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Content Zone
Sun 09-Jul-2006 14:05
More from this writer..
sid wallace
"Chance Favours the Prepared Mind"
This little nugget of wisdom was coined by the eminent French physicist Louis Pasteur and is quoted approvingly by Simon Singh (another eminent physicist) in his work, "Big Bang" which charts the development of cosmological theory up to the present day.
For anyone with even half an eye on the "greater scheme of things", "Big Bang" is a wonderful and compelling read. The particular quote arises from Singh's observation that many scientific discoveries stem from chance findings - penicillin,for example, or radiotelescopy. Viagra was originally a medicinal treatment for heart complaints but scientists at Pfizer were curious as to why clinical trialists were reluctant to hand back samples of the drug. Pasteur's point was that chance is not enough, the mind has to be alert to the chance happening and prepared to act upon it.
This thought was in the writer's mind as he was reading (for the first time) Ger Loughnane's biography "Raising the Banner" and considering one of the most illuminating on line discussions witnessed in some time on ch.com on Loughnane's legacy.
The book first. There is undoubtedly a great book in Ger Loughnane's life story, but unfortunately John Scally's ghosted effort isn't it. Indeed, the term "biography" is misleading. It is a rare biography indeed that gives no coverage at all to the subject’s parentage, education, family, career, influences and mentors. The book is badly laid out, and in the main made up of unanalysed direct quotes by Loughnane. It is not helped by the fact that Loughnane offers little in the way of analysis of his own methods and is often contradictory. That said, the opening line in the book is top class - "To many hurling seems insignificant in the greater scheme of things, but to those in the game hurling
is
the greater scheme of things". Unfortunately, that sentence is unmatched in the remainder of the work.
The book is, in effect, a retrospective justification of Loughnane's part in those madcap months of summer and autumn 1998, with a few old scores settled along the way. The Cregan outburst in 1997 is half explained by the fact that he trained Clare in the early 80's and Loughnane found him next to useless. No effort is made in that context to explain how Cregan became such a successful coach with Offaly. It is obvious, too, that Loughnane long harboured a grudge against Gerald McCarthy. Rather unnecessarily (unless it is to provide colour for the events of 1998) Loughnane recounts how McCarthy hit him a sly smack in the groin in the 1977 Munster Final and then ran down the far end of the field. (This from a man who writing about 1998 felt that “incidents” “should be left on the pitch”). Justin McCarthy was "out of touch with the players". And so on.
Page after page is dedicated to
l'affaire
Lynch. It is not easy reading for Waterford eyes. Even at this remove in time. The writer had his own eyewitness perspective on this event but is impossibly partisan and so won't share it. But there is no doubt that it is at the very least arguable that Lynch was the victim of an injustice. Not the greatest injustice the world has witnessed, mind you, not necessarily one that would justify thirty to forty pages of a biography, but an injustice nevertheless. That said, Loughnane goes on to compromise Lynch's position by admitting that he would have defended him to the ends of the earth whether he was right or wrong. Also the selective copying of parts of the referees report to bolster his case (the extracts dealing with Lohan and White’s sending off are not included) leaves one wondering what else has been left unsaid. Loughnane repeats the glib remark he has so often used in interviews that Tony Browne got up a week later and played the game of his life as some kind of suggestion that he may not have been hit at all. One wonders whether he would still be tempted to use this line
après l'affaire
Shefflin. (Fairly damningly in this context, Loughnane uncritically recounts how Liam Doyle shoved a hurley through John Leahy's helmet in 1999)
And the three priests story doesn’t get any better with time.
No thought is given to the contrary analysis that Clare wound themselves into a frenzy over opponents who at the time weren't worthy of it. Whatever about Waterford's front and attitude in 1998, they were a mediocre bunch as was proved by the way the rest of the year played out. Even playing at half pace Clare were much too good for Waterford in the drawn game and only a series of freak events (best encapsulated by Anthony Kirwan scoring 2-1) allowed Waterford to steal a draw. The writer had little doubt that Clare would have finished the job off with a full complement of players available for the next series of games without the need to drill into players that they had defecated on their own jersey.
No thought either is given to the state of the game nationally either in the mid 90's. Scally makes the inevitable claim that Loughnane took on the establishment and won. But the establishment were conspicuously absent in the mid 90's. The five year period without a ‘Big Three’ winner was the longest in the game’s history. Crucially, Clare did not have to face big three opposition in their first final. It is curious (and curious that it is so unremarked upon) that all of the great break throughs of the recent past - going back to Galway in 1980 - have occurred in finals where the breakthrough team has faced a non ‘Big Three’ team. Galway v Limerick in 1980, Offaly v Galway in 1981, Clare v Offaly in 1995 and Wexford v Limerick in 1996. (Those with an impish sense of humour might include Tipperary v Antrim in 1989). As an aside, the sequence highlights just how big a chance Limerick let slip in 1994.
The point of this sequence is that it seems to be easier to win your first All Ireland against second stream counties. No matter how mediocre the ‘Big Three’ team they will always present a huge psychological obstacle in the first final. Once the team wins an All Ireland at all, then it would appear to be on a level playing field as Clare, Galway and Offaly proved. Indeed, with the benefit of hindsight Clare were freakishly lucky in 1995. They beat one of the weakest Cork sides ever (one that was reduced to importing hurlers from Carlow) by the width of a post. Then they had a fortuitous sequence of Limerick, Galway and Offaly.
Which is where we come back to the online discussion on Loughnanes merits and the question as to whether Clare would have won in 1995 without him at the helm. The writer has long been of the view that Loughnane was an essential catalyst for Clare's success, but would have to admit in hindsight that he was guilty of a failure to take certain things into account. Most crucially, the fact that Loughnane had at his disposal an unusually talented bunch of players, the core of which played in a minor All Ireland final in 1989 (where they were beaten by Offaly) and which by any yardstick should have beaten Waterford at under 21 level in 1992. Instead of which Waterford stole an All Ireland that might rightfully have been Clare’s. Looking back it seems impossible to believe that (given the state of Munster hurling in the mid 90s) a team containing the likes of Lohan, Fitzgerald, McMahon, Doyle, Baker, Daly, Lynch and O’Connor wouldn’t have been good enough to at least win a Munster championship. For a team like that not to have achieved that minimum result does seem unthinkable now and would have required a mental brittleness that would make Greg Norman seem like a model of fortitude.
Turning that argument back on itself, it is fair to point out that of that list of players Baker and Lynch were “made” by Loughnane. That each in their own time became the top midfielder in the country is a testament to the Feakle man. Baker, in particular, was never the same player after Loughnane departed the scene. Of the others, only Daly and O’Connor were
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