Declan Browne: Tipp should focus on Munster before ...
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TIPPERARY STAR
www.tipperarystar.ie Thursday, December 29, 2016
Inside today's Tipperary Star
SPORT
Do not miss our in depth interview with strength and conditioning guru Dr Liam Hennessy see pages 52-55
GAA Inter-County Football
Declan Browne: Tipp should focus on Munster before chasing All-Irelands Before focusing on realising the 2020 vision Liam Kearns should target provincial glory BY WILLIAM DUNNE
e-mail: [email protected] Twitter: @tippstarsport
Legendary Tipperary player and current under-21 intercounty manager Declan Browne has argued that the county's footballers should try to secure a Munster senior title before thinking about chasing their 2020 All-Ireland vision. Despite that the County Football Board chairman Joe Hannigan emphasised that the vision is "no longer a pipe dream" at the County Football Board's annual convention last month, the twotime All Star cannot see it coming to fruition. Declan Browne told the Tipperary Star: “I would of been of the opinion, that I have been all along, which is to try and win a munster title and I think that’s feasible because we are competing at minor level and under-21 level. But I would hope that if we got a Munster title under our belt, it would be massive”. "An All-Ireland in the next four years? Very, very hard to see it and I hate saying that, but just being realistic as well,” Declan Browne added. “So, I would be hoping that we would put our targets into a Munster title and then jump on the next one." The Moyle Rovers man, who is now in charge of the under-21 county football team, praised the development squads that have been set up since the turn of the century and the role that those development squads
Tipperary legend and current inter-county under-21 manager Declan Browne (Moyle Rovers).
Tipperary's Kevin O'Halloran (Portroe) and Peter Acheson (Moyle Rovers) pictured celebrating their sensational All-Ireland quarter-final win over Galway at Croke Park, Dublin.
have played in getting the footballers into their current situation. "It’s all professional now. They know what to expect, that there’s diets, there’s strength and conditioning, there’s weights, there’s everything there now at the moment so it’s all under the one umbrella. Whereas in my time there was nothing like
that; you were just going on ability only, but now it’s a given that these things have to be done and in fairness to our lads, they are being done," Declan Browne said. Browne also noted that when he started playing senior inter-county football the progression to winning All-Ireland's was not as easy, but he did admit that some of
the sides that he played on lacked ambition towards the end of his career. "When I started in ‘96 there was no back door it was knock -out - more often than not we would always get Kerry. Did we think we could beat Kerry? Yes we did. The players that we had like Brian Burke, Derry Foley, John Owens, Peter Lambert all be-
lieved we could, but we just never got the second chance until 2001 I think when that back door system came in,” Declan Browne explained. “I suppose in the middle and towards the end of my career, yes, there probably was a small bit of a lack of ambition there and the results probably show that as well," Browne added. In terms of today's team, Browne believes that players have come through "at the right time" as opposed to the past and that it is this crop of players who will be pivotal for future success. "I think that ability-wise a lot of players came around at the right time. The likes of that minor team - they are sticking together now and they will be the nucleus of the senior team going forward. "We were always bringing through two or three players or one player (through), but now there’s six, seven, eight coming through every year so that helps,” he said.
sports editor: brian mcdonnell email: [email protected] website: tipperarystar.ie twitter: @tippstarsport phone: 0504 29108
GAA Preview
Tipp face the Kingdom in early test BY BRIAN MCDONNELL
e-mail: [email protected] Twitter: @sixtwofourtwo
Liam Kearns’ men are this week turning their thoughts to a trip to the Kingdom on Sunday, January 8th. The Tipperary football team will launch their McGrath Cup campaign against Kerry on January 8th in Austin Stack Park, Tralee (throw-in 2pm). This year the provincial competition will be run on a two-group system. And, Tipperary will play their final game in the group phase on Wednesday, January 11th when Liam Kearns’ side host Cork in Semple Stadium, Thurles at 7.30pm. In group B Clare, Waterford and Limerick will battle it out with the winners facing either Tipperary, Kerry or Cork from group A in the final on Sunday, January 22nd. Tipperary last qualified for the McGrath Cup final in 2013 (lost to Kerry). Indeed, it will be interesting to see how seriously take the competition. It stands to reason that Tipperary will have their thoughts trained on their upcoming division three league campaign which kicks off with a home game against Antrim in Clonmel on Sunday, February 5th. Tipperary will also face Sligo (Sunday, February 12th - home), Laois (Saturday, February 25th - away), Longford (Sunday, March 5th - home), Offaly (Sunday, March 19th - away), Lough (Sunday, March 26th - home) and Armagh (Sunday, April 2nd -away). Michael Ryan’s All-Ireland champions will not compete in the 2017 Munster Senior Hurling League for the second successive year - Tipp will play a series of challenges matches prior to launching their Allianz Hurling League Division 1A campaign against Dublin on February 11th.
TIPPERARY STAR
www.tipperarystar.ie Thursday, December 29, 2016
Inside today's Tipperary Star
SPORT
Do not miss our in depth interview with strength and conditioning guru Dr Liam Hennessy see pages 52-55
GAA Inter-County Football
Declan Browne: Tipp should focus on Munster before chasing All-Irelands Before focusing on realising the 2020 vision Liam Kearns should target provincial glory BY WILLIAM DUNNE
e-mail: [email protected] Twitter: @tippstarsport
Legendary Tipperary player and current under-21 intercounty manager Declan Browne has argued that the county's footballers should try to secure a Munster senior title before thinking about chasing their 2020 All-Ireland vision. Despite that the County Football Board chairman Joe Hannigan emphasised that the vision is "no longer a pipe dream" at the County Football Board's annual convention last month, the twotime All Star cannot see it coming to fruition. Declan Browne told the Tipperary Star: “I would of been of the opinion, that I have been all along, which is to try and win a munster title and I think that’s feasible because we are competing at minor level and under-21 level. But I would hope that if we got a Munster title under our belt, it would be massive”. "An All-Ireland in the next four years? Very, very hard to see it and I hate saying that, but just being realistic as well,” Declan Browne added. “So, I would be hoping that we would put our targets into a Munster title and then jump on the next one." The Moyle Rovers man, who is now in charge of the under-21 county football team, praised the development squads that have been set up since the turn of the century and the role that those development squads
Tipperary legend and current inter-county under-21 manager Declan Browne (Moyle Rovers).
Tipperary's Kevin O'Halloran (Portroe) and Peter Acheson (Moyle Rovers) pictured celebrating their sensational All-Ireland quarter-final win over Galway at Croke Park, Dublin.
have played in getting the footballers into their current situation. "It’s all professional now. They know what to expect, that there’s diets, there’s strength and conditioning, there’s weights, there’s everything there now at the moment so it’s all under the one umbrella. Whereas in my time there was nothing like
that; you were just going on ability only, but now it’s a given that these things have to be done and in fairness to our lads, they are being done," Declan Browne said. Browne also noted that when he started playing senior inter-county football the progression to winning All-Ireland's was not as easy, but he did admit that some of
the sides that he played on lacked ambition towards the end of his career. "When I started in ‘96 there was no back door it was knock -out - more often than not we would always get Kerry. Did we think we could beat Kerry? Yes we did. The players that we had like Brian Burke, Derry Foley, John Owens, Peter Lambert all be-
lieved we could, but we just never got the second chance until 2001 I think when that back door system came in,” Declan Browne explained. “I suppose in the middle and towards the end of my career, yes, there probably was a small bit of a lack of ambition there and the results probably show that as well," Browne added. In terms of today's team, Browne believes that players have come through "at the right time" as opposed to the past and that it is this crop of players who will be pivotal for future success. "I think that ability-wise a lot of players came around at the right time. The likes of that minor team - they are sticking together now and they will be the nucleus of the senior team going forward. "We were always bringing through two or three players or one player (through), but now there’s six, seven, eight coming through every year so that helps,” he said.
sports editor: brian mcdonnell email: [email protected] website: tipperarystar.ie twitter: @tippstarsport phone: 0504 29108
GAA Preview
Tipp face the Kingdom in early test BY BRIAN MCDONNELL
e-mail: [email protected] Twitter: @sixtwofourtwo
Liam Kearns’ men are this week turning their thoughts to a trip to the Kingdom on Sunday, January 8th. The Tipperary football team will launch their McGrath Cup campaign against Kerry on January 8th in Austin Stack Park, Tralee (throw-in 2pm). This year the provincial competition will be run on a two-group system. And, Tipperary will play their final game in the group phase on Wednesday, January 11th when Liam Kearns’ side host Cork in Semple Stadium, Thurles at 7.30pm. In group B Clare, Waterford and Limerick will battle it out with the winners facing either Tipperary, Kerry or Cork from group A in the final on Sunday, January 22nd. Tipperary last qualified for the McGrath Cup final in 2013 (lost to Kerry). Indeed, it will be interesting to see how seriously take the competition. It stands to reason that Tipperary will have their thoughts trained on their upcoming division three league campaign which kicks off with a home game against Antrim in Clonmel on Sunday, February 5th. Tipperary will also face Sligo (Sunday, February 12th - home), Laois (Saturday, February 25th - away), Longford (Sunday, March 5th - home), Offaly (Sunday, March 19th - away), Lough (Sunday, March 26th - home) and Armagh (Sunday, April 2nd -away). Michael Ryan’s All-Ireland champions will not compete in the 2017 Munster Senior Hurling League for the second successive year - Tipp will play a series of challenges matches prior to launching their Allianz Hurling League Division 1A campaign against Dublin on February 11th.
