'You can't let your own individual feelings manifest itself in being grumpy, being bitchy'
“IN A PANEL of over 30 players, you can’t keep everyone happy – 10 to 15 lads are not getting game time and that’s tough going.
“There comes a time in all careers when you have to make a decision whether the effort is worth the potential reward. Micheál has come to that stage.”
When Kerry manager Jack O’Connor said these words last year, he was referring to Dr Crokes forward Micheál Burns who had just left the panel. The decision came down to a lack of game time. It would not be the last Kerry would hear of Burns but more on that later.
Former Cork hurling manager John Meyler has encountered this species many times before. He’s seen them in the several club and inter-county teams that have come under his command. He knows the body language of a disappointed player. He knows what their inner dialogue sounds like.
“What more do I have to do to get in there? So-and-so didn’t score. So-and-so didn’t do this.”
It’s the common refrain of the player who feels disillusioned in the set-up. And in the days leading up to All-Ireland hurling semi-final weekend, it’s a thought that will pass through the minds of many players who won’t get what they have been training for. For some, it’s a lack of game. For others, it’s no minutes at all.
At this stage of the season, the 15 starting positions have already been filled, as have the cast of substitutes. Audition time is over. All that is left are the periphery roles, confined to the training field. That job is important in the overall system, but it’s a hard sell too.
In Meyler’s mind, the squad is divided into three playing groups: the starters, the impact substitutions and the players “who feel they’re not really involved”. Outside of those residing in group one, there’s a lot of unfed mouths in the camp. Balancing their feelings of unfulfillment with the needs of the collective is a constant struggle for the manager. And the reality is that the manager must always prioritise one over the other.
“Sometimes that can be hard on people and people get frustrated because ‘I’m not getting an opportunity, I’m not getting a chance to play,’ Meyler says.
“They’re on the tip of the iceberg. They’re just trying to get into the matchday 26 panel.
“It’s demoralising then. ‘I’m doing my best but it’s not good enough. ‘And sometimes then you need to sit down with the manager and say, ‘What do I need to do?’”
Meyler has always favoured taking the first step when handling dissatisfied players on the panel. He’s the one to instigate an upfront conversation about the areas of concern in their game. And whenever an opportunity to showcase their value was looming, he makes sure they are suitably warned about what’s at stake.
It’s in their hands to change their position in the player roster. And what they do next is up to them.
“You’ve got to show me what you have,” Meyler typically says in that scenario. “I’m going to put you on such and such a player.
“That’s really the only basis that they’re getting to the [matchday panel] 26, or the 20, or the 15. Fellas need to see the opportunity in training.
“I always made an effort to talk to the 11 players that were left out of the panel of 26. I can pick out negative points of you and I can pick out positive points. And at times then there’s not much point really arguing with the manager.”
The importance of the five matchday substitutions is well established. No team can go without dipping into the reinforcements for games that go over the 70-minute mark. When Meyler was in charge of Cork, his side’s 2018 All-Ireland semi-final against eventual champions Limerick went to extra-time.
The Rebels made eight switches from the bench that day, including Shane Kingston and Daniel Kearney who both came back on after being taken off. Robbie O’Flynn was also introduced that day and is still serving the impact sub role in 2025.
Kingston is also a regular among the Cork replacements these days, as is Conor Lehane who started in that 2018 All-Ireland semi-final. The transition to back-up option is difficult to accept when you know what it’s like to be a first-choice selection. Keeping those players engaged is a challenge for managers too.
“You’re going to them and saying, ‘Look, you’re not going to start on Sunday but more than likely you are going to come in and I want you ready,’” says Meyler.
“José Mourinho used to say, ‘I want two players for each position.’ And then that other player puts pressure on you to perform. The subs you bring on must make an impact. You’re bringing on like for like.
“You look at Shane Kingston, he came on against Clare up in Ennis, and he wasn’t great to be honest. Then he comes in the Munster final and gets three points.
“So he’s saying to Pat Ryan then, ‘I need to be playing against Dublin. I need to be in there from the start.’”
Both Kingston and Lehane emerged as headline acts from that epic Munster final. As the battle went to extra-time and penalties, the pair were introduced in the 65th minute and 72nd minute respectively and scored a combined five points from play. They both volunteered when it came to the shootout and both converted their shots to nudge Cork to a first provincial title since 2018 by a 3-2 margin.
A moment to savour for their patience when self-pity surely tempted them at times. This was particularly true for Lehane, who was cut from the Cork squad for the 2021 season.
“He’s only 32, he’s a brilliant hurler,” Meyler says about Lehane’s return from the wilderness. Players don’t typically return from inter-county exile. The trajectory tends to go one way: a rise followed by a fall. But there have been some outliers.
Michael Fitzsimons grafted his way back into the starting 15 for the Dublin footballers after losing his spot. Kieran Donaghy’s star was born with Kerry in the 2006 season but he too was ushered out of selection before his career was reignited in 2014. He battled through injury to earn that second coming which yielded All-Ireland glory that year.
Lehane is also part of that esteemed group, as is the aforementioned Micheál Burns. One year on from O’Connor’s words of doubt and finality, Burns is back in the Kerry rotation preparing for an All-Ireland football semi-final after scoring two points off the bench against Armagh last weekend.
“It’s up to the player and up to his personality, up to his attitude,” Meyler says about players who are faced with a similar challenge. “If he wants an All-Ireland medal, then he’s got to stay there.
“And he’s got to be part of the team. That’s the team ethos, the team culture. That’s where you have your psychologist in there trying to keep the culture of the 37 players going. And you’re creating that culture around the whole idea of managing subs.
“That’s up to individuals then to have the personality to get your confidence back up.”
To reinforce his point further, Meyler points to his son David who is a retired Republic of Ireland international. He spent over a decade playing in English football, and played in the Premier League. Professional sport is an even more unforgiving environment for players who are fighting for position.
“David always said that to me when he was in England, ‘Don’t ever, ever show the manager your weakness. Always be positive. Always put the team ahead of you.’
“You can’t let your own individual feelings manifest itself in being grumpy, being bitchy.”
The influential power of the squad will be evident again on All-Ireland hurling semi-final weekend as Cork and Dublin meet again. Last year’s encounter ended in a five-point win for the Rebels to send them through to the last four.
Opportunities can appear from anywhere this time around. Already, there is an opening in the Cork team on account of Séamus Harnedy’s hamstring injury with Declan Dalton getting the nod in the team that was named last night. And with John Hetherton producing huge performances off the bench for Dublin so far this championship, both Pat Ryan and Niall Ó Ceallacháin will be looking to the players in the gallery once more on Saturday.
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