Nearly is the word that would best sum up Lee Chin’s season both for Wexford and for Faythe Harriers.
But he knows better than anyone, as a top level competitor, that nearly never won the championship. It was on Sunday, after one thrilling game, when Faythe Harriers’ club hurling dreams ground to an agonising halt as they reigning county champs Rapparees beat them by one solitary point.
As ever, Chin was sensational for the town team. He hit 1-9 in that game, 1-2 from play, but there comes a time when even the most bionic of bionic men have to take a step back and he might have to do that now. Club football could be the casualty.
Stemming from the tail-end of last season and branching into the beginning of this season, Chin himself has had some serious injury woes and that’s why, after a hamstring nightmare, he’s thinking twice about playing club football in the coming weeks.
He’s been playing football for the Sarsfields club for years but really and truly, if he took some time out it would be very hard to blame him.
“For the next couple of weeks ahead,” Chin says, “I’ll see what way I am in terms of my injuries and stuff. Will I play football this year? I’m not quite sure.
“But it’s just something I feel I need to do selfishly for myself, because of the serious injuries I had during the year, to maybe give my body a bit of time to recover before I get back into the season with Wexford next year.
“But that’s something I have to assess, and something I still have to cross that bridge when I get there.”
Like many inter-county players, this man has been going from pillar to post, January to December for many years and that’s why he’s such a big fan of the new split season and it’s why he’s going to enjoy the next few weeks off.
“We as players and athletes definitely value it. I know how valuable the next couple of months will be to me. Having I said, in the next two weeks I’ll probably get bored! But you’ve got to be disciplined enough to try and be fair to yourself, and lookit, once you step out of the bubble sometimes, it’s nice to see a different part of life, have a few different experiences and have that bit of balance and enjoy yourself. If you can manage to let your hair down a little bit as well in that space of time, it will serve you well in the latter end of the year.”
Chin says that, having burnt the candle at both ends for years, and with the experience he now has, he now appreciates the importance of taking a step back and, if younger players in the club were to ask him for advice, that’s what he’d tell them.
“Hurling and GAA has gone to a level where you have to be massively involved and invested. You need to balance it out though, that’s one thing young lads have to understand. It can’t just be all about GAA.
“I found that out later in my career that once I had a bit of balance, I was in better form and once I was in better form, I was performing better too. It is great to see the enthusiasm they have though, with those spirits and I suppose, as they’ll get older, they’ll figure it out.”
Chin will be on the line tonight when his club take on Buffers Alley in the Premier U19 county final and giving back to his club, whether it’s through advice or coaching, is something he loves to do.
“You would do anything to help them, in terms of advice or anyway at all in terms of trainnig, gym work, mentality, anything at all.
“You’d assist them in trying to reach their goals and I always love when young lads come forward and ask for that bit of help. It shows a level of maturity. At the same time, you have to have a balance in it too. Have a bit of fun with them. It’s club, community and you know the families and you know a lot about the young lads or their families before they come in, so you always try and have a bit of craic with them about things.
Budweiser is the official beer of the Aer Lingus College Football Classic this August. The Northwestern Wildcats will take on the Nebraska Cornhuskers in Dublin’s Aviva Stadium. Pictured at the launch is Wexford Senior Hurler, Lee Chin, Dublin Senior Footballer Hannah Tyrrell and Bohemian FC’s Liam Burt.
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