*Broadford will be counting on Paddy Donnellan to deliver. Photograph: Gerard O’Neill
Broadford manager Jimmy Browne sees the challenge facing him and his backroom team as two fold, to deepen their panel and to get a consistency of performance.
“Our focus for the past two years has been to build a depth in our panel and to bring about a situation where we can have twenty four players capable of being part of a senior panel. I believe we are getting there. The performance comes from the amount of work done. I am happy we can be competitive if we get the level of performance”, the manager told The Clare Echo.
While he sees some disadvantages with the league structure where teams have 9 games, he said it provided Broadford with the chance to use 31 players in that competition this year. “That is something that Broadford were never in a position to do. The cup campaign this year has forced us to give experience to those players and that can only be positive. We achieved reasonably well in the cup competition and that is part of the building process. A downside of nine cup games is that it’s hard to get a block of training done. We picked up a few injuries during that campaign”.
As part of a group of five in this year’s championship, they find themselves having a bye in round one. “It would be ideal to have a game before we face champions Ballyea but there was always going to be a bye and we happen to get it first. It will give up a chance to get a handle on the opposition as we will get to see them play. Going into that game cold, they will have an edge and then they have the best hurler in the country which gives them an edge,” the Clonlara native surmised.
Cian Cremins and Darren McNamara who suffered cruciate injuries last year are making good progress and while next week’s first outing has come too soon for them, they are expected to see action during this campaign which is good news for the club.
Fresh from his role in this season’s Harty Cup and All-Ireland colleges campaign with Ard Scoil Ris, Niall O’Farrell has joined the club’s senior panel.
The manager would favour a format where all groups would be equal in size (4×4) but he acknowledges that it will take “a year or two of transition to bring this about”.
He is delighted that the championship is getting under way. “Look it’s great to be talking about the club championship in July when pitches will be good”, he concluded.
Management; Jimmy Browne (Manager); Kieran Corcoran, Darragh O’Sullivan, Kevin Ryan, Aonghus O’Brien (selectors) Dara Kennedy(S &C and physio), Emmett Browne (S&C); Padraic Boland (Stats/video analysis)
Captain: Diarmuid Moloney
Key Player: Paddy Donnellan
One to Watch: Niall O’Farrell
Fresh Blood: Niall O’Farrell
Departure Gate: None
Titles won; None
Last season’s run: Finished 3rd in group before losing to Feakle in senior B championship.
Schedule:
Round 1 a bye
Round 2 v Ballyea
Round 3 v Cratloe
Round 4 v O’Callaghans Mills
Round 5 v Clarecastle
