BY NOEL HORGAN
HE captained Castlehaven to back-to-back county titles in 2012 and 2013, and Seanie Cahalane is guaranteed a prominent place in the club’s proud history following the completion of another two-in-a-row last Sunday.
He was steering the ship from the sideline this time, having served as a selector under James McCarthy last year. It means he now holds the distinction of being only the second man to play on and manage a county winning Castlehaven side at the top level, emulating the achievement previously enjoyed by Jim Nolan alone.
He described it as a hard-earned victory over a Nemo side that, as he expected, brought their ‘A game’ to the table. ‘We were in a right battle, and we struggled a bit in the first half, because Nemo seemed to adapt better to the conditions. ‘We were unhappy with some of our general play, but we addressed it at half-time, and I thought we upped our game to gradually pull away in the second half.’
Asked how tasting success as a manager compared to winning the county as a team member, Cahalane said there’s nothing more satisfying than being involved as a player. ‘There’s no substitute for playing, you’d always miss that, but I’m working with a great group, I couldn’t speak highly enough of them, and I’m extremely happy they got what they deserved today,’ he remarked.
Michael Hurley, the star of last year’s final win over Nemo, revealed he was especially keen to make his presence felt last Sunday, as things hadn’t gone well for him in the semi-final against St Finbarr’s. ‘I didn’t have a lot of football played due to injury, I wasn’t as sharp or as fit as I’d have liked to be, and my confidence was low, I guess. ‘So, I was fairly hard on myself after the Barrs game, I went back to the drawing board, had a look at my own performance, and I think I learned a few things,’
In bagging four exquisite points from play, just two less than in the 2023 showpiece, Hurley had good cause to feel satisfied with his contribution to the Haven’s latest triumph, although he stressed the most important thing was they retained the title.
‘It’s not about individuals, it’s a team sport we play, and I’m just proud to be part of this group. ‘To win two-in-a-row especially against a team with the tradition Nemo have is amazing, and we’re obviously delighted,’ the gifted attacker concluded.
