Better team won, concedes McGrath
“We got a very bad start, conceded a goal in the first minute and we seemed to be holding on after that. In the second half with the wind we got a few chances but our forwards didn’t take full advantage. Fair dues to Newmarket, they were the hungrier team and the better team on the day.”
The major problem for Cratloe was that even though their attack contained four senior Clare panellists (including Joe’s son Conor), they simply couldn’t get through a fired-up Newmarket defence.
“Obviously our main threat is up front but any chance that came to our full-forward line Newmarket snuffed it out well in both halves. Newmarket are a good team, we knew it was only 50/50 and fair play to them. They’re waiting a long time for this, we have no complaints about the result.”
Not just hungry, said Newmarket manager Bob Enright, but confident — unlike on other occasions in recent years, this year The Blues had belief: “We said at the start of the year, this time it’s going to be different. Myself and Brian (Enright, selector) took a grip on the training, we decided that whatever it took we were going to take these lads over the line. It was all down to work-rate, that was the difference this year — things had to be different.”
Also driving them on, said Bob, was the memory of recent defeats. “It was a combination of things, including all the pain from losing in ’08 and ’09. People forget, we won the B championship last year and the Clare Cup and those were two massive results, they bonded the team, gave us the belief.
” We went out to Crusheen last year but went back training on the Thursday afterwards and every player was there. We knew then we had something special and we went on and won the senior B championship and the Clare Cup and I’m telling you, they mean so much today.”
