Leinster Senior Hurling Championship

Antrim v Dublin

Date: Saturday 11 May

Time: 4pm

Brendan McTaggart speaks with Darren Gleeson ahead of the Saffrons Leinster Championship show down with Dublin in Parnell Park.

After the euphoria of Corrigan and a first championship win against Wexford, Antrim and Darren Gleeson have their sights firmly set on Dublin.  With the taste for a championship scalp still fresh in the Saffrons, they are hoping for more of the same against a side who need no introduction.

But, if we’re being honest, ‘more of the same’ probably won’t cut it on Saturday afternoon.  It’s going to take that Wexford performance and more if the Saffrons are to record a first win over the Dubs in 14 years and you have to go back a further 11 years (1999) since we last recorded a win in Parnell Park.

Daunting if not scary statistics but runs like these have to come to an end at some stage and the manner of the win against the Slaneysiders, a win on Saturday would further underline the progress being made with the hurl within the county.

When we spoke with Gleeson to get a preview ahead of the Dublin game, he was keen to park the Wexford match and performance.  He did say, though: “It was great for us as a group.  It was a tough week after the performance against Kilkenny but we knew that if we got those lads who returned more game time then you’d see a different Antrim team.

In that game against Wexford in Corrigan, we looked sharper and stronger.

“But look, that game is done now and we have another challenge ahead.  Dublin are a side we know well but with all the results, this Championship has been blown wide open now.  Wexford bounced back with a super win against Galway.”

That game against Wexford was made more remarkable with the likes of James McNaughton and Keelan Molloy returning and putting in a serious shift.  The man that had caught the eyes of the country after that game however was Gerard Walsh with an outstanding performance and a clinker of a sideline cut with the game in the melting pot.  For the Rossa man to last the entirety of the game was a tip of the hat in the direction of the Saffron Strength & Conditioning set up.  Gleeson praised the efforts of the players in that regard and what Brendan Murphy and Thomas Rogan have brought to the backroom team: “I knew what Gerard was capable off along with the rest who came back.  It’s down to the preparation and rehab these lads go through.  By the time they’re done with rehab, they’re back to being match ready, the wonders of modern science in the strength and conditioning the go through.

“We have youth coming through with the likes of Joe McLaughlin, Cormac McKeown, Sean McKay, Rauiri McCormick, Rory McCloskey, Fred McCurry and Aodhan McGarry.  Those lads are all getting the experience of playing at a high level and training with elite players.  The u20s had a rough year but the talent coming through there has been a huge bonus and has definitely added to our squad this year.”

The Dubs are unbeaten with two late goals earning a share of the points against Wexford in the first match before they saw off Carlow in the Netwatch Cullen Park.  It’s another sizeable task and one that Gleeson knows will be massive: “It will take an almighty effort, that’s for sure.

“If you look at us against Dublin these last few years, we were never in the game going into the championship minutes apart from the championship in Corrigan last year and the league.  We need to be in the game after 55 or even 60 minutes, give ourselves the chance to push on and hopefully that added belief got from the Wexford game will help us get over the line.

“We know each other inside out.  Will either of us really do anything differently from what we’ve been doing?

“They’re in a great position.  A win against us would probably seal that third position in the group, they’ll be fired up for sure.

“We need to focus on our own individual roles and we’ll get the rewards as a team.”

With some players coming through the game but sustaining niggles, the 15 for Saturday’s championship encounter is far from set.  Despite his heroics in the second half against Wexford, Gleeson said ‘it was a miracle James McNaughton played in the second half nevermind put in the type of performance he did’.  Gleeson continued: “We have a few knocks and niggles.  We’re leaving a few calls until the last minute but it was pleasing to see Paul (Boyle) back out on the pitch, for sure.  He looks to have hit the ground running, much like the likes of Gerard (Walsh) against Wexford and Conal Bohill.  He’s come back from a significant hamstring injury but he’s in great shape.

“Mick (Bradley) is a concern at the moment.  He’s got a bit of a problem there with his achillies so we’re seeing how he recovers and giving him every opportunity to get right.” Dublin are a side who Antrim have come up against on so many occasions in recent memory that you can steadily see improvements and progress.  They are a side who, if we get it right, we can certainly match up well against – much like Wexford.  Maybe the difference was the Corrigan Park effect?  The Antrim manager said that with the stakes that are on the line and the nature of this years Leinster Championship, he would love to see a large vocal following for his side in Parnell and the other matches the Saffrons are involved in: “It would be amazing to see a big Saffron support in Parnell.  The minors are playing in the Leinster ‘B’ final against Carlow in O’Toole Park at 1pm and the Celtic Challenge lads are playing Limerick in Abbotstown at 12pm.  I’d encourage as many as possible to try and take in a couple of these games and give the minors support