LIMERICK Senior footballers begin their National Football League campaign this Sunday afternoon against Tipperary in Thurles, (Throw in at 14.30) with a new man at the helm. Maurice Horan will lead the Shannonsiders this season after moving from being a selector with Mickey Ned O’Sullivan in previous seasons.
Maurice will be joined on the sideline by Beefy Fitzgerald and John Lee. New brooms normally sweep clean, but Maurice feels there will not be too much change.
“Obviously with any new management team there will be some changes, but they will not be monumental. We will look at the team after every game and try and improve for the next day. It may be a cliche, but we will be taking every game as it comes. One game at a time. Starting with Tipperary this weekend”
Aside from Stephen Lavin and Conor Fitzgerald, Maurice and his team will be picking a side from a relatively full panel. Preparations were being finalised this week and with news that John Galvin is available to play, there are positives aplenty for Limerick. Horan agrees.
“We have a very experienced squad at the moment. The younger lads coming through gain massively from playing with people like John Galvin, Johnny Mc Carthy and Stephen Lavin. Those lads have been there and done that. They are great leaders”
With Limerick having won Division 4 of the National Football League last season, as well as narrowly losing a Munster final, before losing eventually to All Ireland champions Cork, the Treatymen have been installed as favourites to win the Division 3 crown this season. A tag which Maurice Horan knows is only talk.
“We may be favourites, but I feel all the teams in this division can get promoted. Any division with Tipperary, Offaly, Cavan, Wexford, Waterford, Louth and Westmeath is not to be taken lightly. Division 3 is really strong this year and we will have to battle hard for every point we get”
Limerick start off the campaign this weekend away to Tipperary before playing Waterford away on the 20th of February. Limerick’s first home game is against Offaly in Newcastlewest on February 27 next.
With only one competitive game this season so far, a loss to Cork in the Mc Grath Cup, Manager Horan knows that Limerick need to hit the ground running in the league.
“We were very flat against Cork. We were too rusty and we were dead on our feet. Cork were way sharper than we were, but we have done some heavy work in preseason. With the ban on training in groups until New Year, it can be hard to gel straight away, but with the challenge matches we have played, we feel now that match practice is all the lads need. Starting with Tipperary this week, we hope to improve game on game”.
The pressure of being a new man at the helm after Mickey Ned’s successful campaigns, doesn’t seem to bother Maurice Horan and his backroom team. The former Mayo footballer is delighted to be taking over and sees this season as a real chance to improve.
“We were nearly there last year. My job is to try and cross that line this year”
Limerick Team v Tipperary:
Scanlon, O’Riordan, McCarthy, Gallagher, Riordan, Lucey, Ranahan, Donovan, Galvin, Kelly, Corrigan, Buckley, Ryan, O’Carroll, Collins
