“In the midst of calamity there is opportunity”. In truth there is opportunity everywhere. One doesn’t have to await the arrival of chaos, calamity or any sense of disorder to seek the possibility of an opening.

I had opportunity afforded me last Saturday in Sligo. Due to the misfortune of having a suspension imposed upon me by the eircom League Disciplinary Commission I was unable to frequent the dressing room area before or after the Cork City game in The Showgrounds. Having organised the team before we left our hotel in Knock, there was little I could do in the hour or so before kick-off.

I meandered around the ground as the crowd slowly filtered in. I got talking to both Sligo and Cork fans and accepted the good natured humour concerning me having to “slum it” for the night.

I watched with interest the different style of supporter spread around the ground. In similar fashion to Turner’s Cross there was an impressive number of young fans supporting the home team. There was also a similarity in the behavioural patterns of the overall crowd. The local “Sheddites” on the halfway-line never stopped singing and chanting although their drummer was I think, the chief salesman with the Anadin Company. So successful and persistent was this individual that on Monday morning I invested in some shares in the said company at roughly the same time that my headache finally subsided.

After a slightly edgy opening period when Sligo had a couple of good opportunities, City settled down and gradually took over the game. Playing good possession on a heavy pitch the Cork Boys slowly but efficiently dictated the tempo of the game. Sitting at the back of the Main Stand I was able to watch with some detachment and it was quite illuminating. I have the greatest respect for all the City players but on Saturday that respect grew. Under normal circumstances I watch the game with my instinct. By that I mean I stand on the touchline far too close to have serious detachment, consequently I lock into the game and my instinct takes over.

I never realised I did this until a game in Turner’s Cross some years ago while I was manager of Shamrock Rovers. Having been well beaten by City, I went through every player’s performance in the dressing room immediately after the match before I allowed them into the showers. The players and management staff appeared quite impressed with the immediacy and accuracy of my thoughts. By way of explanation I thought back to the days when I was Youth Team Manager at Gillingham.

Those games were played at the training grounds of clubs like Spurs, Chelsea and Arsenal so the supporters were merely a couple of feet from the action, which encouraged, nay forced, me to get completely absorbed in what was occurring on the pitch.

I also believed that  young players benefited from not being alone with their own thoughts for the weekend. Many experienced players are capable of having a comprehensive understanding of the game they have just played but usually it is from their own perspective. Again this talent can be extended and it is a trait I would imagine many managers have.

But ironically by watching a game with my instinct I have little or no appreciation of the opposition’s performance. I would, and do, find it extremely difficult to have recollection or understanding of any member of the opposing team.

So, watching with detachment in Sligo allowed me to enjoy the performance of my players while fully understanding how the Sligo team performed. This made the game very enjoyable to behold for me and it furthered my appreciation of my own players who reacted to the opposition with intelligence and moulded their own individual performances into a professional team display.

I grasped another opportunity just before Saturday night gave way to the steely dawn of Sunday. We arrived back from Sligo at 3.15am.

The biting Cork air encouraged an immediate journey to the warmth of the bed, but undeterred I stopped off and did my weekend shop in Dunne’s 24 hour at Bishopstown. It was too good to miss.

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