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Stepping into different class

This article is from page 62 of the 2008-06-03 edition of The Clare People. OCR mistakes are to be expected so download the original SWF or the rendered page 62 JPG

LAST Tuesday at training, Jim Gully gathered his players and faced them in the direction of reality. He said Clonlara can now rightly call them- selves a senior team and he pointed out that they have the players to cope at the highest level.

He named a couple of other clubs who had made decent progress down through the years only to eventually fall by the wayside. His point was that Clonlara should take advantage of the pool of players at their dispos- al and do their best to get out of the eaveleiey

It’s not that Gully is overly-con- fident. He rightly says that the next two or three years should be about consolodating their seinor status, but he’s optimistic enough to aim for the play-offs.

Last season’s heroics in the Inter- mediate championship and in the provincial championship are partly down to Gully’s positive approach. Players thrived under his influence and the success of last year spread much wider than winning the Inter-

mediate championship.

“It lifted the whole place, gave hurling a great foundation in Clon- lara,” says Gully. “You saw kids in school making up songs about the team. It was the kind of thing you dream about.”

This year hasn’t started too badly either. The Under 21s captured the A title in Cusack Park defeating a seasoned Nermarket-on-Fergus side and nine of those players had a role to play in the senior squad of 2007.

“People are going around saying that we’re in with a chance of win- ning the championship year and that’s the sort of thing we have to guard against. People around here think these guys are unbeatable but playing in the senior championship 1s going to be a big step-up.

“Senior teams can stop open hurl- ing easier than intermediate teams and that’s the kind of hurling we like to play. Then there’s the speed of the game. Players, I reckon, will have two seconds less to make up their minds this year. Our lads will have to think fast and act fast. Basically, you’re go- ing to have to make decisions imme-

diately and go with them.”

Gully is also pleased that unlike the last time Clonlara were a senior club, there isn’t a two-tiered system.

“We were relegated three years ago having played in what was a Senior B championship. There were eight top teams that year and 12 on the second level. So we didn’t really have an op- portunity to have a go at the big boys. The way things are this year, it’s far better.”

Clonlara’s youth factor, Gully reck- ons, means that the team may be bet- ter positioned to adapt to taking on some of the more seasoned sides.

‘Before the final last year, the young lads were going around as though it was just another hurling game where- as we [the management] were having sleepless nights. What I’d love to see is our more senior players leading the younger lads and that way, we can all adapt straight away.”

For Clonlara’s opener against Ogonnelloe, they’ll have to do with- out Darach Honan and John Conlon who are both sitting the Leaving Cert. The O’Donovan brothers are also America bound after the first

round and they won’t return until the end of August.

With typical positivity, Gully man- ages to see the bright side.

“We’re not going to use any excuse. Of course we’d love to have the lads but you show me a team that won’t have to deal with something simular. The lads we have, once they’re cer- tain that they’re not going to let this chance slip by, then I’ll be happy. We’re not the same as the likes of Clarecastle or Sixmilebridge. We don’t have a conveyor belt producing players year after year.

“We’ don’t have a large pool of players and we’re in this competition to battle and to give a good account of ourselves. Nothing less.”

Last Christmas, in the middle of the All-Ireland championship, the club took a short break from hurling. Gully recalled the panel for train- ing on January 2. Close to 30 play- ers showed up. They may have fallen short in Munster earlier in the year, but a new challenge is about to be- gin.

With Gully steering the ship, they’ll strive to break through any icebergs that come in their way this summer.

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