Bohannon "extra motivated" after recovering from his shoulder injury

Clare's 24-year-old midfielder Darragh Bohannon missed last year's championship due to an AC joint injury picked up in the league. 

Allianz Football League Division 2, Croke Park, Dublin 25/2/2023 Dublin vs Clare Clare’s Darragh Bohannon Pic: ©INPHO/Morgan Treacy

Darragh Bohannon was 17 years young when he joined the Clare senior football panel in the summer of 2016. Bohannon, along with Joe McGann and Jonah Culligan, went straight from a minor campaign that finished at the Munster semi-final stage on May 11 into Colm Collins' senior set-up.

Dressing-room company became a lot hairier and a lot hardier overnight.

A rule passed at Congress the year previous meant the minor trio could not line out for the seniors during the 2016 championship. Management knew as much when issuing the invitation.

The purpose of bringing them in was to give these promising teenagers a headstart ahead of the 2017 season, to give them an extended grounding on what is required at senior inter-county level.

With no pressure to make matchday panels or clock championship minutes, Bohannon lived a boy’s dream in a man’s world.

Having not yet acquired his first set of wheels, a family member would drive him the short distance from Kilmurry McMahon to Shaughnessy’s Cross where David Tubridy would be waiting to carry him the rest of the way to training in Caherlohan.

Once out of Tubridy’s car, he was under Gary Brennan’s wing. The county’s midfield general made a habit of looking out for this new midfield recruit.

Away days to Salthill and Sligo and the big smoke were feasted and fattened upon.

“They went on a run to the All-Ireland quarter-final, and we were only loving going away for the overnights. It was a great experience,” Bohannon recalls.

“It was summer training, all ball work, as opposed to the hard slog of November and December, which is typically where you start when you come in first.

“There was a buzz that year because they had beaten Kildare in the league final, the lads were on a high, and so you'd be only buzzing to be going in training.” 

2017 brought reality. Now eligible for selection, Bohannon was no longer simply along for the ride.

But trying to break into a midfield department that had Brennan and Cathal O’Connor as permanent residents meant reality came at him fast.

His championship debut was two minutes at the end of the county’s qualifier victory against Laois in July of that year.

His first championship start, meanwhile, did not arrive until May of 2019 and a full three years after Tubridy had brought him to his first training.

“It was tough. It took me a couple of years to get to the level, physically. 6'5 is my height, but when I came in as a minor, my weight was only 82kg, whereas I am floating around the mid-90s now," the 24-year-old explained.

“When you are playing midfield, you have to be strong to compete in the air. It took me a few years to get to the pace of it physically, so I was only ever an option from the bench, especially with Cathal and Gary going so well.

“That probably brought me on competing against two of the best lads around. There were no complaints from my end coming up against them. I couldn’t speak highly enough of Gary.” 

A planned summer in San Fran saw him withdraw from the panel ahead of the 2020 season. Covid, of course, meant San Fran was never reached. Summer was spent at home in west Clare.

Covid, in a sentence never uttered, did him “wonders”.

The garage grew into a home gym. Bohannon’s summer menu was iron for starters, mains and dessert.

“This was an opportunity to get physically right. I was just focused on building size and strength for them few months.

“I played Sigerson through college at UL, so you'd never have time for a block of pure gym work. During lockdown, it was run or gym work. I picked the latter and I got there physically.” 

This was reflected during a 2021 season where he started the county’s four Division 2 league outings and Munster quarter-final defeat to Kerry.

That starting momentum, mind, was punctured by a torn AC shoulder joint suffered in the opening exchanges of Clare's second league game last year.

“It was a six-month recovery, so I missed all of last season. I watched the Limerick Munster quarter-final defeat and you'd have loved to be out there to try and make some bit of difference.

“It is an extra motivating factor for me to be back this year and to be playing as much as I can. Sitting on the sideline for six months really put things into perspective.” 

No perspective is required for Saturday’s Munster semi-final against the Treaty. The implications of victory and defeat couldn’t be more black and white.

“The Tailteann Cup is a good competition and serves a purpose, but as a group we are ambitious and always want to be playing the top teams in the country and improving ourselves. We know it is win or bust in that sense. Cork was win or bust too.

“It is last chance saloon every time we go out. There is no second chance. That is a big motivating factor.”