This article is from page 93 of the 2009-08-18 edition of The Clare People. OCR mistakes are to be expected so download the original SWF or the rendered page 93 JPG
FOR a while now, Darach Honan’s name and word of his talent has been seeping through to the wider hurling public. That goal against Waterford confirmed Honan as a genuine hurler of class on the big stage and even though that passage of play spoke volumes of his character and ability, it would be unfair to usher Honan as some sort of saviour for Clare hurl- ing, as some kind of great hope.
Those who have watched him progress through the grades will tell you he has yet to even come close to his potential and with the calm and wise influence of his father, Colm, it’s unlikely that he will be rushed through to the senior set up.
Right now, it’s enough to bask in the sizzle of excitement that rumbles when Honan is in possession for the Clare Under 21s or for his club, Clon- lara. That sizzle 1s something which Jim Gully, manager of Clonlara when they won the senior title last year, has seen first hand.
‘“He’s a unique hurler in that there’s always the potential of a goal with
him,” says Gully. “I’ve actually never seen a finisher like him. When he’s on the ball, it reminds me of when DJ Carey was playing. There’s the same rumble of excitement from the crowd. Even the opposition know what he’s capable of now, so there’s a sense that when he’s in possession, he can make things happen.”
Having been over the Clonlara when Honan first lined out for the club sen- iors, Gully says he was not surprised by his decision to go for goal against Waterford in the Munster final.
“Once he made that turn, I knew he had goal on his mind. And the thing is, he doesn’t score a bad goal. Even the goal he scored on Saturday [against O’Callaghan’s Mills in the club championship] was a cracker.”
That goal was born out of a wristy and instinctive finish and powerful wrists are a commodity that Honan enjoys and makes great use from. On top of this, a background in bas- ketball has also provided him with a sense of space and the ability to turn into and away from the tackle.
‘He has a very fast sprint,’ contin- ues Gully. “Those big strides of his
can leave a defender for dead. And the thing is, Darach can be out of a game for 58 or 59 minutes and he can still end up with a couple of goals. When he’s on the field, you’re never out of the game.
“T remember when we played Lor- rha in the intermediate Munster semi final. He mightn’t have touched the ball for 15 minutes or so and I heard later that some of the Tipperary sup- porters who had heard of him were wondering what all the fuss was about. Well, he finished that game with 2-4 and helped us get to the final and none of those Tipp sup- porters are going to forget the name Darach Honan.”
This weekend sees Honan on yet another large stage but you somehow get the feeling that the journey is only Starting and though his name will be up in lights one day, he will take his time in getting to that place.