CORK’S SWEET SEMI

CORK City’s semi-final win in Dublin last Friday was sweet. To lose a semi final can be a distinctly demoralising experience. So near and yet so far. I understand fully the complete sense of anti-climax felt by the Bohemians players and management.

Last Friday’s game was my eight Semi-final as a player and a manager. Thankfully, I have only experienced defeat in one of those important encounters but the memory of that particular night is probably more vivid than any of the seven victories. That loss, to Bohemians in Dalymount Park to a last minute goal, when I was manager of Shamrock Rovers, still plays a big part in my personal process of motivation. On that occasion I stayed at the ground for an hour so after the game simply because I did not want to slip away into the night and allow ignominy to prevail and further the depth of my disappointment.

My spirit was elsewhere. But that experience has helped me enormously to sectionalise my thoughts and desires and while I believe I am one of the most optimistic of men I understand fully the importance of pessimism in the search for success.

Now that may appear a strange thing to say because pessimism is invariably associated with doubt and worry and these three co-workers are the stonemasons of the road to failure. But good preparation involves understanding all the criteria involved and the bitter taste of defeat lingers long and the acidic stain is tattooed on the heart.

Motivation

The vast majority of successful people are motivated as much from their failures as they are from their successes. And, in many such case’s the acidic motivation remains but a silent presence deep in the recess of the mind. The richest of men generally retain a fear of losing everything and returning to nothing.

I stayed behind in Dalymount Park last Friday as well. The discordance of defeat was etched on the faces of all connected to the home club. But to their credit, many shook my hand and almost all accepted their team had been beaten by the better team on the night. Cork City had played to a very exceptional level and fully merited their Cup Final procurement.

The game itself portrayed vividly the true qualities of eircom League of Ireland football.

The tempo and intensity allied to the excellent ball retention skills of the players offered a full demonstration of the enormous progressions made in Irish professional football. I must also congratulate the Rebel Army on their display.

The thousand or so who were in Dalymount certainly made their presence felt. The noise and colour of both sets of supporters added greatly to the occasion and the City players again responded to the wonderful vociferations (what a word. Probably doesn’t exist. But it should. Anyway vociferousness will be my twelfth man here)