How winning an All-Ireland may be all in the mind
Thursday, September 06, 2012
Kieran Shannon tells a story which explains why some counties need sports psychologists more than others.
It’s the night before the All-Ireland football final of 2004. Neither Aidan O’Mahony nor Paul Galvin can get to sleep. Restless and anxious, the pair take the lift down to the hotel lobby. They meet Ger O’Keeffe, team selector and winner of five All-Ireland medals. Ger sees the two players and understands immediately. "Sure Maurice couldn’t sleep before the final in ‘97," says O’Keeffe.
The best sports psychologist in the planet couldn’t have provided greater reassurance.
Both O’Mahony and Galvin went back to their beds safe in the knowledge that one of the finest displays ever witnessed in an All-Ireland final was produced on the back of a few hours kip.
There is a reason Shannon relates this anecdote; a highly respected sports journalist, and the sports psychologist with the current Mayo team, Shannon isn’t precious about the role he performs for this year’s All-Ireland finalists.
Indeed, Shannon would be the first man to admit that the best sports psychologists don’t necessarily have a string of letters behind their names.
He has no problem accepting that men like Mick O’Dwyer and Brian Cody are experts at getting inside players’ heads.
But not every county is like Kerry or Kilkenny. Not every county frequents the winners’ enclosure in the Hogan Stand.
And it’s that tradition of success which produces the priceless homespun psychology demonstrated by Ger O’Keeffe in the hotel lobby.
An All-Ireland U21 medallist with Kerry in 1973, and an All-Ireland club medallist with Austin Stacks in 1977, O’Keeffe didn’t need to read a textbook on how to cope with pre-match nerves. He’s been there.
But what about the counties who can’t rely on generations of stored wisdom? What about the Mayo players who were struggling to get to sleep on September 25, 2004? Who could have allayed their nerves? And what would this person have said? (Mayo were obliterated by Kerry in the 2004 final, losing 1-20 to 2-9).
Tradition is unquestionably the greatest barrier to success in the GAA. Everyone expects winners to keep winning. Overcoming ingrained cycles is incredibly difficult.
By producing the first Connacht v Ulster All-Ireland final since 1948, Mayo and Donegal have bucked a trend. Bear in mind both of these counties were dumped out of the 2010 qualifiers on the same day.
Surely, it can be no coincidence that both of this year’s All-Ireland finalists have placed a considerable emphasis on mental preparation?
In doing so, they have followed the example set by Dublin in 2011, Cork in 2010, and Tyrone in 2008. Both Dublin and Tyrone employed the services of Caroline Currid while Cork used Kevin Clancy, a qualified sports psychologist. Apart from his degree in sports science, Jim McGuinness also has a masters in sports psychology. Kieran Shannon gained the same qualification five years ago. In 2008, he worked with the Fermanagh side which reached the Ulster final.
At the end of that 2008 season, Shannon was delivering a presentation at a coaching conference in Croke Park. The topic was: ‘Preparing For The Big Day’. Seated in the room was one James Horan, manager of a Ballintubber side that he had just guided out of the intermediate ranks. Ballintubber had never won the Mayo senior championship. But Horan had plans for his native club. After listening to Shannon, the two-time All-Star asked the journalist to come on board his backroom team. The pair hooked up. A year later, Ballintubber were crowned county champions for the first time in the 99-year history of the club.
It’s easy to draw parallels with Horan and McGuinness, who helped guide Glenties to their first ever county title.
Both men know what is required to topple tradition.
And while they have embraced sports psychology, which encourages players to concentrate on the present, Horan and McGuinness are undoubtedly driven by the disappointments of the past.
If McGuinness is haunted by a series of Ulster final defeats, Horan is equally tormented by the experience of losing All-Ireland finals in 1996 and 1997. Unlike some of his team-mates, Horan flourished in the pressure cooker atmosphere of an All-Ireland final. He landed two points from play after coming off the bench in ‘97. Similarly, McGuinness scored a brilliant goal playing for the losing team in the 2002 Ulster final.
Evidently, these two men weren’t unduly affected by the stress and strain that come with major fixtures. However, bitter experience has taught them that not everyone can cope with the weight of the big occasion.
Tactics, athleticism and fortune will of course play a huge part in determining the outcome of this year’s final. But mental strength will have a huge bearing on the result.
How will Donegal respond to being hot favourites? How will they react if they have to come out of their defensive shell and chase a game? And how will Mayo cope with their troubled history? Is another chapter going to be added to ‘The House of Pain?’ How will Mayo react if their first attacking forays are swallowed up by Donegal’s hungry machine? Will they eventually disintegrate, like Cork? Or will they have the courage to stick to what they have rehearsed? There are going to be plenty of sleepless nights before September 23. Minds must be reassured and minds must be convinced.
Because the manager that wins the minds of his players will be in pole position to win the game.
a d v e r t i s e m e n t
