Molumphy ready for the call to arms
Their semi-final loss was “devastating” and seeing Limerick in their place would only have exacerbated the sense of loss which the squad felt.
For the young Army man, in Germany for eight months before returning recently to his base in Kilkenny (with the 3rd Infantry Battalion), it was an experience which the senior members of the team previously had to endure on more than one occasion.
But, it still didn’t make it any less painful for him first time round.
“You don’t want to look back. The disappointment will always be with you, but you have to put that behind you.
“You have to start again. And start winning,” he commented.
He spent several years studying in NUIG Galway after joining the Army and experienced Fitzgibbon Cup hurling, which like so many emerging young stars, helped him adapt to the pace of the senior grade. In 2006 he made his championship debut (as a substitute) in the third round qualifier game against Laois in O’Moore Park and also came on against Tipperary in the All-Ireland quarter-final.
He had “a dream year” in 2007, winning league and Munster medals. But, the dream turned into a nightmare in late August.
Not long afterwards, he went to Germany, starting off in Cologne and moving to a number of other army bases and meeting up with soldiers from other nationalities. Apart from a few trips home for club games, Molumphy’s hurling was confined to ball practice against the nearest wall (no such luxury as a handball alley, a discipline much favoured by Justin McCarthy) and mindful of the attentions of Military Policemen.
Understandably, his hurling activity aroused a lot of interest around the different bases, even suspicion.
“Half the guys thought it was a weapon. The other half didn’t know what it was at all,” he recalls. “I showed them a few DVDs and they couldn’t believe that we don’t wear protection like American footballers. And, they couldn’t believe we are amateurs.
“They were amazed, but they loved the game.”
While he missed out on most of the League, he was quickly up to speed after the recent training camp in Portugal. “That was tough and intense,” he explained. “We had our hurleys in our hands practically the entire week and I found that really beneficial.”
Molumphy refuses to entertain any thoughts about this being anything near a make-or-break season for the Decies in terms of achieving their goal of winning the Liam MacCarthy Cup.
His rationale is that their sole focus is on Sunday’s game against Clare. And he applies similar thinking to the loss of Ken McGrath, as well as Eoin Murphy, through injury.
“Ken is a fantastic player and he is a huge loss, but it’s a chance for another player to step in. It’s the same in regard to Eoin. There is an abundance of talent in the panel. It gives other guys the chance to prove their worthiness — which a lot of guys are more than capable of doing.
“I’d never look beyond the next game — that’s when accidents happen, when you slip up. The only thing we are thinking of is Clare, not the next game, or whatever. Of course we do have ambitions and our fans want us to go a step further than last year. But Justin has us completely focused on just the next game. Our world is Clare. Win that match — that’s the only ambition we have now.”
And, he recognises that it won’t be easy to achieve their aim, believing Clare to be still “a formidable side” and admiring them for their “never-say-die” approach. “It’s going to be a tough battle right to the end, mentally and physically — the whole way through. We know that. We have prepared for that. We will be ready."
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