From the cradle in Waterville to Clare

SUCCESS can be achieved anywhere, provided players give the commitment. That’s according to Clare’s new senior football manager, Mick O’Dwyer.

Speaking to The Clare Champion last Sunday evening, having watched county champions Kilmurry-Ibrickane put up a great battle against the defending Kerry and Munster champions Dr Crokes, the Kerry legend said,

“You get 15 men in any county, they have hands and legs and they are all the same. It’s all about the people that wants success the most. The reason Cork and Kerry keep winning is they want to win and they think they are going to win.

“We will get that mentality into these Clare fellas and if we can do that, we will have a good team here in Clare. When I went to Leinster, they said that I wouldn’t break the dominance of Meath and Dublin but we managed to do that with Kildare and Laois. It can be done anywhere if the players give the commitment.”

The Waterville man’s passion for the game is evident. “I have had the passion from the day I left the cradle in Waterville. My one ambition was to play football for Kerry, not worrying about going to college or doing anything in that line.

“The most important thing of all was to get on a Kerry panel of some sort. Being the only Waterville man that managed to do that is something special and that passion is still there,” he said.

Responding to suggestions from some quarters that he is mad to take on the job of managing Clare, who are in Division 4 of the league, he said, “They said I was mad to take on Kildare, Laois and Wicklow as well. We had wonderful days in the three of those counties. I won’t mention Kerry because it goes on and goes on in Kerry. Those three counties were at rock bottom when I went there and we improved the game there and that’s all that matters.”

What is his target for Clare football? “We might be a little bit late starting now but we will be making a big effort to try and get out of Division 4,” he said.

He went on, “The biggest ambition in my head is to do well in the championship. I would love to have three, four or five games in the championship. There is where you really get the interest going in football in any county you are in. That happened in Wicklow. We had four games in-a-row and we won four-on-the-trot and that brought us into the last 12 and something like that is what I will be trying to do here in Clare. That will give the game a lift.”

Referring to the Munster club game, he said, “Look at the excitement created and look at the performance from Kilmurry. They were outstanding. It was a wonderful game of football and they were a little unlucky that they did not draw the game. That’s the type of fire and spirit we need and if we can get that going in the county team, we will have a good chance of competing with the best.

“They got some great scores and with a little bit of luck they could have been in front at half-time. Crokes are a great side; they were well able to hold the ball at the finish when it was required and that’s the reason why Crokes won.

“We are going to put a lot of work into this Clare team and we are going to make a right effort to get out of Division 4,” said the most successful football manager of all time.

To be part of the Clare panel under Micko will require total commitment for the next six months, he said.

“One thing I will guarantee to any player who has ability is that if he is willing to give a commitment, he will get a fair crack of the whip and no more than that we can do. If they don’t turn up, they won’t be part of my panel. It must be total commitment for the next six months. If we get that, we will be able to compete with the best.”

Clare’s first competitive action under the new manager will be in the McGrath Cup. “We will have a look at players, more than anything, in the McGrath Cup. It’s not about winning the McGrath Cup or anything. It’s a competition that we will be hoping to use to have a look at players,” he said as he headed for a meeting with his backroom team of Ger Keane, Michael Neylon and Micheál Cahill in the presence of county board chairman, Michael O’Neill and treasurer, Bernard Keane.

The new management team will meet with players this weekend, when a number of trial games are due to be held.

“The target is get them fit first and play football then,” according to O’Dwyer, who is clearly looking forward to his latest challenge.

If the players can respond to the enthusiasm the new manager is showing, there should be some bright days ahead for Clare football in 2013.