*Seán Withycombe. Photograph: Gerard O’Neill.
HUNGER for silverware has grown within the ranks of Tulla Utd.
East Clare’s leading force on the soccer field, Tulla Utd have acquitted themselves as one of the top four over the past two seasons, now they are determined to make a big breakthrough.
Clare Cup finalists in 2025, Tulla bowed out at the quarter-final stage to eventual winners Avenue Utd in extra time, letting the game slip from their grasp but they remained the last Clare team standing in the FAI Junior Cup, a feat which has accentuated belief within the squad.
Barry Murphy takes the helm as Tulla Utd manager for a second stint replacing Mike Moloney who in five seasons steered Tulla’s rise from the First Division to the top four in the Premier.
Speaking to The Clare Echo, Barry noted the change in mindset that Tulla now treat the FAI Junior Cup with. “It was mentioned when the competition started before I was involved that we never took the FAI seriously enough. Back then it was a day out for guys or a bus trip away from town, we got a taste of it and we got to the last sixteen, we were not too far off the mark versus Castlebar, we have got the taste of it and we don’t have to fear it anymore, we will be more focused on winning matches in it from now on”.
That last sixteen tie with Castlebar was Barry’s first back at the helm. “It was great, it was a high profile game and we had friendlies played, I had saw Castlebar in the previous round, we knew what we were facing and we had a chance to go ahead, we had a chance to take the lead but unfortunately we didn’t. We weren’t really prepared, we had dual players in the middle of the hurling season and some had nothing done before the game, they were part of the squad last season so we felt they deserved to be there. Personally it was an honour to lead them into the game”.
An appetite for success at junior level is growing within the club, he noted. “There’s a lot of guys in the squad who have won nothing playing soccer whereas the 2007 side that I had been involved with have tasted youths and league success, they want more of that and the lads that haven’t experienced that want to win something. We’re looking to push forward by winning the Clare Cup or to try be top of the table by the end of the season, we think they are realistic goals”.
He doesn’t plan to reinvent the wheel on the work completed by Moloney. “The aim is to continue the work that was done before me while bringing, a different voice, different ideas, and a different shape to the way we are playing, there’s been good work done so we won’t have to change too much but we’ll bring a different dynamic in how we play and to our shape”.
Though Tulla has opted to focus on in-house talent instead of recruitment, its standing within the county has soared over the past three seasons. “Our geography doesn’t do us any favours, we’re off the beaten track in East Clare. It is far for any potential players in West Clare or North Clare, the players we’re signing we’re looking at lads with six or seven years played, the players we’re signing are young to fit in with what we have, we like to think we’re building a successful squad”.
That age profile jumps out as the biggest difference to when last patrolled the sideline with the Tulla A team. “The squad there in my term was pulled together from different parts, people came into the club with different backgrounds, the players in the club now, ninety nine percent of them have come through knowing the way we play and the way we are structured”.
James Carrig, formerly manager of senior hurling sides in Newmarket-on-Fergus, Wolfe Tones and Crusheen continues in a head coach capacity, having joined the management midway through last season. “Cags comes with different ideas and a different voice”.
This weekend will determine whether Tulla remain in the Clare premier intermediate hurling championship. “The dual players are very busy,” Murphy explained. “They can’t overload their workload, this year they got more time and space than previous years, we worked pre-season with the bare A squad plus five or six lads from the B team which have been great. We’ve given the hurlers a break and we’re not putting pressure on them. You can’t win league in first game or two but you can lose it and I’ve said that to them so I’m looking forward to having them back soon. It is a balance, player welfare is everything and we’ll give them as much space as they need”.
Tulla Utd Factfile:
Management: Barry Murphy (manager), James Carrig (head coach), Owen Kilker (goalkeeper coach), Keith Hassett, (medical / S&C), Mike O’Connor (video), Jason McCarthy (S&C advisor)
Captain: Dara Ryan
Vice Captain: Simon Kilker
Key Player: Daragh Corry
One to watch: Darragh Baker
Fresh blood: James Wallace, Mikey Moran, Mattie Molloy.
Departures Gate: N/A
Treatment table: Daragh Corry (broken finger), Callum Casey (knee).
Last season’s run: Finished in fourth of the Premier Division, eliminated in extra time of the Clare Cup finals by Avenue Utd. Reached the last sixteen of the FAI Junior Cup.
