In today’s Hospital Pass, we consider two assassins preparing for big games this weekend: the All-Ireland final and the Reserve D Championship in Kildare.
Pat Gilroy has a plan for Gooch. He might not be telling anyone about it yet, but you don’t watch someone score 1-7 in an All-Ireland semi-final and not have a plan of attack for the final.
But Paul Curran, the former Dublin star, has blown the lid on any cover-up by announcing that Cian O’Sullivan is the man to put the shackles on the Gooch.
“Gooch Cooper is a match-winner and the Dubs need to put their best marker on him from the start. For me, the job must go to Cian O’Sullivan, who has the pace and the defensive skills to counteract Cooper’s class,” he told the Evening Herald.
Curran’s comments come four days before the All-Ireland final, giving Kerry manager Jack O’Connor enough time to dust off the ProZone video analysis and highlight the flaws in O’Sullivan’s game for Gooch to exploit come Croker on Sunday afternoon.
Although maybe it’s a game of double-bluff, and someone else will pitch up beside the Gooch this weekend.
But we suspect it won’t matter who’s in his general vicinity, because the third Sunday of September is Colm Cooper’s natural habitat and he’ll find a way of doing enough damage to deny the Dubs a first All-Ireland in 16 years.
The veteran Kildare veteran
Liam Miley has been around for a while. He’s so old, in fact, that the picture accompanying the news story on hoganstand.com today is in black and white.
But he’s still going strong, it seems, having plundered five goals and five points in the last two games for the St Laurence’s Reserve D team.
And he’s hoping to mark his journey into his 50s with a county medal in the final against Athy on Friday evening.
“Football is my life and St Laurence’s is my life,” said Miley. “I got hurt two years ago and I didn’t do anything about it, I gave it a rest and then I thought it was time to give it up so I did that. Then I took over the under-15 team and I was training with them and I got myself looked after and felt in good ‘aul form. I played in that over 40’s game this summer with Kildare and then Willie Keatley asked me would I come back and play a bit.”
Fair play, Liam.
