You’re playing on a team that demands perfection.
You’re playing for a county that expects All-Irelands. You’re competing at the biggest stage in the biggest stadium on the biggest occasion.
To top it all off, you’re Bernard Brogan and you have to deliver.
When a man like Brogan doesn’t do what he usually does and wrecks havoc amongst opposition defences, one of two things happen: He’s either dropped, or Dublin lose. That’s it.
But it doesn’t faze him because, in fairness to the Plunkett’s man, he knows he’s put in the work. He knows that he’s had to do more than most people just to get a Dublin jersey in the first place so he enjoys every second of it now.
“When lads are out drinking pints at 18, 19, 20, the guys who make it are playing with their clubs and sacrificing” https://t.co/oC9EoxlWzn
— SportsJOE (@SportsJOEdotie) October 7, 2016
That’s why he keeps it loose in the changing rooms.
When lads are running around trying to get pumped up, blaring the ears off themselves with God knows what, Brogan is getting his rhythm on with a bit of Michael Jackson.
After the All-Ireland final victory, a picture emerged from the Dublin warm-up area that showed a quote from Charles Darwin behind them.
Spoils of war #DSF2016 pic.twitter.com/vp8YivRrow
— – (@dermoc123) October 1, 2016
The message was about natural selection. Survival of the fittest. But it preached that those who kept as a group and worked for the group could survive as a group. But they had to stay just like that, a group.
The 2010 Footballer of the Year doesn’t really need all those buzzwords to inspire him though. He just needs music – and not the sort of music you’re thinking of.
“There’s always motivational stuff you’d have around the team – quotes and different people who inspire you,” Brogan spoke with SportsJOE.
“Everyone takes different kinds of things to get them riled up and sometimes those little quotes [the Charles Darwin banner] give people a boost. Sometimes it’s music for people, sometimes it’s videos or clips of games and stuff like that.
“I wouldn’t be a massive music man. Some of the lads would have headphones on four hours before the game. I listen to a few tunes prior to the game to get a bit of energy going.
“I’ve an awful taste in music. I’m into my commercial dancing and I like a bit of Michael Jackson. I always like to listen to the Michael Jackson stuff [before the game] as well, which is a bit odd but we all have our own issues! The music is just a good way of getting you going.”
Of course, all the generalisations are that Jim Gavin wouldn’t get the players going or that he wouldn’t shout or deliver some inspirational phrase.
They don’t really need that, according to Brogan. Jim Gavin’s managerial style goes way beyond some short-term fix. There’s no potential error that’s not accounted for and they’re all the better because of that.
“He’s a quiet man but he’s a man that leaves no stone uncovered,” Brogan explained. “The effort and time that he puts into Dublin GAA is frightening.
“It’s probably his military background as a pilot – and I suppose his job is regulation for airlines – everything he’s done in his life has been ticking boxes so he is just regimental in his preparation. Every decision, every player, every movement is reviewed and talked about and analysed and re-reviewed.
“He has no, big rousing, shouting speeches or anything like that. He just gives us a framework and he’s always talking about letting lads deliver and express themselves on the pitch. He gives us the framework and then says, ‘right, lads, once you cross that white line you can’t hear me even if I wanted to scream in at you’.
“You’d get a bit of a talk from a runner that might come in and say one or two things but, for 95 per cent of the game, you have to just play off the cuff and play within the framework.”
That works alright to be honest.
Bernard Brogan launched the Sport Industry Awards in Dublin on Thursday. The closing date for entries is October 20 with the awards to be held on November 10 in The Mansion House.
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