'He wants to win and he doesn’t cut corners' - Kernan delighted with impact of free-spirit Jamie Clarke

CLASS: Armagh's Jamie Clarke. ©INPHO/James Crombie

GIVEN the context, it was anything but a throwaway line from Neil Lennon at the end of the 2011/12 Scottish League, when he said that a couple of years into the job, he could never consider himself a ‘proper’ Celtic manager until he had won a league.

Such is the weight of expectation that comes with such jobs, it’s an easy comparison to ask of Stephen Kernan. A brilliant, creative hub of the Crossmaglen Rangers attack when they gobbled up county, Ulster and All-Ireland titles, he has taken his club to the last two county finals and lost both to Maghery, and last year Clann Eireann.

Redemption is never far away however, and they go into this Sunday’s final against Granemore, a club appearing in their first-ever decider.

Kernan engages with Lennon’s theory.

“I think that’s a very fair comment. I think in Crossmaglen, it is a wonderful place, somewhere where we have had a great upbringing and great lives, great careers. But it is an incredibly ruthless place if you are not successful,” says the Financial Adviser.

“I would caveat it by saying again that there are a lot of things that we have changed, in trying to educate the boys and we have introduced ways of training, ways of playing football and it’s taken bit of time for them to believe that you actually can play this kind of football.” 

And there you have it. For all the coaching trends and fashions, there still will be strong opinions in Crossmaglen that they can play the game on their terms, which means plenty of kicking and making the pitch ‘big.’ 

“Because their skills, playing underage with Armagh and even the Armagh senior team, there is still an element where it is ok to defend in numbers and space. In Crossmaglen, we need to have accountability in attack and in defence.

“Ultimately on Sunday, we can add medals to this, and add to it consistently. That’s what it all comes down to. We do want to win, it’s why we put so much time and effort into it.

“But we also do pride ourselves on what we do, it’s not just about winning, it’s winning a certain way. This year, we’ve done that really well.” 

In the semi-final, it felt like a lot of things were clicking into place. Jamie Clarke, 33 now and after a spell living in Paris, is back on home turf. An early flirtation with soccer and Newry City prevented his inclusion in an earlier round game against Silverbridge, but his influence was all over the semi-final win over Maghery.

In the opening minutes, his very presence caused panic in the Maghery defence and they conceded an own goal. Clarke added two marks in a matter of 30 seconds. By the end of the first quarter it was 1-7 to 0-0. At the final whistle, 3-15 to 1-6. An old-fashioned hammering.

For Kernan, it was the result of defending from the front.

“People will gravitate towards the two county finals that we have lost and while we have lost them, we lost them in my opinion because we didn’t execute our skills to a level and intensity across the board in both attack and defence than what was required to win a county title,” he explains.

“The result can dictate a narrative that you cannot play that style of football against defensive teams. They were two high profile games that we lost, but we lost because we did not execute our skills.” 

Having Jamie Clarke back helps, of course.

There’s never been a fall-out or a row, but the ability of Clarke to live his life in a more free-spirited manner goes against the grain of rural Irish life.

But perhaps if he had remained at home and devoted himself to only playing Gaelic football, what’s to say he wouldn’t have fallen out of love entirely with the sport?

Really, this is the first period where Kernan has been able to use Clarke for a prolonged period and he is delighted.

“When he is around, he is a fantastic trainer, he mixes well with the boys, he talks to everybody whether you are a county senior player or just joined the team and you are 17 years of age.” 

After two or three training sessions, other players realised his skillset was just as polished as ever. Standards were raised just to keep pace with the man who had missed the last couple of seasons.

“I am delighted to have him back. I am delighted to coach him. I like coaching Jamie. He’s very open-minded. He trains, he does his weights, he does his yoga and the off-field conditioning that we do. He does it all, he wants to win and he doesn’t cut corners.” 

This weekend, the romance of Granemore will be everywhere, spreading out the several miles from their rural heartland to the Cathedral city and the promised land. But they are coming up against pragmatists.

“Granemore are going into their first final and it will be an emotional time for them and a proud time,” says Kernan, “Nevertheless, it’s just as emotional and proud for us.

“We have our own goals, we have our own dreams, nothing was ever handed to a man in the black and amber jersey, it was always earned.” He adds, “Right now, we have not won a county titles in the last two years. We have only won two in the last six years.

“There’s a different feel at the minute, around Cross. There is more of a humbleness about the place and after the semi-final.

“It’s the boys on the field that are raising this. But that being said, it definitely feels different, this one.”