Managers View – Damian Cassidy, Cargin
By Brendan McTaggart
Now in his second year at the helm in Cargin, Damian Cassidy has guided the Erin’s Own men to a second successive final. From his own point of view, Sunday represents an eighth county final as a manager across Derry, Tyrone and Antrim. The Bellaghy native certainly has an impressive CV within the game but he is far from finished as he told us: “You don’t get sick of being in a championship final. Everyone feels like it’s your first one and that’s important from my point of view. The hunger, the enjoyment and love of it all is still there. If it got to a point where you didn’t get that then it’s time to have a rest. That would be the massive indicator.”
Having won the league crown, Cassidy gave us his analysis of the campaign: “It was a satisfactory campaign and very different to last years. Last year we were riddled with injuries and some of the games we won, particularly in June and first week in July were important because of that.
“I’m in the job now for a second season and have a better idea of the players I have and conscious of bringing in more young players to ensure there’s competition and a turnover within the squad going forward.
“Not having the same number of injuries meant we were able to get more victories without being stretched in the middle of it all. It was a good campaign and the way Antrim separated and I think that’s a very good system, with the top six playing each other, you’ve got fairly competitive games in the run up to your championship.
“You have those three or four matches after the holidays where everything starts to become more serious. Training’s being upped, the analysis of what your doing is upped and the players are being scrutinised more. The expected commitment towards training is increased so it’s a general upswing in momentum and those games at that stage were invaluable.
“In our case, it came down to the last match in the league when we played Creggan in the final game which we were fairly comfortable. Before that game we couldn’t see ourselves getting beat by 10 points, but it had an impact on our approach to the game. As an amateur team you’re not used to that sort of scenario. It was a funny mindset and we found ourselves eight points down at one point. We came out in the second half and we went from seven behind to two points ahead. It shows how quickly things can change when your attitude is right.
“There were a few things that happened in that game that were important to us in terms of how we think we should play going into the championship.
“It was a good campaign in terms of, we won the league and while that’s not the be all and end all of everything, it still creates that winning momentum. Championship last year, this years league and now we’re in the championship final. Winning breeds good habits.”
Sunday will be Cargin’s seventh county final in 10 years and with many of the squad all involved in that time, Cassidy is aware of their experience: “They have the experience but it’s about challenging them and it’s about the last eight or nine weeks and how we want to play and what works best. Having a clear understanding about what that is and making sure we’re going out to execute that.”
The evolution of Cargin and the influx of new breed coming through is clearly important to Cassidy. He has placed trust on a number of younger shoulders this campaign as well as last. Creating healthy competition within the Erin’s Own squad: “You look at the team that played against St Galls, you had Jamie Gribben, Ciaran Bradley, David Johnston and Pat Shivers. The oldest one in that group is 21 or 22 right down to 18 and they all started up front. You go back three years ago and none of those lads were starting. That’s creating competition. We’ve got another couple of lads who have come through, Chris Bateson and Mark Keegan who are first year out of minors and they’ve been developing along nicely and are defenders. Those fella’s will be pushing in the next season or two along with the minors that come through as well. The conditions are there for a very competitive environment in the coming years.”
His side have had a relatively straight forward championship campaign where they saw off Rossa before renewing rivalries with St Galls. It wasn’t the same epic hour of football from 12 months ago at the same stage. “The scene was set for the game against St Gall’s.” continued Cassidy: “They’ll always command a performance from Cargin and I thought we controlled that game from the beginning to the very end. We at no stage looked like we were going to lose it and that’s testament to the application and execution of the game plan we set out to play.
“Our path is very different to Lámh Dhearg’s path but that’s neither here nor there. I think we’re well placed to put in a performance on Sunday.”
On his team’s performance so far, Cassidy told us he looks for outside critique when he added: “Cargin’s evolved from last year. I keep saying the best feedback you’ll ever get is from the opposition. The feedback Lámh Dhearg give us on Sunday will be a testament to my analysis of where I think Cargin are at in that, they’ve evolved as a team.
“Last year was a very difficult year for us as a coaching team. There were a number of things we wanted to work and develop and in fairness to the players they had identified those early on in the year. Those have progressed into this year and we’re looking at other areas to compliment that as well. I personally think we’re a stronger team compared to last year but Lámh Dhearg will give us a feedback on that thought and it could be placed where the sun doesn’t shine.”
Despite the relative serenity of Cargin’s path to Sunday’s final in comparison to Lámh Dhearg’s, the Cargin manager was adamant that he would swap places with the Hannahstown men in a heartbeat: “They’ve had a fantastic run to the final. Beating Creggan was a fantastic result for them. I was at the game and it was a super performance from Lámh Dhearg and I have to be honest, I wasn’t shocked at that victory. We watched them earlier on in the year and it just felt like there was something about the way they were playing. It was improved from the year before. I didn’t expect them to win by as much and then they came up against Portglenone that turned into a saga.
“If you ask me, their preparation for this game has been fantastic. Some people will say ‘Off course you’ll say that’ but I’ll try and educate them. I was involved with Clonoe in 2008. Tyrone won the All-Ireland therefore their championship was run week in and week out. We played on five successive weekends including a league game and extra time. The team improved in every game, the decision making improved and the system improved. The team morale improved and it got to the point that Clonoe were a serious outfit off the back of that.
“You can’t create those scenarios on the training pitch where you have to make good decisions under the pressure of championship football.
“In 2015 with Clonoe again, against Omagh who were county champions, we beat them in a replay. We beat Carrickmore, we beat Coalisland after a replay and five weeks on the trot Clonoe were in the final. Again, the players were accustomed to the championship cauldron and the decision making that needed to be made within that and coping with pressures.
“I have an acute insight into how that can benefit a team and Lámh Dhearg are well placed in terms of preparation coming into this game. You couldn’t have a better situation.
“If I had the choice, I’d take their route to the final. Without any shadow of a doubt. Don’t underestimate the games and conditions they’ve had. It will have had a massive impact on their team.
“The game has changed from 20 and 25 years ago. The strength and conditioning are such that the fatigue isn’t the same. There’s no doubt power and strength would’ve been affected back in the day but not now. You’re going to recovery sessions, ice baths and recovery protocols.
“I don’t buy that (tiredness). I’ve been around too many corners and personally seen it first-hand.”
Sunday presents the Toome men with a first for the club. Their minor and senior players will be playing on county final day for the first time in their history. Despite not being a native, Cassidy told us he definitely gets a feel for how special the occasion is for Cargin club and community: “There’s no question about that. The uniqueness of this weekend has created a special feeling about the club. It’s the first time that Cargin have played in the minor and senior finals on the same year.”