I've been training teams for the last few years in hurling, gaelic football, hockey and soccer. I've had some good trainers over the years and I've learned most off the three lads below. I don't think ya ever model yourself on one person but you always try to learn something new from different guys. Below are contrasting styles which helped develop my interest in training teams over the years.
Seamus McCarthy
A bank manager in Bank of Ireland, Seamus is known as Mr. Football in Tipperary. Having overseen a relatively successful period in his home county's football history in the early 90's, he returned in 00's to again lift the troops. He also oversaw the Tipp Juniors campaign to win an All Ireland on a couple of occasions as well as guiding many different club teams. I think it was somewhere around 1996 or 1997 when he first landed on Kinsale's doorstep but successive defeats in South-East finals meant no silverware was won. The team claimed the title in his absence in 1999 and lost the 2000 final. He returned to take the helm in 2001 and it was to prove a timely intervention.
We were without the talented brotherly duo of Niall and Padraig Buckley, who had joined the ranks of Oliver Plunketts in Dublin. Still, our youthful team was maturing and the potential was there. In '99 many of us had broken through and the victory against Tracton was achieved with something like 8 U-19's, 3 of whom were still minor. However, in 2000, alot of that youthful energy only saw daylight in the league and in challenge games. For Championship it was too often consigned to the dugout. Seamus came on board with Ray Cummins and Ollie Cahill and set to work straight away.
Seamus' great strength is building a strong bond within the group and a siege mentality. The tool to acheive this was always collective pain which came in the form of long hard running on cold unforving nights. He liked to play on the criticisms directed at players from the experts on the bank and use that to motivate his team. His man management was top notch and the players were in dire need of it.
I had come off a fairly demoralising year. In '99, I had broken into the team and played the semi and the final in the South-East. An ankle injury after the final ruled me out for the County campaign but i was back in for the league in '00. I started every league and challenge game that year, was dropped for the first round of the Championship against Carrigaline, brought in as a sub against Crosshaven and played the entire semi against Shamrocks at wing-back. I had marked Michael Prout that day. After captaining the Irish U-17 Compromise Rules team the previous year, he was their big name. I did well enough on him and I think he was moved during the course of the game. Still, when the final rolled around against Courcies, the word on the street was that size and strength were the order of the day. I was again given a supporting role, sharing it with others who had experienced a similiar season as myself. We lost the final and the team shared my dejection going into 2001.
My winter was wrecked by glandular fever, but such was the amount of sport I was playing at the time, the break was maybe a blessing in disguise. From about February I was able to start ramping up the training and the team motored well through the league. Seamus had his money on the young fellas and they were thrown straight back into the mix. Our enthusiasim was matched by the experience of Gavin Farrissey, Brian O'Connell and Gerry Murphy. Murphy and Farrissey were naturally confident characters and so Seamus could focus his attentions on the young lads. From a player point of view his techniques were simple but effective. He got you super fit giving you a good basis to build your confidence from. Then he worked on your head. From my point for view, I felt he had total confidence in me. I was corner back at the time and in that position its important to play your man from the front and attack every ball. If your not confident, you'll play him from behind and allow him gain possession too easily. No matter who the opponent, Seamus had a confidence in you to beat him.
Two occasions stick out in my mind where his influence came to the fore. The first was the South-East final of 2001 and the rematch against Courcey Rovers. The Courcies were flying and their full forward line was led by Vincie Hurley and he was surrounded by a host of speedy allies. They made the most of the big pitch out in Brinny and raced into a 0-7 to 0-0 lead. Just before half-time, Gerry Murphy clipped over a point and Seamus went to town on it at half time. It was like it was the most important point ever scored, bringing us to within two kicks of our opponents. He was totally convinced we could win and such was the influence he had over us at the time, so were we. We went on a rampage in the second half, playing some of the best football we ever played as a team. I finished the game at centre back and others in unfamiliar positions but it wouldn't phase you cause you knew he believed in you. We played some mighty battles in the county campaign that year, replays and extra-time against Mitchelstown, a bruising battle with Adrigole and then the final against Ilen Rovers.
The Rovers were raging hot favourites, a team littered with intercounty talent. We stood in the dressing room at half-time one point ahead having missed a glorious goal chance. I was never so shattered though. The pitch in Bandon was heavy, we were light and the hits were hard. In the second half, we could not contain them. They were a seasoned team, having lost previous County Finals. In the end we csuccumbed but there was no shame in that. They went on to win Intermediate Championships and contest County Senior Finals.
The other moment which springs to mind is the U-21 championship match against Valley Rovers in 2002. I was wing-back on Keith White. A few weeks before I played for Carrigdhoun against Dohenys in the Senior Football Championship and there was an inkling that a spot on the Cork Junior panel was on offer. White took me for 1-4 from play that night. He was a speedster, a bit of a loose cannon but could be brilliant on his day. Seamus planted himself in front of the Cork selector that night and never uttered one negative word in my direction. Every time I came out with at the ball, his voice roared approval. I learned something valuable that night which was that you're opponent is going to score from time to time but you must move on and play the next ball. A backs job isnt just about keeping your man scoreless, its about covering the guys around you, winning possession and launching attacks. Seamus' strength was making you believe, which is more powerful than any fancy tactics or training.
George Treacy
People use different words to describe the person in charge of a team. The Dubs i.e. the Sheanon brothers, refer to this person as the manager. In Cork, we'd call him the trainer. In Europe, they tend use the title coach. If asked I go under the title trainer. The extent to which I 'manage' the teams I'm involved with are minimal i.e. I have no match day presence with any of the FCI teams. Similarily, I dislike the description 'coach' as in the case of the soccer anyway, I rarely coach skills, technique or tactics.
George was a coach in the truest sense of the word. He was a former Irish international hockey player, coached up to senior international level and was also Billy Morgan's team pyschologist in his two stints with the Cork team. He is a small, quiet, grey bearded man and a bit of a hockey purist. When he arrived on the scene I think I was in my fifth season with UCC and so was one of the older, more established members of the team. Our first game was against Harlequins and I remember he hauled myself and Lenny off after twently minutes. Lenny was the team's star player and even though you can rotate your subs regularily in hockey, the only time either of us normally got a mid-game rest was when we were sat in the sin bin, which was frequently enough. It was a tight game and the two of us were stood on the line with steam blowing out our ears. We were reinstated a few minutes later and finished the game. We hadn't been playing badly so I'm not sure why he removed us from the action but I can only assume it was a case of putting us in our box and making sure we knew our place.
George's training was all about the ball and specifically learning new skills. Some of the stuff was very simple. There was one drill about how to step past an opponent in a one on one, mainly through the shuffling of your feet to the side and then dragging the ball across with you. Sounds simple but often we drag the ball first and move the feet second, which is alot less effective. The other thing he did was enforce a system of play on us. Night after night, we used to walk through patterns of play down in the Mardyke. The right back would get the ball, the right mid would tuck in, creating a lane to pass to the right winger who would then slip it into the right mid's looping run. This along with other movements proved incredibly effective.
Some guys couldn't cope with the training though. It required high levels of concentration and discipline. You needed to play in a selfless way, understanding your role in the team and understanding your contribution was as valuable as the next guy. I scored 11 goals from midfield that season and each one of them came from moves crafted in the Dyke and involved our speedy winger Mark O'Leary. Neither of us were gifted hockey players, but both of us did as we were told, over and over again. Our biggest achievement came against our most illustrious opponent, CofI. The Munster Senior League is a bit like the Scotish Premier League in that its totally dominated by two teams, CofI and Harlequins. Both compete for the top prizes in Ireland each season and are like a magnet to anyone in the provence who has worn or wants to wear the green jersey. Regularily you will find Munster U-21's, Irish U-18's and other talent lining out for their second teams. They had not dropped a single point to anyone (except each other) in Munster for as long as I could remember.
We were like a bunch of journeymen who were getting our crack at the top Division by lining out with UCC. My school career culminated in me playing the role of work horse centre forward. We were not without talent though. Lenny had played for Ireland up to U-18 and with the Munster U-21's. Eoinzy was a Leinster U-18 from the unlikely source of Kilkenny college. I think Nicholson and Dawson were still floating around and we had the youthful Catchpole and Grant amongst others. All had or would play up to U-21 level with Munster. Occasionaly, you may score against the big two, occasionally you might lose by 2/3 goals but sometimes they could hit you for double figures. On this occasion, it was a case of normal service in the first half. Two quick fire goals, game over in many peoples minds by half-time. In his quiet way, George continued to drill home the need to follow his system.
We persisted. I can't remember the first goal but the second was worth all the nights standing around in the cold. We were controlling the ball well outside their 25 but there was no chink in their defensive armour. We moved the ball from left to right, and back, and back again. Eventually someone had the nuts to go for it and broke for the circle heading for the endline before whipping it back to Lenny to sweep home. 2-2. Coogan went close at the death but his shot was stolen from the top corner. We didn't celebrate at the whistle, so as not to show ourselves up but it was one of the best results we achieved in my 6 years playing with College. George, even though a CofI man, couldn't wipe the smile off his face. The many nights spent in their clubhouse would be all the more satisfying. Personally, I detested CofI and Quins, their arrogance and special relationship with umpires drove me nuts so I found the pints that Saturday especially tasty knowing the embarassment they would feel dropping points to the ragged students.
George only stayed one season. He is an example of a coach who needs a manager along side him. All he wanted to do was coach but dealing with young people these days requires man management skills. Its not that he couldn't do it, he just wasn't interested in egos or bullshit. He is the only 'coach' I have ever had and thought me more that season than in any other season playing hockey. That season we had a weak team but he kept us in the league and gave us a structure which notoriously lacks in student teams.
Eddie Kirwan
Eddie is a Nemo man and was their Senior Football trainer from when I first met him in 2002. He fell into hockey by accident having taken up a job as a PE teacher in Ashton. He was made for UCC. A character who was young enough to relate to us but strong enough to retain our respect. He was the first guy to introduce me to SAQ (Speed Agility Quickness) training. Under him we trained hard but did alot fo ball work too. I would say his two biggest strengths were his motivational skills and his tactical awareness.
From a motivational side he was GAA through and through. He spoke with passion and he saw no obstacle to high to scale. It was unacceptable to him to accept defeat to anyone, even the big two. Our team was well balanced with the calm of Dawson and Nicholson in defence and the firey trio of myself, Eoinzy and Lenny in the midfield. He was also aware tactically, knew the resources he had and played a system to get the most out of it.
In his first season we were a shambles and lost all our league games before Christmas. A 1-0 victory in the Irish Senior Cup against Naas just before Christmas gave us hope. We turned into the new year with relegation looming and some tough games in store. With the exception of the big two, we won every remaining league game. Our tactics were simple; leave Andy Barbour high up the field, defend in numbers and when we regained the ball, break like your life depended on it. Our midfield covered miles and miles in those games. Barbour was less than mobile but his stickwork meant he could hold the ball until reinfocements arrived.
In the final game of the season we travelled to Garryduff to play CofI B in a game we needed to win to stay up. We were 2-0 down midway through the first half when Jim missed a penalty stroke for us. On we drove though to get it back to 2-2. With time all but up the ball was flashed across the goal and Elmer dived full stretch to tip the ball home. 3-2 and we were staying up. It was epic stuff.
In intervarsity fare, DCU were our nemesis. They were like bulldozers and were back boned by the Bane brothers, Eamon and Dave. They were from a GAA background and hailed from the Northside, along with most of their team. At the UCD varsities we had a monumental tussle with them in our group and literally pucked the shit out of eachother. It was great hockey, physical and fast and with some good skill thrown in. A host of us ended up in the sin bin that day but on the scoreboard we ended as losers 2-1. They went on to claim the title. We met again in Galway the following year at the semi-final stage. Through playing with the Irish Universities some of us had been teammates in the intervening months so our respect for eachother had grown as did our desire to beat them. It was another massive battled and at the end of normal time we could not be seperated. The game swung on a piece of brilliance by Dave Bane who powered through our defence and slipped the ball home. Again they went on to claim the title. It was the best UCC team I played on and the closest we came to winning a varsities. Kirwan was gutted at the end, as were the rest of us.
During those heated varsity clashes and especially league games against Quins and CofI, Kirwan lived on the edge. He always told me he knew where the line was but on occassion his toes threaded it. I remember playing for the Irish Unis in Banbridge and him being banished from the dugout like a bold school boy. He only moved the ranting to the other side of the fence. His players were always aligned with him though and we were like the foot soldiers who took his fight onto the pitch. Personally, he put structure on my game and helped me understand how to get the most out of my game. I could run but he helped me know to where and when. If I could get a shot off in the circle, i could get the power in it to beat the keeper and he helped me learn how to get those shots off.
When coach of the Irish Universities he always had me in the squad and assigned me man marking tasks. He knew my limitations and took the piss at every opportunity but he felt i could do a job for him and I was grateful of the guidance and opportunity he gave me to do it. After he left UCC we kept in touch and he gave me a job coaching in Ashton the year I finished University. I still see his mug on the Nemo sideline and he's coaching the Bandon ladies hockey team. By all accounts the chip on his shoulder has not diminished and he's still looking to take the big guns down a peg or two.
You learn something different from everyone. One key point is that one man is unlikely to cover all the bases which shows the value in having a mix of people around you when you're in charge of a team. Seamus thought me how influential a coaches belief can be on a player. George thought me about how to impose a pattern of play on a group and the need to be patient. I'm not sure what Kirwan thought me but it was his style which i could probably relate to most.
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