Down must back up Antrim result says Sheehan

By Michael McMullan

DOWN manager Ronan Sheehan says their victory over Antrim will be a waste of time if they don’t beat London on Sunday in their latest Joe McDonagh Cup group stage match.

Now in his eighth season as manager, Down are in the competition for the sixth time since promotion after winning the  Christy Ring Cup final in 2020. While other teams have moved up and down, Sheehan’s side remained in the second tier.

“I’m absolutely delighted with the result, delighted with the performance,” he said of their second win over Ulster rivals Antrim in a matter of weeks.

“It just shows you the kind of continued progress that that group has made. People would look at it when we got relegated this year that maybe our progress has stalled a bit.”

Sheehan feels his side’s hurling has been better this season, playing with a greater pace and at a higher level, culminating in their wins over Antrim.

“It’s a fantastic result for the group but it won’t count for an awful lot if we don’t back it up against London,” Sheehan stressed.

Despite the progress the Down boss is quick to say his role is about facilitating the group, and how the drive comes from within the panel itself.

There is a core of players whom he took from underage, and while other counties have a revolving door and a change in playing personnel, Sheehan’s troops have locked in for the long haul.

“I’ve never really had that (drop off) since I’ve come in. I’ve had maybe two or three boys drop off, as you would expect because people’s lives change, people move, emigrate and all of that.”

“To be fair, those guys have stuck with the journey and they probably have shaped that journey more than me,” he said, before reciting a list of senior players in the group.

“They drive it all more than me. There’s too much made of managers at times when actually managers just facilitate.

“What you really need is a group of players that see and have ambition in themselves. A group willing to leave the jersey in a better place than where they inherited it in.”

It’s a mantra that has rubbed off on the newcomers from the younger ranks. They too feel the responsibility to respect the jersey before passing it on.

Down hurling coach Trevor Fletcher

Sheehan has brought in whatever coaching experience from the outside that will help. Diarmuid O’Sullivan had a stint. Trevor Fletcher’s fingerprints are there now and highly regarded.

Man management

The other side of the management equation is making sure players know they are important.

“If you invest in the person and the player as a person, then you’ll always get more back than that,” Sheehan added.

“When you’re a manager, your real value is when you’re there for a player when it’s getting tough.

“It’s very easy to be there for a player when everything is going right for them off the pitch.”

Sheehan stresses the need to know the player, their home, work or study circumstances.

“That is reflected on the pitch,” he pointed out. “It’s very, very hard for a player to be his best on the pitch if he’s not the best off the pitch.

“The GPA do a lot of really good work on that, that maybe goes under the radar at times.”

When the on and off the field sides of a player are on the right path, there is the opportunity for progression.

“It doesn’t always work out,” Sheehan added. “Let’s be honest, we’ve had plenty of tough days in the Down jersey as well, and we’ve plenty more of them to come in in the future.

“That’s why when you get a good day like Saturday (beating Antrim), you go and you enjoy it because those days don’t come around too often for teams like Down.”