Less Cool, More Modesty
After a breathtaking night in Cobh with the seniors on Saturday night, our performance on Sunday against the Cobh under 21’s left a lot to be desired. We didn’t use any of the permitted three over age players and it was a factor as the more experienced and physical Cobh side muscled their superiority in vital areas.
Still, we started well, dominating the first twenty minutes when we could have had three or four goals. But we failed to make the opportunities count. Cobh worked their way into the game and got the break they needed with a dubious penalty decision. A goal up and before we knew it, it was two. Stephen Daly blasted a ball across which would have gone out for a throw on the far side if it hadn’t hit Gareth McCurtin and gone into the net. Two nil down and a different game.
It was time to stand up and be counted. I’ve always measured the worth of a player when a team is in trouble and need some real character that can dig deep and make a different. The sort of people you’d like beside you if you had to shovel concrete for ten hours with the lorries queuing at the gates.
Sadly, all is not well with some of our young stars. At Inter league youth’s stage I find players who are generally good but lack the belief to play at a higher level and win. I build that belief, hand in hand with a strong work ethic and a vital sense of discipline. Unfortunately, if that belief begins to blend with complacency and arrogance instead of honesty and humility, then the problems start.
We need to take stock and start a new relationship with reality. There is no doubt that there is a huge potential among the young players at the Wexford Youths Football Club. Some of them may even get paid stupid money to play the game in the future. But potential is one thing. The likelihood of realising that potential without honesty is very very small. Honesty doesn’t mean playing it cool and looking the part. It means hard work and loads of it. It means having the right attitude at all times - in games, at training, in how you look after your body all week, doing the extra training when your friends are hanging out, always eating properly , avoiding alcohol and other drugs, having a respectable attitude to your parents, your peer group and all you meet. It’s not about walking the street when you are still just 18 or 19, looking as if you’ve achieved it all. It’s about more hard work and humility. It’s about giving your last drop of sweat and blood, about never say die, about wanting it, about wanting it more than anything else.
For the record, I was less impressed with the second half than with the first.
Speaking of football, there was a night of passion in Cobh on Saturday night. We didn’t play a lot of pretty football but there was a lot of honesty. I was proud to be associated with the players that represented the Wexford Youths Football Club on the night.
QuoteOriginally Posted by passinginterest
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