Ó Muirchear taigh says this team has learned much from men of 2004

COMMUTING can be a common occurrence in a footballer’s life, especially one from the furthest point west in the country. While most of An Ghaeltacht’s present side find themselves in either Cork or Limerick during the week, Colm Ó Muircheartaigh the team captain, travels down from Rathcoole in Dublin - where he is a teacher

- at the weekends, as well as having to do mid-week sessions on his own, but he feels the team is benefiting this year from having a larger panel.

“A few younger players have come in to bring us up to 30 for training sessions which is a massive boost for A versus B games and having competition for places as well. We’ve taken nothing for granted since we have been on this run and I think it has served us very well,” Ó Muircheartaigh said about reaching this point.

The team captain has experience of playing on an All-Ireland Club semi-final day, in a warmup match between An Ghaeltacht and St Brigids of Dublin’s U-14 sides prior to the Senior semi-final in 2004. And with Marc Ó Sé the sole survivor from the side that reached Croke Park on St Patrick’s Day, the team captain says there is tremendous respect amongst the group for what the present player-manager has achieved in the club and inter-county colours.

“Marc’s been there and done it all and also we look at Conall (Ó Cruadhlaoich, co-manager) and Dara (Ó Cinnéide) in the same way because they were the players who brought the club to Croke Park back in 2004. Tomas (Ó Muircheartaigh) has done a pile of work with the players at various different times as well while Podge Murphy has also be of great benefit to us as well,” he said.

Ó Muircheartaigh broke through at senior level in the midst of a decline for the club as the heroes of 2004 departed the stage, senior relegation in 2009 was followed by a slide down the County League to Division Three (nearly going as low as Four) before the club’s resurgence in the last few years aided by the emergence of an exciting crop of young players.

Ó Muircheartaigh hopes the benefits of success elsewhere for these players are starting to rub off the club at senior level.

“When you see some of them win Hogan Cups with Pobalscoil and All-Ireland Minor titles with Kerry it does make you excited about the benefit for the club down the line.

It’s one of the reasons we are really anxious to try and win on Sunday and hope that winning experience that they have can become a factor in an All-Ireland Final if we get there,” he said.

The club aren’t looking too far beyond what’s in front of them on Sunday though when it comes to facing Moy, and Ó Muircheartaigh is conscious of the record in this competition between clubs from both counties.

“Cookstown beat both Spa and Finuge in All-Ireland Finals so we know the pedigree is good up there at this level and we expect them to bring a lot of physicality and hunger to Portlaoise. I think the three games we had in the West Kerry Championship are a good reference point for us in preparing for this because they were hard and dogged encounters,” the captain said. “We have to leave everything out on the pitch and have the confidence in ourselves to show we can win. We have to play as well as we ever have if we want to make the All-Ireland Final.”