Donoghue says charges ‘in right frame of mind’ to erase bad Birr memories

CLARINBRIDGE hurling manager, Michéal Donoghue is a very impressive character.

He does not appear to get ruffled, regardless of how intense the pressure, as evidenced by his coolness in the final few minutes of the epic All-Ireland semi-final victory over De La Salle.

A financial consultant with Murray & Spellman insurances in Galway city, he has been down this road before and was the club captain and centre-back when they were beaten by Birr in Thurles in the 2002 All-Ireland final.

He speaks about his panel of players and what lies ahead with a quiet passion and self-belief that is striking.

“Preparations have gone very well since the semi-final and we are looking forward to the game and the tough challenge we face,” he said.

“We were there before and things did not work out for us. That is well gone now, but hopefully those of us who were involved will have learnt something from the experience. And we are very keen that there will be a different result for us this time out.”

His squad’s approach all year has been to keep things simple and that is not going to change now.

Donoghue likes the idea of the players sticking to their usual routine and sleeping in their own beds the night before.

The less fuss and more focus on the job at hand the better.

“It is only two hours up the road now, so we will go up tomorrow morning. We will be coming back tomorrow night too and with a bit of luck we will have the Tommy Moore cup with us on the return trip.”

Clarinbridge have no major injury worries and are delighted to be able to select their starting XV from a full deck, and have a full complement of subs to come on and make a positive contribution if necessary.

“We have had a few niggles, but most lads seem to make a fast recovery from knocks when there is a final to be played. The De La Salle game was a roller coaster and we were fortunate in many ways to come through it. A lot of lads really stood up and were counted in that game, and we had some terrific performances from guys all over the field.

“Mark and Alan (Kerins) and David Forde played great games, but more than anything it was a complete team performance and it was our fierce will to succeed that got us over the winning line.

“We know that we will need more of the same to beat O’Loughlin Gaels as they are a very fine side. They have some really high quality players like Martin Comerford, the Bergins, the Dowlings and Brian Hogan to name just a few. It will be a huge challenge to beat them, but we are up for that challenge.

“We have 28 lads on our panel who have all made major contributions to our success this year, and we have emphasised that point all season. From Liam (Donoghue — his twin brother in goal) — right up to the last player listed on the programme on St Patrick’s Day, have all played a key role in getting us to the final and we need them all staying focused on the job at hand if we are to win.

“We have a tremendous team spirit and work ethic in the team and the older lads are providing outstanding direction and leadership to the younger lads, who are pushing on the older lads too and demanding extremely high standards.

He added: “Morale is very high in the camp and as a unit we feel that we are improving all the time and that’s why we are in the final.

“However, there is no point in getting to a final unless we can finish off the job. We have a hurling match to win and we are separating the match from the occasion. We believe that we are in the right frame of mind to deliver a winning performance. That is all that matters.”

Donoghue said that while his side showed great resolve in seeing off Waterford’s De La Salle by 3-22 to 1-27 in an epic semi-final, he feels their defence will have to be much tighter if they are to prevail.

He said: “One of the first things we had to address after the semi-final was the scoreline. We were disappointed to concede that amount, but we know we have a good few areas that we have to improve on and we have been doing that over the last few weeks.”

Their run-up to tomorrow’s decider has gone as good as can be expected as Donoghue’s side attempt to become the sixth club from Galway to win the All-Ireland club hurling title.