Tag Archives: Brian Lohan

An iconic figure in Clare hurling,  Brian Lohan has emphasised that playing at third level should not be at the expense of aplayer’s education. When UL won the Fitzgibbon Cup this year, under Lohan’s managment, they featured Limerick goalkeeper David McCarthy and John O’Brien, while current Clare goalkeeper, Keith Hogan, who is now at UCC, has also played hurling for UL. Interestingly, a number of Clare and Limerick U-21s have yet to play Fitzgibbon Cup hurling for UL because freshers are not allowed to play at that level. When Tony Kelly was named hurler of the year in 2013, he had not yet played Fitzgibbon hurling for UL. “You’re marking top fellas from the various counties. Freshers is a very good standard. Moving on to Fitzgibbon, you’re not just marking some of the best young players but the best inter-county seniors. It’s a really good standard and a really good way to test yourself against what are the best players …

TWENTY-one winters after winning a Fitzgibbon Cup medal on the field with UL, Brian Lohan was delighted and relieved to lead his Alma Mater to the 2015 title after a replay win over Waterford IT last week in Cork. Amongst the Clare contingent who played key roles were Tony Kelly, David McInerney, Jack Browne, Cathal McInerney and Gearóid Ryan. The double All-Ireland winning full-back and four-time All-Star felt the Fitzgibbon Cup helped him to develop as a player more than two decades ago and is now aiding his management career. “I played in three Fitzgibbons before eventually winning a fourth one. It was a huge learning curve for me as a player. Even though I wasn’t saying it, I felt that having been involved in the management set-up for three years already, you’d want to be learning in the fourth year. Without saying too much about it, I felt that this year we had to do it,” the 2015 Fitzgibbon …

THE presence of Brian Lohan on the Cratloe training field, dressing room and sideline is one that adds solidity and steel to the Clare champions’ set-up. You get the feeling that when Lohan talks, his words are taken on board. That’s simply because of what he achieved on the hurling field and how he went about it. Many of the Cratloe players won’t remember 1995 or 1997 but what happened and Lohan’s role in that will be well known to them. More pertinently, Lohan, along with fellow coach, Alan Neville, has what everyone in Cratloe wants on Sunday, a Munster club medal.That’s a medal the Shannon man, who lives in Cratloe, says he values more now than he did in 1996, when Wolfe Tones ruled Munster. “As you live longer, it gets more important. It wasn’t that big a deal when you were playing but the longer you’re retired, the more important it becomes. It was the same when we …