Kerry maestro Micko fears skills neglected in the modern game

Drills are killing skills — so says the not-so-retiring Mick O’Dwyer.

The Kerry great was speaking at the Kerry GAA Club forum in the Manor West Hotel in Tralee on Saturday. For half an hour he had the audience enthralled as the keynote speaker: two standing ovations attest to that.

Afterwards, the Waterville native spoke to the Irish Examiner. During his speech he revealed his dislike for the structured nature of improving skills.

“Drills kill the individual’s flair,” said O’Dwyer. He laments the loss of days when he could walk past a football field and see dozens of children playing ball.

“I would love to see a day again when you will see 20/30 youths just kicking a ball back and forth for hours on end — just for the fun of it. I can assure you their skills would get better.

“Developing one’s own skills and being able to hold your own in the county structure is what has helped Kerry the most. Nowadays training is too structured — the individual isn’t allowed to express himself.”

O’Dwyer spoke at length about motivation. It was a masterful critique, worthy of being revisited by Kerry GAA. He admits though he was an accidental psychologist.

“A lot of the players who would have played with me would say I was a psychologist. I never thought about it — it just came naturally to me. That’s just the way I think about things.”

So, what does he think of today’s backroom teams — complete with their own psychologists?

“Well, there’s a psychologist now with most teams. There are 30 teams but there can only be one winner so that’s one man who is doing the job right — the rest must be wrong at that stage.”

O’Dwyer sees the club as a crucial component in providing physical well-being, which in turn aids the mind.

“Clubs are driven by families and it’s why the main ingredient for getting young people involved in the club stems from parents. It is important that parents are encouraged to get involved. The club then enables young children to strive to be better in mind and body. This, in turn, aids us in the battle against other ills, such as mental health issues.”

The club has meant as much to O’Dwyer as Kerry or any county he has ever managed.

When asked from the floor to name his greatest moment, his first reply was winning the 1956 South Kerry championship with Waterville. He admits he is indebted to his club.

“The club is the cornerstone of the GAA. The most enjoyment I got out of the GAA was in my early days with my club, Waterville. The more you give to your club, the more you get back. It gave me a link to my local community. When I started with Waterville in the 1950s we had to train on the beaches of south Kerry. Numerous volunteers then gave up their free time to go and pick stones in a field so we could have a pitch.

“Without Waterville I would not have achieved what I have,” added O’Dwyer. “It gave me the platform to shine. It got me involved in the local community. One man I want to mention is the Waterville chairman at that time in the 1950s: John McCarthy. He epitomised all that is good and great in GAA.”

O’Dwyer is not happy with the new rule changes — bar one: the hooter clock.

“I hate all these changes, I think its bad for the game. If it improves the game, fair enough, but I don’t think there is a lot wrong with the game. We’ve gone overboard. You can’t attempt to hit a fella with a shoulder now but it’s a free.”

What of the black card?

“I didn’t like it when I heard of it first. But let’s try it for 12 months and see. Most importantly I’m glad the clock is coming in. For a referee to deal with time, three cards and the advantage rule is too much. We need to help referees.”

When Mick O’Dwyer left the Kerry job in 1987 — it took the Kingdom 10 years to claim back Sam. He feels the current Kerry side — approaching five years sans Sam — are now in a rebuilding cycle. “Teams go through peaks and troughs. It happened to Kerry after 1986. I hope it won’t be as long again but we have to rebuild. This happens when great teams come to the end of their cycles.”