THE OBVIOUS PLACE to start with Corofin star Gary Sice is the last-gasp free-kick he nailed on Sunday afternoon to get the reigning All-Ireland club champions out of jail and send the Galway SFC final to a replay.
The tight encounter against Tuam Stars is discussed at length, their local rivalry, Corofin’s success in recent years, the replay on 3 November — but it’s also interesting to hear his thoughts on another development in Galway football: the appointment of two-time All-Ireland winner Padraic Joyce as the Tribesmen’s senior boss ahead of 2020.
An old team-mate of Sice’s, of course, the 2019 Connacht-winning U20 manager was ratified on a three-year term last week.
And 34-year-old Sice, who retired from inter-county duty last year, welcomes the news as the western county look to revive their football fortunes.
“It’s an interesting one alright,” the Corofin forward said this afternoon. “I’m sitting on the fence now as a Galway supporter. We’ve had a very consistent four or five years, and I think that was probably needed.
“We didn’t exactly shoot the lights out for a while, I came in for the end of a fair few beatings from Mayo and was delighted to get on the other side of it for a couple of seasons. To see the guys getting to an All-Ireland semi-final against Dublin — there’s a good level of consistency there and that was great to see.
“We’ll see if Padraic can bring it on a bit more now, I’m sure Padraic has his own ideas and everyone in Galway is excited to see where it’s going to go.
“I was lucky enough to be in the same dressing room as him and to see him in action… and what a player. We wish him luck and hopefully he can carry on and improve things again.”
Back to Corofin, and the seven-in-a-row bid living on after a 0-15 to 2-9 draw at St Jarlath’s Park on Sunday. An entertaining battle for those watching on, but a nerve-wrecking one for Sice and his clubmates.
“We had a very tough encounter with the close neighbours and we were glad to get out of it alive,” he assures. “They’re right next door, it was as much a home venue for us as it was for them.
“We made it very interesting for ourselves alright, we had a lot of wides and I’m sure they’ll say the same themselves so we’ve plenty to work on for the next day.”
Relief, indeed.
“I was glad to get up on Monday morning and still be in the championship. We could very easy have been out, but we’re not and we’re going to take the positives and drive on.”
“The Galway championship is tough,” Sice adds when the fact that his team have won eight county titles in the past 10 years is mentioned. “If you look at it closely, you’ll see how tight them games are and we’ve had a lot of tight games.
“They’ve stood to us going forward but I’d prefer not to have them. If you could avoid them it’d be great but the club championship in Galway is very competitive.
“They’re not good for the nerves though, those games. You age terribly in those games. I’m sure they’re very entertaining to watch but to be in them is different, especially against Tuam — it was a real cauldron, like.”
What about that late free?
Well, the two he sent over deep into added-time to save the day.
Cool, calm and collected as you like, Sice slotted them over as if he was just taking a few shots before training of a Tuesday night. Surely there were some nerves, though?
Not necessarily, no.
“The adrenaline is up, you just go and do it,” he smiles. “There’s no thinking about it, I’d say if you did, you’d just freeze on the spot.
“Mike Farragher won the free, that was the most important thing than kicking it. It was a huge win from the ball he got, I had the easy job at the end of it.
“We’re around a while. We knew with the time that was left, there was a little bit of work to do and we settled into it. The lads settled into it well and that last ball was a big one, but look, it’s all forgotten about now, we’ve a lot of work to do to get ourselves ready for the next day.”
Whatever is done is done, he stresses, but it should definitely be another cracker.
It’s just a relief to be still going. It’s fair to say Sice is mad for road, dismissing any whispers of a long season considering the All-Ireland series — which they won in March – runs across two calendar years.
“It’s not really a long season,” the primary school teacher responds immediately. “We’ve got new players in this year, new challenges. We got a nice break over the summer anyway so we’re fresh and we’re good to go.
“We’re enjoying the challenges like, this is why we play football. Keep rocking when things are good, that’s what it’s all about.”
Trust between themselves, lack of selfishness, pure hard work and sheer enjoyment are all mentioned when he’s asked about the secrets of Corofin’s success and how much of a joy they are to watch.
But what about something else that’s discussed quite a lot: should more of his clubmates be involved in the Galway set-up?
“Inter-county and club are two completely separate entities,” he continues, not answering the question at hand directly. But explaining his case.
“They’re nearly almost two different games. It’s an opinion that people have but when you dig into the facts of it, you’ll see that the club and the county are two different animals. You can’t compare them, they’re different in every way.
“There’s not really an argument about whether we should or we shouldn’t. It’s just different. There’s more pace, more physicality, you’ve way more training done in with the county, you’ve a whole different set of expectations, structures, a different calendar; there is literally no comparison to it.
“So therefore trying to insinuate that there’s a comparison in what we’re doing and what Galway are doing — they’re just not the same; and it’s the same with every club and every county in Ireland. To try and compare it just doesn’t make sense.”
For 11 years, he balanced both.
Debatable, he laughs, when it’s put to him.
“I didn’t really balance it, I just got through it. I suppose for a period I just went on and on and I didn’t really realise it. I was very lucky, physically and secondly to have a brilliant club behind me. There’s great structures in Galway too to keep going.
“I probably could have won a lot more, but so be it, it wasn’t to be. I wouldn’t swap what I have for what I could have. I was very lucky, I’m still in reasonably good shape, still able to get out and play so you can’t ask for any more.”
Sice credits the good people around him like Corofin strength and conditioning coach, Mike Comer, and David Hanley and his team of physios, for playing crucial roles in his own longevity.
That, and his own determination to go on: “What else do you want to do? It’s what I’ve wanted to do for a long, long time. You’re not just going to sit on a couch at home.”
Things have come a long way since he started out anyway, that’s for sure.
“It’s changed a lot in terms of player welfare,” Sice nods. “Knowing that lads have a lot going on away from the pitch as well as on the pitch. Maybe their work-life and so on, stuff like that has really improved.
“It’s a really good time to be playing GAA and there’s still room for improvement for other factors. I think we’re getting better all the time, where that will lead us, I don’t know but at the moment it’s in a good space.”
The conversation can’t finish without mention of a brilliant picture of Sice and his daughter, Sadhbh, after Corofin’s All-Ireland final win over Dr Croke’s at Croke Park in March.
And it brings a huge smile to his face.
“Ah, it was nice. She’s a year and two or three months now. She’s been around a while, she’s seen a bit of winning already so we’ll see where that brings her in the future.
“Whether she kicks a ball or not, it doesn’t bother me. She’ll be on the road next Sunday week, out and about! It changes the training schedule a bit, but she’s good.”
The training schedule, and the perspective on life, too?
“Ah, football is just a game,” he concludes. “It’s something we do for fun. Real life is a little bit different.”
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Corofin and former Galway senior footballer Gary Sice was at the launch of the AIB Camogie and Club Championships today. This is AIB’s 29th year sponsoring the AIB GAA Football, Hurling and their 7th year sponsoring the Camogie Club Championships.
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