JAMES Nyhan admits when Bandon came calling to ask if he would take charge of the club’s hurlers, he couldn’t say no.
He is a Bandon man through and through but for the past 20 years Nyhan has been plying his hurling trade in his adopted home, Cloyne in East Cork.
In the 1990s and beginning of the new century, Nyhan was a vital cog in a daring, talented young Bandon team that won many honours in both codes. Hurling was always his first love and it was a big decision for him when he decided to switch to Cloyne, where he set up his married home.
For the past 20 years he lined out in Cloyne colours and is still playing junior B hurling today. He never lost touch with his native Bandon and over the past few years had to watch as they slipped down the hurling grades, playing intermediate A hurling this season.
Last season, when they were knocked out in the group stages, the distress signals went up and Nyhan was asked to come back to his old club as manager. It was a request he just couldn’t turn down.
‘I got married and moved to Cloyne in 2005 and switched my hurling to Cloyne. Not an easy thing to do at the time but logistics, work and family didn’t make it practical to have to come back to Bandon to play,’ Nyhan explained.
‘I never lost my friends here in Bandon, I have some great friends here and they understood my move to Cloyne. I was born and grew up here in Bandon, everything I learned in hurling was here. My buddies in charge here, Kieran Hurley, Donncha Burke, Joe Burke, Niall O’Rourke, I soldiered with all those guys and they got on to me to come back this season.
‘I should possibly have done it sooner but I have three kids on the go all the time, was involved with Cork squads and Cork minors and playing myself and had a lot on my plate. Then Joe Burke got in touch with me in October and he’s a fella you just can’t say no to. So, that is why I’m back and really enjoying it.’
Bandon's Michael Cahalane tries to get past Youghal's Cúlann Geary.
While time and travel are the main issues for Nyhan, he has no doubt what the biggest problem facing his Bandon team is today. In highlighting it, he voices the concerns of all GAA people involved in dual clubs at present.
‘It isn’t easy for dual clubs anymore,’ Nyhan said.
‘The lads there, most are playing football and hurling and it means they have to play 18 league games in 19 weeks. It isn’t easy. Jim O’Sullivan, the Newcestown football manager, was talking about it last week as well, as was the Kanturk manager and a lad from the Barr’s. It’s very hard on the players, in fairness.
‘Don’t get me wrong, players love playing games, we all did, but 18 in 19 weeks is just too much. We’re lucky that we have the same conditioning guy for both codes and the management committees are very careful with players. He’s very organised and the club is giving full support, so we can’t fault anybody there.’
So far, it looks as if Nyhan has managed to halt Bandon’s downward slide as the team has won its three league games under his watch and the hurling they played against Youghal at the weekend was a notch above most of what they produced last season. Nyhan is wise enough not to get carried away with their promising start.
‘We’ve had a barren few years, went out in the group stages last season, did manage to beat Erin’s Own,’ said a realistic Nyhan.
‘As we all know, there’s always hurlers in Bandon and it’s our job to get the best out of them. The young teams are playing premier 2, premier 1, so there’s great work going on and you have to do that to keep up. What we’re doing now is combining the older lads, like Peter Murphy, Darren Crowley, Mark Sugrue, some out injured at present, with the younger guys coming through. We’re in a good place so far this season, three wins from three games.
‘We know it’s only the league and we’re not getting carried away but it’s building confidence and giving young lads the chance to get experience.’
