'We dovetail around the hurling' - How Thurles found their football feet
PLAYER-DRIVEN: Laois manager Peter Creedon ahead of the GAA Football All-Ireland Senior Championship Round 2A match between Laois and Clare at OMoore Park in Portlaoise, Co Laois. Pic: Ramsey Cardy/Sportsfile
For the first time in Thurles Sarsfields’ history, the aristocrats of Tipperary hurling will enter the Munster football championships this weekend.
Their junior county champions are led by Tipperary ladies football manager Peter Creedon but he insists this has all been player-driven.
The players ran the team themselves through the divisional group stage, with Creedon’s son Paddy as captain, and it was only when they reached knockout football that Peter, freed from inter-county duties, began to take training.
“I wouldn't be massively involved with Thurles Sarsfields but my son has come through and he wants to play a bit of football and there's another large group of lads that enjoy playing football," Creedon Sr. explained.
“The lads ran the team all the way up to the county quarter-final stage and then we came in and started doing a bit of coaching from then on. If anything, it's player-driven.
“We dovetail around the hurling. We do train. We've been training away probably once a week since then and between the U19s and juniors, we've had enough numbers to have two or three internal challenge matches among ourselves.”
Thurles is far from football badlands and there’s a fair share of ballers in their team. Dúrlas Óg, the town’s juvenile club, have won county ‘A’ football titles at U12, U13, U14, U15, and U16 in the past decade, with four of those achieved as hurling and football doubles. Sarsfields’ U19s face Clonmel Commercials in the county A final on Sunday week with many of that team involved this Saturday too. Add that to more than 100 players playing adult hurling for Sars and you have a player pool to stock a more than competitive football panel.
Tipperary All-Ireland winner Michael Cahill missed their hurling campaign through injury but his half-time introduction in the junior A football final made the difference, scoring the 1-1 that gave Sars their first adult football title since 1989.
“Brilliant, brilliant player. Brilliant leader,” says Creedon of Cahill. “The focus and the energy he brings to championship matches, you can see why he was a top inter-county hurler. He just has it.”
Hurling is part of this story but Creedon sees a place for football, referencing the dual successes of Mid Tipp rivals Loughmore-Castleiney, Upperchurch-Drombane, and JK Brackens.
“Hurling is always going to be the premier sport in the town of Thurles and that's fine but even Thurles Sarsfields had a big review meeting a couple of weeks back where they were looking at developing a long-term plan for the club. A lot of us would hope that football would form part of that but also conscious of the fact that it should hopefully compliment the hurling and not ever really get in the way of it.”
They visit West Clare football country on Saturday to face Liscannor at Miltown Malbay. The Cork champions are next for the winners. There’s even the prospect of a Munster final against David Clifford’s Fossa being bandied about.
“Saturday is going to be a step up but we're looking forward to it. It's a great day out. You're heading off to play a quarter-final in Munster, the fact that it’s football is a novelty in itself, and there are a couple of busses coming from Thurles. It wouldn't be too often that Thurles Sarsfields would be down in West Clare.”
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