THE MORE THINGS change, the more things stay the same.
A summer of glorious, unimaginable, success has come and gone and while the ripple effect continues to be felt within the confines of Irish hockey circles, the reality is that the sport has descended back into relative obscurity here.
It’s just the reality of it, so it’s not altogether surprising that the build-up to the Men’s World Cup — which gets underway in two weeks — has been typically low key, despite Ireland competing at the tournament for the first time in 28 years.
Such is the way for minority sports in Ireland, exposure and airtime is hard to come by until something is achieved. And then we’re all fans, all on the bandwagon. Hockey Ireland are used to it at this stage. If London 2018 wasn’t going to change it, nothing will.
Anyway, there’s another World Cup coming up. This time in India, as Ireland bid to build on their exciting development from recent years, with this tournament coming off the back of their historic qualification for Rio in 2016.
One thing that has perhaps changed is the external perception, or pressure. Amateurs or not, the silver medal-winning exploits of the women’s team during the summer, coupled with the men’s Olympic odyssey two years ago, has shifted expectations. It’s no longer seen as enough to qualify or simply compete. There is now a basic requirement to perform.
Yet there is no reason why Ireland should be punching above their weight or exceeding expectations like they have done. Like the women’s team, Alexander Cox’s side are criminally underfunded and forced to compete within suffocating limitations, such as not having access to a central training base, home venue or having the resources they deserve. Not that any of that is used as an excuse.
Part of the beauty of what Graham Shaw’s history-makers did in London was that they did it out of nowhere. They had no right to beat who they did. Nobody knew who Gillian Pinder, or Chloe Watkins, or Ayeisha McFerran were beforehand, yet they — along with all 18 of the squad — became national heroes. Inspirational role models. It’s amazing what can be achieved when the right attitude and sacrifice is there. The impossible becomes possible.
The men’s team broke the seal in Rio, making the breakthrough after years of near-misses and agonising heartbreak, and performed admirably at their first major tournament, narrowly falling short of reaching the quarter-final stage. The bar has been set even higher now.
10 of those players are still in the squad, including Shane O’Donoghue, who continues to be the driving force in the Ireland midfield having returned to Belgian club KHC Dragons at the start of this season.
Ireland are, however, under no illusions of the size of the task ahead. Having lost their trailblazing coach Craig Fulton to the assistant coach role of Belgium during the summer, Cox — although a coach with considerable pedigree — has only been in the position since September and there has been no time for a transitionary, or honeymoon, period.
The Green Machine — ranked 10th in the world rankings — get their World Cup campaign underway against back-to-back champions Australia on 30 November, before further Pool B games against China and England. It’ll take a considerable effort to advance to the quarter-finals. But they dare to dream. Why not?
“If you asked us six, seven, eight years ago would we would be competing with these teams, I would have said no. No chance,” O’Donoghue tells The42. “But the turning point probably was the European bronze medal [in 2015], beating a very experienced, talented English side in their backyard was the real turning point.
“That really instilled the belief, that gave us the strong platform to go and say, look, ‘there’s no reason… We’re not going to use the excuse of being amateur athletes to bow out of tournaments.’
“We’ll be looking to finish top of the group. The belief is high. We’re going over with the attitude of having nothing to lose. We’ve proven in recent tournaments, if we perform well, we can beat anybody.”
Ireland finalise their preparations against Netherlands tomorrow, before flying to Bhubaneswar next weekend. There is a nice blend of youth and experience in Cox’s squad, and as was the case for the women’s team, having as many 14 players currently playing abroad will be crucial in bridging the gap with the game’s powerhouses.
Having led Glenanne to EY Hockey League domestic glory last year, O’Donoghue returned to Belgium in September to continue his career with Dragons, while also taking up a position with Mentally Fit Institute.
While he is able to balance hockey and career progression off the pitch, the last couple of months have revolved around preparations for India, as Ireland look to advance to the knockout stages for the first time following 12th-place finishes in the 1978 and 1990 editions of the tournament.
“In Rio, we performed well in some games, we probably have some regrets about it so that will be in the minds of some of the guys who played in Rio going to the World Cup,” he continued.
“We’ll be there to really prove a point and we’ll certainly use the women’s achievement as a source of inspiration. Make no mistake about it, it was a truly amazing achievement.
“We’re not going over to take part and make the numbers up. We are and have exceeded expectation over the last number of years so we’re going over with the belief and the ambition of performing to the standards we set ourselves and we know when we perform at that level, good things and great things have happened in the past.”
The fitness of David Harte, the two-time goalkeeper of the year is crucial. The Cork native appeared to have suffered a tournament-ending injury during the recent four nations, but a second scan showed he didn’t break a bone and is set to be fit. Having the Ireland captain between the posts is a massive boost.
The arrival of Cox has also resulted in some interesting changes. Preparations stepped up in intensity in recent weeks, particularly during the gruelling four nations tournament, and the Dutchman is starting to stamp his philosophy on the squad.
While admitting the departure of long-serving Fulton, who had overseen Ireland’s qualification for the World Cup, came ‘at a fairly crucial time’, O’Donoghue is positive about the new regime and what can be achieved in the coming weeks.
“We’ll play a bit more direct,” he adds. “A more counter-attacking style, and he [Cox] has made some really interesting changes. There’s no reason why we can’t beat these top teams in the world. I’ve no doubt we’ll bring it all together in the first game.
“We’re going to give it a right crack.”
And you just never know what might happen.
Watch the full interview below as Shane O’Donoghue discusses Ireland’s hopes for the upcoming World Cup, new coach Alexander Cox and life in Belgium as a professional hockey player.
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