A FRESH AND different view on Munster hurling championship Sunday.
Ronan Curran started out as a Cork supporter in the stands, then carved a name on the pitch as a centre-back of serious substance across a brilliant playing career, and is now pulling the coaching reins on the sideline.
The greater frequency of Cork-Tipperary meetings hasn’t diluted the fixture in his eyes. The magnetism remains, it draws him towards Sunday’s opener in Thurles.
“I love Cork-Tipp games. It’s what I grew up on, going up to Thurles (with) my father, my grandfather watching, going to these games.
“My first one was 1987 in Killarney. Ever since it’s just something about Cork and Tipp incredible games. We love going to Thurles, same way we love playing Tipp down here. There’s just great tradition, energy to it.
“You could feel that, the old rivals coming together and it’s just a special game whenever it happens.”
Curran may have been at the core of the last Cork side to lift the Liam MacCarthy Cup but he opts against trading off his playing experiences when it comes to dealing with the current group.
“I don’t like talking about my own career to any other lads a small bit because these fellas are so young they don’t even remember me now at this stage!”
Ronan Curran in action for Cork against Noel McGrath, who plays in the Tipperary ranks on Sunday. Cathal Noonan
Cathal Noonan
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Defence
One aspect he studies closely is the patch of the pitch he occupied. The shift in the role of the centre-back has been stark, a point reinforced to him in the recent league final.
“It’s incredibly different, I can’t see myself out there doing that, to be honest. The amount of running and ground fellas have to cover now in the half-back line is a totally different ballgame to when we were there.
“The movement of the forwards, the game plans, the space created, it’s a lot tougher. It’s up to us to try and cut that space down a bit as much as we can, but it’s very hard against Limerick.
“You push up on them, there’s loads of space behind you, you drop back, they play it through the lines. They’ve created that problem for teams for ten years now, and that’s not going to change. And Tipp are very similar like that, very wristy hurlers, very good ball to hand, so it’s just a new game for a half-back line now.”
There are other shifts he notices from the past to the present. The scrutiny on players is greater, the involvement on a squad more exacting.
The Cork hurlers before the recent league final against Limerick. Tom O’Hanlon / INPHO
Tom O’Hanlon / INPHO / INPHO
“Sure, you can’t say or do anything, and to be fair to the players, they’re incredible the way they look after themselves and the way they address themselves. All the other inter-county teams are the same. It’s mad now.”
He is conscious of the twin elements of noise and pressure that accompany the Cork hurlers.
“When you’re down here and you’re working, you’re in a bubble. Obviously there’ll be bits and pieces that are said and stuff that’d come back to you. I suppose the media is funny. There’s so many podcasts around and a lot of fellas are playing their own agendas for their counties. That gets a bit annoying at times. We kind of think maybe sometimes we could get a bit more help out there from our own lads. But our whole focus is to do better out here, get better ourselves.”
Curran retired in 2011 from Cork duties, kept hurling for St Finbarr’s for years after, before falling into coaching. There was no grand masterplan to arrive at this destination. He has done work on the club circuit – at home with St Finbarr’s, with other Cork sides Kanturk and Ballincollig, and the county U20 side.
“I wouldn’t say it was an ambition of mine or anything like that. I enjoy doing it, I enjoy doing the coaching. I just wanted to do a bit, give a bit back and stuff like that, and it’s just led to here, obviously. Myself and Ben being fairly close, and had similar ideas on hurling and stuff like that, so it just fell into place.”
Cork selector Ronan Curran and manager Ben O’Connor before January's pre-season game against Limerick. James Crombie / INPHO
James Crombie / INPHO / INPHO
Manager
The relationship with O’Connor didn’t culminate when they departed the Cork dressing-room. The rapport was in evidence when Curran was one of the contributors for the TG4 Laochra Gael episode focusing on the O’Connor twins from Newtownshandrum.
“We were always close enough, but to be fair, most lads end up, when you get a bit of success, you grow closer and stuff like that. I always enjoy talking hurling and thinking hurling with him, so, it just led to this.
“It’s a good bond alright, we tear the heads off each other at times as well. Everyone else on the management and backroom as well, want the same thing. We’re all here just to try and facilitate and get Cork to where we want them to get to.”
And who comes out on top of those impassioned hurling debates?
“There’s only one winner these days,” laughs Curran.
The need for calm heads to prevail is all the more important now given the new dissent rule in hurling.
“I looked at myself a small bit because I’d be fairly animated on the line as you lads probably know!” says Curran.
“You just have to be wary of it, and if you’re preaching it to the players, you have to do it yourself and make sure you aren’t caught for that. It’s just watching yourself. We all feel the few decisions might have went against us, it’s about biting the tongue and just driving the players on more than anything else.”
His playing days never coincided with those of the Tipperary brains trust – Liam Cahill and Michael Bevans. Sunday will see him witness them up close, supervising the All-Ireland title holders.
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Michael Bevans and Liam Cahill. James Crombie / INPHO
James Crombie / INPHO / INPHO
“Tactically they’re very good. First of all, Liam Cahill has done an unbelievable job with them. Tipp always have very skilful players. I always find with Tipperary, you give them the ball in hand, they’ll hit their player, nine times out of ten. They’re very wristy hurlers. Their movement is very good. They’re very good at finding space.
“Jake Morris had an unbelievable year last year and a few new guns there in (Darragh) McCarthy and John McGrath as well, goal getter, so they’ve loads of danger up front, very organised in the back and really play the ball through the lines very well.
“We have to be ready for all these things. That’s the beauty of Tipp really, they’ve played in all different ways. They’ve played 15 on 15. They played the sweeper. They play with, one of their midfielders dropping back and their centre-back dropping. We have to look at all these options.”
In his playing days there was more time to digest the fallout out from league disappointment.
The compression now between league ending and championship starting is no bad thing though. The coach in Curran is enthusiastic about being back out in action so soon after the loss to Limerick.
“We had the two weeks, I think it’s good preparation for championship. Playing the likes of Limerick, we all know they’re the best team in the last decade, nearly the best team ever, so it was a great test to get for us, and that’s good preparation going forward.”
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Ronan Curran: 'I love Cork-Tipp games, there's just great tradition, energy to it'
A FRESH AND different view on Munster hurling championship Sunday.
Ronan Curran started out as a Cork supporter in the stands, then carved a name on the pitch as a centre-back of serious substance across a brilliant playing career, and is now pulling the coaching reins on the sideline.
The greater frequency of Cork-Tipperary meetings hasn’t diluted the fixture in his eyes. The magnetism remains, it draws him towards Sunday’s opener in Thurles.
“I love Cork-Tipp games. It’s what I grew up on, going up to Thurles (with) my father, my grandfather watching, going to these games.
“My first one was 1987 in Killarney. Ever since it’s just something about Cork and Tipp incredible games. We love going to Thurles, same way we love playing Tipp down here. There’s just great tradition, energy to it.
“You could feel that, the old rivals coming together and it’s just a special game whenever it happens.”
Curran may have been at the core of the last Cork side to lift the Liam MacCarthy Cup but he opts against trading off his playing experiences when it comes to dealing with the current group.
“I don’t like talking about my own career to any other lads a small bit because these fellas are so young they don’t even remember me now at this stage!”
Defence
One aspect he studies closely is the patch of the pitch he occupied. The shift in the role of the centre-back has been stark, a point reinforced to him in the recent league final.
“It’s incredibly different, I can’t see myself out there doing that, to be honest. The amount of running and ground fellas have to cover now in the half-back line is a totally different ballgame to when we were there.
“The movement of the forwards, the game plans, the space created, it’s a lot tougher. It’s up to us to try and cut that space down a bit as much as we can, but it’s very hard against Limerick.
“You push up on them, there’s loads of space behind you, you drop back, they play it through the lines. They’ve created that problem for teams for ten years now, and that’s not going to change. And Tipp are very similar like that, very wristy hurlers, very good ball to hand, so it’s just a new game for a half-back line now.”
There are other shifts he notices from the past to the present. The scrutiny on players is greater, the involvement on a squad more exacting.
“Sure, you can’t say or do anything, and to be fair to the players, they’re incredible the way they look after themselves and the way they address themselves. All the other inter-county teams are the same. It’s mad now.”
He is conscious of the twin elements of noise and pressure that accompany the Cork hurlers.
“When you’re down here and you’re working, you’re in a bubble. Obviously there’ll be bits and pieces that are said and stuff that’d come back to you. I suppose the media is funny. There’s so many podcasts around and a lot of fellas are playing their own agendas for their counties. That gets a bit annoying at times. We kind of think maybe sometimes we could get a bit more help out there from our own lads. But our whole focus is to do better out here, get better ourselves.”
Curran retired in 2011 from Cork duties, kept hurling for St Finbarr’s for years after, before falling into coaching. There was no grand masterplan to arrive at this destination. He has done work on the club circuit – at home with St Finbarr’s, with other Cork sides Kanturk and Ballincollig, and the county U20 side.
“I wouldn’t say it was an ambition of mine or anything like that. I enjoy doing it, I enjoy doing the coaching. I just wanted to do a bit, give a bit back and stuff like that, and it’s just led to here, obviously. Myself and Ben being fairly close, and had similar ideas on hurling and stuff like that, so it just fell into place.”
Manager
The relationship with O’Connor didn’t culminate when they departed the Cork dressing-room. The rapport was in evidence when Curran was one of the contributors for the TG4 Laochra Gael episode focusing on the O’Connor twins from Newtownshandrum.
“We were always close enough, but to be fair, most lads end up, when you get a bit of success, you grow closer and stuff like that. I always enjoy talking hurling and thinking hurling with him, so, it just led to this.
“It’s a good bond alright, we tear the heads off each other at times as well. Everyone else on the management and backroom as well, want the same thing. We’re all here just to try and facilitate and get Cork to where we want them to get to.”
And who comes out on top of those impassioned hurling debates?
“There’s only one winner these days,” laughs Curran.
The need for calm heads to prevail is all the more important now given the new dissent rule in hurling.
“I looked at myself a small bit because I’d be fairly animated on the line as you lads probably know!” says Curran.
“You just have to be wary of it, and if you’re preaching it to the players, you have to do it yourself and make sure you aren’t caught for that. It’s just watching yourself. We all feel the few decisions might have went against us, it’s about biting the tongue and just driving the players on more than anything else.”
His playing days never coincided with those of the Tipperary brains trust – Liam Cahill and Michael Bevans. Sunday will see him witness them up close, supervising the All-Ireland title holders.
“Tactically they’re very good. First of all, Liam Cahill has done an unbelievable job with them. Tipp always have very skilful players. I always find with Tipperary, you give them the ball in hand, they’ll hit their player, nine times out of ten. They’re very wristy hurlers. Their movement is very good. They’re very good at finding space.
“Jake Morris had an unbelievable year last year and a few new guns there in (Darragh) McCarthy and John McGrath as well, goal getter, so they’ve loads of danger up front, very organised in the back and really play the ball through the lines very well.
“We have to be ready for all these things. That’s the beauty of Tipp really, they’ve played in all different ways. They’ve played 15 on 15. They played the sweeper. They play with, one of their midfielders dropping back and their centre-back dropping. We have to look at all these options.”
In his playing days there was more time to digest the fallout out from league disappointment.
The compression now between league ending and championship starting is no bad thing though. The coach in Curran is enthusiastic about being back out in action so soon after the loss to Limerick.
“We had the two weeks, I think it’s good preparation for championship. Playing the likes of Limerick, we all know they’re the best team in the last decade, nearly the best team ever, so it was a great test to get for us, and that’s good preparation going forward.”
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Coaching Corner Cork GAA Hurling Ronan Curran