‘We have to show the right attitude on Sunday,’ insists Beaufort boss

IT must be difficult in a sense after winning by the margins they have won by to keep a team focussed on the job at hand despite the expectation’s others have.

However, Beaufort manager Éanna O’Malley feels that they still have work to do if they are to re-establish Kerry’s dominance of the Munster Junior Club Football Championship.

“We have to show the right attitude on Sunday an it’s not simply a case of showing up because it will be very touch and go if we don’t approach this the right way,” he said.

O’Malley admitted to a sense of satisfaction at the way Beaufort stayed so focussed all through their semi-final encounter with Michael Cusacks of Clare despite the obvious gulf in standards between the two sides early on a fortnight ago.

In a different way O’Malley says that they are enjoying the Munster campaign more than the county one.

“It can be so hard to win in Kerry that you enjoy making the breakthrough like this and we are fortunate to have players that have played in big occasions in different jerseys, so they can deal with the expectations days like this Sunday bring.

“One thing I am very happy about it for the club in general is the support it has brought, not just people coming back into the club, but also so new people in the area coming to watch our games,” the Beaufort boss said.

One of the quirks with travelling to Mallow on Sunday is that Beaufort will have to travel through Dromtariffe itself and having been present at the Cork Premier Junior Final this year, O’Malley feels that the gap between the two counties is not as large as has been made out by some.

“I looked back on the results in this competition over the last decade and while the Kerry teams have been winning against the Cork teams, they haven’t been doing so by large margins you would think.

“Dromtariffe are going to be encouraged by seeing their neighbours Knocknagree win it last year and against a Kerry team in the final as well so we know that they will put it up to us on Sunday,” he said.

Beaufort will still be heavily fancied on Sunday, however when it comes to the nuts and bolts of the fixture, O’Malley still wants to see what Beaufort have been doing throughout their campaign in general.

“Our number one focus is to show the same high level of energy, make sure we mark tightly and make the right decisions when we have the ball. We want to see the same aggression and toughness that the lads have shown so far and hopefully we will be well on our way if we manage to do that.”

“This is a once in a lifetime opportunity when you get to this level and we hope to win as a reward for a lot of the efforts people have put into this both on and off the field.”