Mulcahy admires forward thinking
The rain like machine-gun fire against the windows, horizontal with the force of the wind. And he gave thanks, did Pat; not for the fact that he was nice and sheltered in a warm, comfortable office, grateful and all as he was for that. No, Pat was thinking of later on in his long day, the journey home to Newtownshandrum, the training that evening in preparation for this Sunday’s Munster club senior hurling championship semi-final against Adare, in Páirc Uí Chaoimh.
And he was thankful to the visionaries in his home club, those who had the foresight over the last decade, when Newtownshandrum were going so well at county and at national level, to think big and install a floodlit all-weather sand-based pitch, so that rather than slogging through mud under lights so dim that the only training they could manage would be numbingly physical, they would instead be able to have a full, flying, hurling-based session.
“We’re so lucky to have the facilities we have,” he said, “And whether it’s raining or cold, or both, it makes it that bit easier to train. The pitch is holding up well, absolutely perfect, and then with the lights it means we’re able to get in the hurling as well.”
Up the road from Newtown, about halfway to Cork, another group of visionaries, inspired by the late and great Eugene Carey, have done in Mallow what the likes of Chris Morrissey and his clan have done in Newtown, built a state-of-the-art complex on the outskirts of the town.
Last Sunday, Newtownshandrum played there, on the double, with their junior B team involved in a North Cork league final against Kilshannig, the seniors playing Erin’s Own in the county league semi-final.
They lost to Kilshannig (1-14 to 2-7), won against Erin’s Own (6-17 to 2-12), and Pat, rested along with Ben and Jerry O’Connor and Cathal Naughton by the senior selectors, was a spectator for both.
“The juniors came up a bit short but it’s a great sign that our third team was in a final anyway, still competitive. We struggled a bit in the senior game in the first half, but our fitness levels told in the end. Erin’s Own wouldn’t have been training hard for a couple of months, while we’ve never stopped. The first half was a real match though.”
As for Mallow? “Fantastic facilities, fine pitch, and it was great to be able to watch the matches in comfort – it reminded me of the stand in Thomond Park.” Which then begs the question: – why hasn’t Mallow yet been designated as a county ground, which would have saved Newtownshandrum the journey to Cork this Sunday?
“We’d have had no objection to Mallow, which is much nearer to home. But as long as the pitch is in good nick it doesn’t really matter; that’s what you want at this time of the year, and it’s hard to find – we won’t have any problems in Páirc Uí Chaoimh in that respect, well used to it by now.”
What of Adare though? Newtown got past the considerable challenge of Thurles Sars in the first round, but, anchored by the ageless Mark Foley at centre-back, Adare are far more seasoned at this level than were the Tipperary champions.
“Well it’s Cork/Limerick, isn’t it, and those games are always tough, never anything in it; even at inter-county level for the last few years there’s nothing between the teams. They’re another major challenge – you don’t win three-in-a-row in Limerick unless you have top-class players. They beat Toomevara last year in the Munster club, so they have a good enough record there too. They’re been by far the best team in Limerick for several years now. We’ll have to be at our best.”
