Bernard Brogan is never at rest.
On the field or off it, the Dublin corner forward, and now Footballer of the Year and All-Star nominee, is still coming down from the high of winning his third Celtic Cross in just five years.
But the celebrations have been put to the back of his mind as it’s back to Dublin senior club action this week with his local side Plunketts/Eoghan Ruadh.
We spoke to the younger half of the deadly Brogan brotherly duo about the Mayo management saga, why Alan should postpone his retirement and how desperate he is for club glory this afternoon at an AIG reception for Dublin team.
What do you think of the current situation in Mayo?
“I haven’t heard a huge amount about it. I heard the managers are leaving is genuinely all I’ve heard about it. We’ve had a few great battles with Mayo over the last few years, they are a supreme football team and we were very lucky to get away from them the first game. They are not going anywhere. I think they have the players and they are a young enough side and they’ll rise again and they’ll have a say next year.”
Are you surprised to see players go against management so publicly so soon after the All-Ireland semi final loss?
“Obviously none of us know what’s going on inside the four walls. Management and players are trying to do the right thing and everyone wants to win for Mayo, and that’s going to be judged on All-Irelands, like the Dubs, we’re judged on All-Irelands and medals. That’s all they want and the players want that to be seen they know their goals and they know what they want and that’s the prerogative. ”
Have you ever been in a dressing room where there has been a fallout with management?
“Well there are always personality issues and egos will clash. Different people will have different opinions on stuff but at the end of the day, especially in Dublin, the mangers, especially Jim, would say he’s a facilitator. He lets us come up with ideas on movement and how we play and defensive structures and he facilitates what we are doing and just gives the polish on top. He’s the first to say it’s a player-centric approach and once you cross the white line the management can’t do much apart from some substitutions. I rely on the players on a big day and the players are the ones who must answer for everything.”
Has Alan made any decision on his future with Dublin?
“We’re working on it! I wouldn’t say we know yet. Last year he was retired before he even got a chance to answer it. He’s making his decision. We saw in the few minutes in the final that he still has a lot to offer. He was a massive player for us all season and obviously he has family commitments and he’ll talk to Lydia and his kids and see what the right decision is for him.
“We’re amateur players and theirs is a business life and career to go after too so he’ll have to weigh up all those options. What I say to him and to anyone in sport, when you feel you can offer no more or you can’t offer more than the fella beside you then it’s time to step down. Is Alan still able to offer something to the Dubs. I’d say yes. ”
You’re back into club championship on Friday night with Plunketts/Eoghan Ruadh?
“We’re out tomorrow night against Raheny. I’m looking forward to getting back into it and it’s only two weeks since the All-Ireland, but we finished up the celebrations last weekend and I was back training with the club then after that.
Is it hard to get back into club action?
“In a club dressing room there are no airs and graces and, like all year we did with the Dubs, we’ve been training hard and we want it as much as the lads who have been there all year long. It brings you back down to earth fairly quick when your back in with your club.”
How does club compare to playing with Dublin.
“It’s hard to beat an All-Ireland Sunday that’s for sure, 82,000 people and the parade and all that.
“The club is different type of feeling and you’re playing with your friends and family you played with. I don’t know, but winning a club I understand is a special feeling and that’s what the lads say about it. We’re craving for it and we’ll do all we can to win it. Like anything I’ve been successful with the Dubs, but it’s definitely one where I want the lot.”
Highlight of the year
“Getting out of the Mayo game in the end having been seven points up. We were probably lucky to get out of it. We took a lot of energy from that and a lot of lessons from that. We controlled the second game and we stuck with the system and with the process.
“With Kerry we were in control for most of the game you know. They came a couple of times but we kept them at arms length. But after the Mayo game we really assessed how we needed to control games and not to get too emotional in games. We learned a lot of lesson from that.”
Dublin’s Bernard Brogan spoke to SportsJOE at AIG Insurance’s offices in Dublin today for a reception to mark their All-Ireland success.
