Eanna Burke: Door is open for anyone to impress Henry Shefflin in Galway SHC closing stages

Eanna Burke was dropped from the Galway squad at the outset of this year and he’s hoping that his form for county champions St Thomas’ will catch the eye

Tue, 02 Nov, 2021 - 15:28

John Fallon

Henry Shefflin’s appointment as Galway manager has offered a lot of out-of-favour players the chance to stake a claim and Eanna Burke is one of those hoping to make the most of the opportunity.

Burke, a sub in 2017 when his older David lifted the Liam MacCarthy Cup, was dropped from the squad at the outset of this year and he’s hoping that his form for county champions St Thomas’ will catch the eye of the new Galway manager.

He’s not alone in that regard and with Shefflin due in Galway this weekend for the first time since he was appointed, a lot of players will be hoping to impress in the Brooks Galway SHC semi-finals on Saturday and Sunday.

Burke, a versatile player who was 26 a couple of weeks ago, will be hoping to keep St Thomas’ on course for their fourth title in succession when they take on neighbours Gort on Sunday, with Craughwell and Clarinbridge clashing on Saturday.

Burke said that Shefflin’s appointment had created quite a stir in Galway and inevitably players will be out to impress.

“I was shocked when I heard it was Henry who was appointed. I was up at home and we got a text about it. Look, it’s an absolutely brilliant appointment. In fairness to Paul Bellew and the hurling board, they really did a great job on it. Fair play to them for getting Henry in there.

“I suppose the shop window is open now if anyone wants to put their hand up. If Henry Shefflin comes knocking it’s a different story but, like that, I’m only focusing on doing my best for my club at the moment and if anything happens out of that, then so be it.

“We just have a job on our hands to do at the moment and that’s the top priority,” said Burke, who works in insurance with Arachas Corporate Brokers in Galway.

He had just turned 17 when a St Thomas’ side managed by his father John and with his five brothers on board won their first ever Galway SHC title in 2012 and since then Burke, a Leaving Cert student at the time, has added four more senior medals.

“We recognise at the moment we do have a good panel of players, there’s no getting away from that and we are just trying to win as much as we can while we can. We are not going to be around forever. A small club like us doesn’t have a pick of nine or 10 young lads coming in every year, so we need to make the most of it while we can.

“We haven’t spoken about four-in-a-row or anything like that. I remember last year when it was three, there was no mention of that either. We are just determined to make the most of it.”

The team has evolved somewhat in the nine years since they made the breakthrough, going all the way after their first county title to lift the All-Ireland club crown. And Burke, who started out being managed by his father, now has older brother Kenneth in charge after several successful seasons under Kevin Lally.

“It is a bit different but whether it is Kenneth or somebody outside the club in charge it really doesn’t matter. You are there to work as hard as you can for the crest that’s on the jersey and it doesn’t matter who is over the team. But, in fairness, he is brilliant and if there are things that have to be said to me he’ll do it straight out. We aren’t going to fall out over it anyway, we all want the same so whether it’s the father or the brother or someone else, it doesn’t really matter.”