Legend eager to prove a point to his own
THE defining image of Ciaran Carey will always be of the coltish centre-back that ran the length of the Gaelic Grounds on a sweltering June afternoon i n 1996 to break Clare hearts. Like most memorable moments of modern life, that magnificent winning point i s catalogued on YouTube for posterity and the clip offers a snapshot into Carey’s greatness.
After more than 70 minutes of manic hurling under a baking sun, Carey caught Davy Fitzgerald’s long puck- out and summoned enough energy to take flight from his own half-back line. As he came within range of the Clare posts, he still had the presence of mind to sell a chasing Fergal Hegarty a dummy before firing the ball over the bar. All of this while on the run.
Carey is considered one of Limerick’s greatest ever hurlers and recognised as one of the best players never to win a Celtic cross. He was the beating heart of the Shannonside team who were reluctantly the main supporting act as the hurling world exploded in revolution during the mid-1990s.
When his own career was chronicled in a superb Laochra Gael documentary on TG4 last year, Carey seemed to have a lump in his throat as he spoke with remarkable candour about that team’s failure to bring the Liam MacCarthy back to the Treaty City.
‘Were we good enough to do it? We were. Why didn’t we do it then? Obviously there must have been a little shrink there mentally. There must have been because you needed to be mentally very strong, mentally very tough, mentally ruthless and we obviously lacked one or two streaks there.’
Carey defined Limerick hurling for more than a decade and it defined him. In that sense, it’s apt that just as the world woke up to the latest act of his sporting life, it all comes back to Limerick again.
The cloistered world of hurling needs more teams to edge their way towards the elite and that was why Kerry’s splendid win over Laois last weekend was so welcome. But it will not have escaped the notice of most in his own county that it’s Carey overseeing the development of this young Kerry team — assisted by former Limerick captain Mark Foley.
Having twice being Limerick’s Under 21 manager and having coached the county camogie side to an All-Ireland B title back in 2007, Carey has made no secret of his desire to have the top job at some stage.
However, his relationship with the county board has never been smooth and his latest reign at U21 level ended in recrimination back in September 2014 when his oneyear contract was not extended. Carey explained at the time that he was ‘ hurt’ by how the whole process had been handled. Proving those same people wrong by masterminding a shock result against his native county would certainly give him a sense of satisfaction.
Events in September 2014 were not the first time the county board had overlooked him for a job. He has gone for the senior job on two occasions previous to that — in 2010 when Donal O’Grady was appointed and the following year when he was believed to be in pole position after serving as a selector with O’Grady only for the three-man selection committee to plump for John Allen.
Carey was again given the role of selector to ease the blow of missing out on the top job. But it was an uneasy truce. Upset by the level of physical preparation of the team during the 2012 National League, Carey left the backroom team only a few weeks before that year’s Championship.
Despite t he i conic status afforded him by his exploits on the field, there’s a feeling that among those at administrative level, his face won’t fit when it comes to the senior job.
The two Munster medals and three All-Star awards he earned during his 15 years hurling with Limerick hardly gives a true impression of how gifted a player Carey was (he also won nine Limerick SHC titles with the ’Well). In an era that boasted the likes of Brian Whelahan and Seanie McMahon, he held his own as a giant of the game.
However, he also had to battle off the field. He has publicly documented publicly his own troubles with alcoholism and having recently completed a degree in counselling, he has spent the past few years working with homeless people in Limerick while also working in a residential treatment centre with recovering addicts.
Carey has spoken in the past about how he feels not enough is done to help retiring players fill the void when they are no longer part of the inter-county set-up.
‘I believe there possibly isn’t enough in place for that type of person when he finishes his career. It’s very easy to fall into the trap of any type of addictions and there’s a huge amount of help needed whether it’s for the player that’s retiring or whether it’s the player that might have stuff going on in his life,’ he said.
The journey he made to confront his own problems means that Carey has emerged as a more rounded person — and a better manager.
Even though his friend and f ormer Limerick t eam- mate TJ Ryan will be his opposite number on Sunday, and his nephew Cian Lynch will be on the opposing team, Carey will be determined to show certain people in Limerick just how good a manager he has become.