LAST UPDATE | 2 Nov 2022
AS DESSIE HUTCHINSON was firing Ballygunner through Munster late last year it was noticeable that his left wrist strapping was adorned with black, bold writing.
He notched 0-5, 1-5, 0-4 and 1-3 in the final four games from the provincial semi-final to the All-Ireland decider. Simply following his own instructions.
As is becoming increasingly popular in the GAA, the club hurler of the year used the tape as a mental cue. The message was ‘score, score, score.’
“Just something for myself to reset in games,” Hutchinson says.
“I am a bit of an overthinker at times. Sometimes I think I need to bring people into a game when I don’t actually have to. The posts could be in front of me and I feel like I have to pass it.
“Little things like that. To reset me. It was something I started last year and it worked for me. I just kept going with it.”
The 2021 All-Star nominee has led the line for club and county for successive campaigns. That is a welcomed pressure, an expectation that proves he is performing. Sports psychology is something he has invested in, both individually and collectively.
“I think I am an established player in the Ballgunner and Waterford setup. People are probably looking to me to deliver on big days. I really enjoy that pressure and I think I bring the best out of myself in those scenarios.
“Especially over the last couple of years, I have gone deeper into it (sports psychology). It really helps us, especially in Ballygunner. We have done a lot of work on it over the past few years and it is really standing to us.
“Look, it is a huge part of the game now and the high stake involved.”
Internal motivation is the rock upon which that church is built. And yet, Ballygunner have demonstrated the capability to weaponize external factors when necessary. Despite the rise of sports psychology in Gaelic games, the dressing room wall material still has its place.
How does Hutchinson square one with the other? Easily.
After the 2021 Munster final, joint-captain Philip Mahony said the team were motivated by critics who said they weren’t a winter team. After the 2022 county final, Hutchinson referenced people who doubted if they could come back after that stunning triumph.
Real or perceived, these nuggets were added to their inner fire.
“Every little snippet we can take we try to bring into our group and into our team. That is no different again.
“Where I was coming from after the county final, maybe people thought we are after winning one now that was enough for us. That is not the case.
“The group there want to succeed as much as we can. That is the most important. We all realise that this won’t last forever and you need to make the most of it while it is there.
“We feed into the external that tiny bit but the rest is all internal about our group and what’s going on in our own club.”
They face Tipperary champions Kilruane MacDonaghs this weekend. A win could set in motion another run deep into the winter. That is a road Hutchinson knows well. It is over three years since he had a proper pre-season, he believes.
The wheel keeps turning. The 2021 club All-Ireland feed into their Waterford campaign. When he went back to the club, the county’s system meant the hurling championship occurred first with Gaelic football after. He plays both.
This is merely the price of success and he has no complaints about it. New Déise boss Davy Fitzgerald has been in touch but for now, it is all about the red and black hoops.
However, on the topic of what caused the league champions to fall flat in the championship, Hutchinson suggests the lack of a break was costly.
“It is hard to think about it. We haven’t actually got too much time to think about it as it was straight back in with the club.
“No doubt about it, a very frustrating year and a disappointing one. In terms of what actually happened, I don’t know.
“You are on such a high after the league, maybe we didn’t celebrate the league as we should have and reset it then towards the championship.
“After we won the league our minds were fully on the championship then. We took no in-between. I know it was a short turnaround but sometimes you have to do that.
“Look, things go against you. Injuries and little things going on. We just had a really disappointing Munster championship.”
The calendar meant there was no time to celebrate their achievement.
“I think it is important to come down off things. Give your mind a little break from the training. To be fair to us, throughout the league we were training very hard. We were fully focused on winning the league.
“After we won it, maybe you didn’t feel like you won it because there was no change of mindset of what was happening the following day, no break. Straight on to the game against Tipperary.
“That is important too and it is hard to balance it. The league is so close to the championship but there are probably a few things you need to think about there.”
Lessons for the future. Right here, right now, it is all systems go with full focus on Sunday’s clash at Walsh Park.
“Thankfully I am in a group in Ballygunner that is really easy to come into. Once you are there you are delighted to be back in it. It is easy in that sense. Please god, whenever the club season ends we might get a few weeks then to reset.”
Dessie Hutchinson was speaking at the launch of this year’s AIB Camogie All-Ireland Club Championships and the AIB GAA All-Ireland Club Championships.
