Midleton boss Micheál Keohane: This final means more than any other

Micheál Keohane is in his third season as manager of Midleton. They have been very consistent during his tenure.

The Magpies are in their second Co-Op SuperStores Premier SHC final in three seasons on Sunday when they take on Sarsfields at SuperValu Páirc Uí Chaoimh (3.15pm).

The only team Midleton have lost to in the championship under Keohane are Sarsfields.

“There’s a great buzz around the club, you see a lot of teams doing pretty well in the club,” Keohane says.

“Across the club there’s a huge amount of games being played at this time of year, which means that you’re in the business end.

“It’s fantastic for us to be back in the final. Obviously we were here in 2023 and we want a better result this time around.” 

Out of all the finals that the Midleton hurlers have appeared in over the years, this latest one feels bigger than the others.

They lost two great Midleton men back in March in Ger Fitzgerald and Darragh McCarthy.

“This final definitely means more than any other, but I suppose the one thing I would say is that the players have put in a phenomenal effort this year,” the Magpies boss said.

“The connections with Ger and Darragh throughout the group were huge and it has had a massive impact on all the guys.

“We’d absolutely love to win in their honour, but at the same time it has put everything into perspective as well, it's only a game. It’s a pastime, it’s a sport, it’s something that we’re supposed to enjoy.

“If we win it will be fantastic, but if we don’t, it’s one of those things that the lads have put in a phenomenal effort all year.

“I think our run to the final has been a welcome distraction from some of the difficult times over the last while and it’s an opportunity for the players to be even closer together as well.

“There have been a lot of positives around that, look it would be fantastic if we could win the title, but it’s just a game of hurling at the end of the day.” 

Midleton have displayed their quality and character this year. They have shown a different side to their game especially against Glen Rovers and Blackrock in the last two games.

On both occasions, they looked like they would be second best.

“We’ve been very composed. There’s never an ounce of panic and certainly in the last two matches when we’ve had goal chances we’ve gone for goals, but other than that, we’ve chipped away with points right the way through to the very end of normal time or extra time.

“We haven’t gone into any situation where we’ve said let’s start bombing the ball long or all of a sudden we’re going for goals with 20 minutes to go.

“The guys know what they can do as the game gets close and they’re in really good condition as well. Stephen Casey and Frank Flannery have them in a really good place physically.

“When you’re in a good place physically, it means that mentally you’re not as drained or strained either. The lads have been really good at the end of games and hopefully that will help us on Sunday.” Keohane concluded.