Pearse O’Neill: Veteran, 41, still answering the Aghada call

Pearse O’Neill plays down his service. One of the club’s most famous sons Conor Counihan, he recalls, lined out in the green and white up until his mid-40s.

Pearse O'Neill won an All-Ireland with Cork in 2010 and is still going strong with Aghada. Picture: Oliver McVeigh

Eleven years after winning an All-Ireland medal and Pearse O’Neill is still a man in demand.

Just shy of his 42nd birthday on December 1, he hopes to assist Aghada’s hurlers to avoid the drop in Saturday’s Cork Premier intermediate relegation play-off against Watergrasshill.

The following weekend, their footballers face Kanturk in a Premier intermediate semi-final after he played a leading role in the quarter-final win over Nemo Rangers.

O’Neill plays down his service. One of the club’s most famous sons Conor Counihan, he recalls, lined out in the green and white up until his mid-40s.

“He was there for a long while. I remember getting a couple of games with him. We played UCC in Carrigtwohill in 2002 and he was still playing.”

Then O’Neill considers the efforts of his All-Ireland winning team-mate of 2010, Donncha O’Connor last weekend.

“I saw that Donncha played into extra-time with Ballydesmond on the Saturday then went on and played with Duhallow the following day — that’s another level altogether.”

Along with Counihan, the pair will swap stories in a couple of weeks when Cork’s Class of 2010 meet up but until then, O’Neill’s calendar is booked up.

“It’s just about recovering properly,” he says of maintaining his dual status. “I’m beside the beach and when it was warmer I’d be in the sea most days, not now obviously as it’s colder. I missed a few games after hurting my ribs against Castletownbere but other than that I have been relatively injury-free all year bar a few niggles.

“I don’t really overthink about it. If it’s a hurling week, I grab the helmet and hurley. If it’s football, I just rock on. I like being involved in both because there is such a crossover between the two teams. There are always 20 to 25 training. The craic is good and you don’t want to miss out. There may come a stage where I have to focus on one but I enjoy doing both.”

So O’Neill has no plans to finish up playing?

“It might be a case of concentrating on one of them at junior level but I don’t know, really. I haven’t thought beyond the Watergrasshill and Kanturk games. For as long as I can contribute something to the first teams and play away, I’m happy enough to be doing it but my influence wouldn’t be anywhere as it would have been before. As long as you’re able to give something.”

Counihan’s crew of 2010 were regarded as pioneers in strength and conditioning and O’Neill agrees the good practices of that time have stood with them. But he also highlights how he was a late starter having been rediscovered as a TG4 Underdog along with Kieran Donaghy.

“I came into the Cork team relatively late so I wasn’t flat to the mat when I was 18 or 19. By the time I came back in, a lot of other lads had six or seven hard years behind them so I probably haven’t accumulated the same wear.”

That Aghada’s hurlers find themselves in such a predicament is obviously disappointing but the experience has been satisfying for O’Neill.

“The training with the hurling has been very enjoyable. The results haven’t but it’s a tough grade of hurling. You’re up against serious teams like Ballinhassig, Ballincollig, Kilworth… good teams. We’ll go for it now on Saturday and see how we get on.”

With half a dozen players starting on both teams, the week-in, week-out nature of the championship season has been difficult for Aghada, especially a veteran like O’Neill. The county board’s competitions control committee’s hands have obviously been tied by the pandemic but he hopes to see more time afforded to dual clubs in 2022.

“By and large, the restructuring of the championships has been a very good thing but as a dual player, and an older one at that, it is hectic. I know the calendar got caught this year with Covid but if you could stretch it out so that there is a week or two more between games for clubs, it would be very beneficial. For one code players, it’s brilliant but for the dual player, it is difficult.”

Before Waterford great Tony Browne retired from inter-county hurling, he laughed about being the brunt of the young players’ gags about his music and fashion sense. O’Neill knows just how he felt. Not that he minds a bit.

“Stop. These tight tracksuits, they weren’t made for the 41-year-old. Of course, there’s all that going on but I’m well able to pipe it back at them. There’s no fear of that.”