence. Most of all it was “a team effort.” “And that was what we wanted,” he added.

The concession of a goal inside the first minute didn’t unduly concern the management — or the players, he said.

“The same thing happened in the county final, but fellows don’t get upset too easily. They are experienced enough now to realise they have plenty of time to come back into it — and we did.”

While admitting to feeling “happy enough” at half time, going in a point in front, Bowen believed that the second half could be just as tough.

“We felt they could possibly play as well against the wind as we did and it was the one thing we warned the lads about. At the same time we felt that with the advantage of the wind we should be well capable of keeping them scoreless.

“I thought our fellows upped the tempo after half-time and we got the few early scores. It looked like there was no possibility of us losing the match!” Meanwhile, he wasn’t prepared to concede that they would lose Brian Corcoran (to retirement). “There are good days in him yet. We’ll wait and see,” he remarked.

Wolfe Tones manager Pat O’Rourke, who played on the winning 1996 team, was philosophical about their defeat.

“We are disappointed. We had a tremendous year up to now and we had high hopes coming down to Cork. But on the day, you’d have to give credit to Erins Own. They were better than us and they adapted to the poor conditions a lot better than we did.”

He accepted that his team didn’t take full advantage of the wind in the first half.

“You would have hoped to build up a bit of a lead, but the goal they got just before half-time was a morale-booster for them. And, it reduced the lead we had built up.”

Looking to next year, O’Rourke is hopeful that the team can build on the progress made this year: “We achieved a lot. There were too many hard luck stories with the talent we had. We can’t leave it too long the next time!”