Browne: Crusheen must match Carrig’s commitment

SUCH is the level of analysis into the opposition at club level these days, in advance of Sunday’s Munster Club semi-final Crusheen manager Michael Browne knows almost as much about Carrigtwohill as he does about his own side.

“I’ve looked at them, saw a DVD of their county final, and, while you can’t assess a team fully on the basis of one game, they seem to me a team that’s made up of a very committed bunch of players who work really hard for each other,” he said.

“Their forwards really caught my eye. The outside players work really hard, deliver the ball fast into the full-forward line; those three do a lot of inter-changing but they’re the guys who seem to be doing most damage, they know how to finish.

“You have Robert White, Kidney, Fitzgerald in there, and then Niall McCarthy coming through in support. Even from the wings there’s danger – Tomás Hogan seems a fine young player, though I’m presuming on his age here! He’s a very good free-taker, especially from distance and a very intelligent player.

“In the middle of the pitch they have a nice combination, O’Connell seems very mobile, a lot of movement, a very busy player, and another man who gives quality ball to the forwards. Their forwards will score, we expect that, despite the fact we know we have good backs – they will still score, because they work so bloody hard for each other. They’re very good at creating the overlap; a fella wins the ball, goes into contact, draws in maybe two defenders then lays the ball off to the free player and it’s a score. It’s very hard to counter that.”

What of their defence?

“Well our attack is seen as the weaker element. We’ve worked very hard with them all year to give them a better understanding of team play and I think we’ve succeeded. The way the Carrigtwohill defence works, regardless of who’s going to be at centre-back their system seems to be to keep him sitting deep, just in front of the full-back, with the rest of them fighting like hell for every single ball, for every inch. That makes it very hard to score against them. Scores will be hard got, by both teams.”

In those circumstances, any fears about travelling to Páirc Uí Chaoimh?

“In one way yes, but in another – we went to Cusack Park last year to play Kilmallock and messed up, gave away a couple of goals in a short spell at the start of the second half. That pitch was totally familiar to us, that ground, it was only a few miles down the road, but that was no help. Sometimes when you have to go away it forces you to tune in that bit more, to do your planning that bit better, so in that sense it can even be an advantage. Hopefully that will be case this Sunday anyway!”