Jamie Barron: Waterford won’t crumble on big day at headquarters
It might well be Waterford’s first appearance at GAA HQ since 2011, but by the Fourmilewater man’s calculations only four players have not yet graced the hallowed turf.
“A lot of us have played there minor and whatnot and we’re just looking forward to being back there. Maybe one or two might be nervous but we’ll look forward to it.”
As for Kilkenny, the same psychological hang-ups some now retired players may have had about Brian Cody’s men aren’t shared by the current crop. Defeats to Kilkenny for several of them at schools and minor levels have been few and far between.
“You look at the Harty Cup teams there, they were beating the best teams in Tipperary and Kilkenny. Tipperary and Kilkenny are probably the two best teams in the last 10 years so they’re beating all these lads at underage level and you just get a confidence from it and a belief that you are as good as these boys, so why fear them now if you’re able to do it at underage?”
Barron has been like a new player to Derek McGrath this year after missing parts of the 2014 season with injuries among them a frustrating ankle problem.
At the tail-end of last year, he returned in time to help The Nire’s footballers claim senior county glory and the run to the Munster final stood to him fitness-wise.
A forward with Fourmilewater, it was last November that McGrath floated with him the idea of playing in midfield.
“I suppose at the start of the year I spoke to Derek and he told me what he’d planned for me, anyway. He wanted me out around the middle of the field so I said, ‘I’m going to give it a right lash this year, really give it 100%.
“Last year I had a few injuries and whatever, and it’s kind of hard to come back after six weeks out. You feel like you’re catching up.
“But this year I’ve had a good run at it anyway, and it seems to be going well for me anyway, thank God.
“We were playing with the Nire, we went up to December and made it to the Munster final and I suppose that’s after standing to me as well seeing as you’re training so hard up until December and then you’re straight back into the county set-up. So I wasn’t making up for lost time doing physical work. I was probably as fit as I’ve been coming back into pre-season.”
Just as he looks upon manager McGrath as “a father to most of the panel” - he’s just an exceptional man, we can’t give him enough credit”, Barron considers play alongside Kevin Moran in Waterford’s midfield as a privilege.
He also sees why McGrath had midfield in mind for him. “I play in the forwards for the club and the backs as well at minor but I think midfield is probably my most suitable position. You have a bit of space to get into the game and get on the ball early on, that’s what you want to be doing and just sitting in there. It’s great to be there now.”
The beauty of the Waterford system is not in its principle but application and Barron knows if he is called out of position a team-mate like Colin Dunford will fill his role until he returns.
“I think with a lot of the players we’re playing around, we’re kinda swapping positions at times during the games and everyone’s just fitting in where they’re put at the moment.
“We’re really enjoying it and we’re gelling and everyone is kinda just playing well at the moment. We can’t complain about it.”
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