| He’s in for the kill
By Graham Clifford
Mick O’Dea doesn’t do things by halves and as he stands on
the brink of his second All-Ireland final appearance in three years he
refuses to contemplate defeat.
Speckled with the sort of quality hurlers for whom All-Ireland appearances
are a regular occurrence, Robert Emmetts have a great chance of becoming
the first London club team in history to claim an All-Ireland title.
They face Galway outfit Killimordaly on Sunday at Croke Park and O’Dea
believes he has the players to create another famous day for London hurling.
The wily Cork man, who led the London county team to Rackard Cup glory
in 2005, said: “This bunch of players have done everything which
has been asked of them.
“I would be confident that Emmetts can win for a lot of reasons.
We beat the Munster and Leinster champions to get here and they are the
strongest hurling provinces.
“Killimordaly won the Connacht title and then beat the Ulster Champions
so maybe in terms of the quality of opposition our form is better.”
Emmetts carried all before them in London last season and after edging
out the Leinster champions Ardclough they produced arguably their best
performance in beating Clare side Clooney-Quin in the All-Ireland semi-final.
O’Dea now believes that his players have the right mix of dedication
and skill to go all the way on Sunday.
“We arguably have the best club team in London history. I think
a big part of it is that these players care about their club — there
is a great team spirit. It usually happens that if you get one or two
nice fellows into a club they bring others with them and that’s
what happened with Emmets.
“If you look at the profile of some of our players, Fergal McMahon
played in the Railway Cup for Leinster and John Quinlan is an All-Ireland
Intermediate winner with Cork. There are county teams who would not have
that strength in-depth that we have and to be honest I think that if Emmetts
played the Kerry team who beat London recently we would have won,”
says O’Dea.
Although the most thorough of managers there is one superstition which
Mick plans to persevere with ahead of the All-Ireland final.
“I did not look at a video of any of our opponents to date and we
have won the games so I don’t think I will bother getting a video
of Killimordaly.
“I know that they beat the Antrim champions in their semi-final
and two of our players are from that Antrim club. So I have some idea
of the level of performance required,” said O’Dea.
He also hopes that the progress of Robert Emmetts this year will boost
the profile of hurling in London.
“There has been a view for years that London teams try their best
but at the end won’t be anywhere near winning. I hope Emmetts will
change that.
“A lot of London teams lack belief and are beaten before they go
out onto the pitch. I am determined to change that.”
The side have no injury concerns ahead of their big day but one key tactical
change could see star player Fergus McMahon deployed at midfield.
O’Dea believes that this could be important for Emmetts on the day.
He added: “When we played Fergus at full-forward in the London Championship
it worked as he was guaranteed plenty of possession but against the better
teams in the All-Ireland Fergus wasn’t getting enough ball in, he
is too good a player to waste so we moved him out to midfield.”
With a manager who mixes thoughtfulness and confidence in equal measure,
and a group of players dedicated to victory, Robert Emmetts could secure
their place in London GAA history by claiming the All-Ireland title in
Croke Park on Sunday.
Killimordaly youngsters confident of taking the title
Nestling in the middle of Galway’s hurling heartland, with Loughrea
to the east, Atherny to the west and with Sarsfields just a long puck
of a sliothar away, Killimordaly have a weight of history on their shoulders
as they prepare for one of the biggest games in their long history.
Manager Tomas Broderick will lead his young and inexperienced side out
at Croke Park aware that a hurling parish which had been in the doldrums
could be revived by All-Ireland success.
But the Galway side, famed as the home of All-Ireland winners Tony Keady
and Eanna Ryan, insist they are taking nothing for granted against the
London champions.
Club chairman John Daly, speaking to The Irish Post this week revealed:
“We have watched videos of Emmett’s performances, we noted
players like John Quinlan and Fergus McMahon.
“The first thing we noticed is the profile of some of their players,
lads who have won All-Irelands at different levels, that sort of experience
gives the London champions a definite advantage.”
Killimordaly were a senior club in Galway until six years ago and after
a spell in the doldrums they coasted to victory in the Galway Intermediate
championship before “playing well within themselves” to defeat
the champions of Roscommon and Antrim and book their place in the All-Ireland
final.
In contrast to the battle hardened Robert Emmetts lads, Killimordaly are
a young team powered largely by a clutch of former county minors and under-21
players.
Daly says that one of the main concerns of the Galway team is this lack
of experience.
He said: “At the start of the year we would have settled for winning
the county title.
“This team can achieve a lot over the next few years but they have
been on a learning curve this season and this match at Croke Park could
be the steepest learning curve most of these lads will ever experience”.
Daly is quick to praise the efforts of the players who have gotten Killimordaly
this far.
He added: “To be honest there won’t be many better intermediate
teams coming out of Galway in the next few years.
“They are a fearless bunch of players who think they can win every
game. The only concern I would have is that we have had softer games than
Emmetts — they beat the Leinster and Munster champions and that
could count against us but no one should underestimate Killimordaly.
“We have plenty of good hurlers and won’t lack commitment,
may the best team win.”
Familiar faces don’t faze Keane
For one particular Robert Emmetts player Sunday’s final will hold
added significance.
A native of Loughrea Brian Keane could be lining-out against players he
knows from his time as a Galway under-21 player.
The 29-year-old has been in London for 11 years and plans to return to
Ireland next year. Ironically the construction manager is currently building
a house in Ballyfa which is just down the road from Killimordaly.
Keane played up to under-21 level with Loughrea and won county junior
B and A titles with the club in 1994 and ’95 before crossing the
Irish sea.
Robert Emmetts are Keane’s third London club. The Galwegian spent
four years with Brother Pearses initially before transferring to Fr. Murphys.
Two years later he decided to switch to Emmetts where he has remained
ever since.
As Keane prepares for Sunday’s final against his county men he says
reaching the final has been the culmination of three years of hard work.
Keane has booked a 10-day holiday in Ireland after Sunday’s final
so he will return to Croke Park as a spectator to cheer on Loughrea in
the Senior club hurling final on St. Patrick’s Day.
The Emmetts forward believes his club’s march to the final can only
serve to highlight the talent in hurling in London.
He said: “There isn’t the greatest perception out there about
London hurling but the likes of Newtownshandrum and Athenry didn’t
find it easy when they came over here. They have only got away with eight
or nine point wins, although maybe they eased off a bit in the second
half of those games.
“The GAA in London is my saving grace. Everyone I know here that
I would call a friend I’ve met them through the GAA. I met my wife
Lisa, who is from Cricklewood, through the GAA. Her parents have a house
in Ennis. We have a two-and-a-half-year-old daughter, Eva Mae.”
Back after two-and-a-half years out with a serious knee injury Keane featured
in the semi-final win over Clooney Quin and says he and the rest of the
side just want to get out onto Croke Park and finish off what has already
been a memorable season.
He added: “We’ve got to grasp this opportunity with both hands.
We’ve prepared for this the best we can. We would play this game
anywhere.”
Dangerman Ryan in Emmett’s way
If Robert Emmetts are to make history on Sunday then they’ll have
to work out a way of stopping Killimordaly danger-man Eanna Ryan.
The Galway under-21 panellist has already played in two All-Ireland finals
for his county at underage level and is being tipped as one of the hottest
prospects in Galway hurling for some time.
His uncle with the same name was on the Galway side which won back-to-back
senior All Irelands in 1987 and 1988.
Ryan who plays at full-forward has been impressive so far in the Intermediate
campaign and he scored three crucial points in the semi-final win over
Antrim’s Gort Na Mona.
However the Killimordaly club is one without big names with their illustrious
neighbours Athenry and Loughrea boasting the majority of the hurling stars
in the area.
Other players whom Emmetts manager Mick O’ Dea will be watching
out for will be Clement and Noel Earls, Tommy and Paul Madden as well
as the useful Adrian Lawless.
The Killimordaly club are still celebrating a return to senior hurling
for next season after winning the Intermediate Championship in Galway
back in October.
A club with a proud history Killimordaly’s golden era came in the
mid ’80s when they reached three consecutive County finals. After
losing the first two it was third time lucky for the parish side when
they defeated Turloughmore in the 1986 decider.
Victory on Sunday would put the icing on the cake for Tom Broderick’s
side. For that to happen though sharp shooter Eanna Ryan will need to
be at his best against a strong Emmetts defence.
Emmetts — a proud history 1896-2007
A considerable transformation has taken place in Robert Emmetts GAA Club
since the start of the Millennium.
Whatever the result in Croke Park on Sunday it will not surprise anyone
to hear that the club is currently at the pinnacle of its achievements
in a history that dates back to the very foundation of the London GAA
County Board in 1896.
Robert Emmetts or Emmetts as they were better known then were one of the
original founder member clubs and enjoyed considerable success when they
claimed six senior hurling titles and one senior football title in 1900.
However the original club fell into decline between the two World Wars
until it was resurrected into the current club founded at the old Bow
Palais in East London on March 20th 1948.
After toiling in the lower echelons of London hurling with modest success
for just under 50 years, Robert Emmetts eventually reached their first
senior county final in 1995.
A loss to St. Gabriels in that final was followed by more disappointment
in their second final appearance in 2002 when they lost heavily to Sean
Treacys.
However two years later came a major breakthrough for the club when they
defeated their great rivals and title holders Fr. Murphys to begin the
current Robert Emmetts ‘golden era’.
Although they lost their title to the same opposition the following year
Robert Emmetts have come storming back to the top of London hurling culminating
in an appearance in this year’s historic All-Ireland club final.
Robert Emmetts’ Hurling Honours
Championship
Senior — 1898, 1899, 1901, 1902, 1905, 1906, 2004, 2006.
Intermediate/Senior ‘B’ — 1979, 1990
Junior — 1951, 1978
League
Intermediate/Senior ‘B’ — 1965, 1990
Independent Cup — 1984, 1990
Miller Cup — 1990.
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