Murtagh hails spirit of Cross

AIB ALL-IRELAND CLUB SFC SEMI-FINAL

Murtagh played on the Cross side which won three All-Ireland club football titles in four years in the late 90s and also managed the club to their first ever three-in-a-row of Ulster titles, between 2006 and 2008.

Tony McEntee equalled that achievement last December and now the club’s bid for an unprecedented hat-trick of All-Irelands resumes in Mullingar against St Brigid’s in the AIB All-Ireland semi-final tomorrow.

Murtagh said: “People try to compare the old team (1997-2000) to the new team but I would say that while we only played for around 20 minutes in each half, this team can play for the full 60 minutes.

“They may not be as good, individually, as the players who went before them. But collectively, they are worth so much more than their individual parts.

“The way they work for each other, they’re definitely the best team cross ever had. It’s a credit to them.”

Crossmaglen have pulled down the shutters this week in a bid to avoid media intrusion. It’s an unusual step for a club that is usually totally at ease with being in the spotlight.

The racism slur against Aaron Cunningham which erupted after their Ulster final win over Kilcoo two months ago, is undoubtedly a big factor in their silence.

Yet Murtagh is convinced that controversy has long been forgotten within the four walls of the champions’ dressing room.

“It took the gloss off the achievement at the time, which was regrettable,” he revealed. “Although it was a serious matter, I didn’t think anything would come out of it because it was one man’s word against another.

“Unless an Ulster Council official overheard what was said, what could they do? Cross, wisely, didn’t get caught up in it. Now it’s not mentioned at all.

“I think the players have put it to bed a long time ago and focused on what they have to do. If they let that distract them, they wouldn’t be in the right frame of mind for an All-Ireland semi-final.”

Bad weather and rain-soaked pitches led to the postponement of several challenge games planned in the build-up to this rematch with St Brigid’s, the team Cross beat in the 2011 All-Ireland final.

Murtagh is unconcerned about the build-up, pointing out that their best challenge matches have usually been in-house training games between 30 fiercely competitive squad members.

He accepts St Brigid’s will be out for revenge, but that threat is nothing new for the six-time All-Ireland winners.

“It’s very easy for other teams to pep themselves up when they’re playing Cross,” he explained.

“It’s a bit like playing Man United — everyone loves to beat Cross and teams up their performance for that particular day.

“It makes it all the more remarkable that they’re fit to be as successful as they are. The players think they can go all the way this year.

“They know what it takes to win. Winning the Ulster club is common practice now — most of those games are over by half-time.

“Even the guys who are 22, 23 years old have been around for four or five years and they’re not fazed by the All-Ireland series.”