Dublin manager, Dessie Farrell, right, with team captain James McCarthy.
By John Harrington
Displays of emotion by team managers at All-Ireland Final press events are generally unheard of.
But Dessie Farrell couldn’t help himself when he was asked to sum up what team captain, James McCarthy, brings to the collective.
“He’s…hard to describe really,” said Farrell. “He’s a special player.”
At that point Farrell seemed to choke up emotionally, with any further elaboration on McCarthy’s virtues caught in his throat.
When the moment passed and he was asked to delve further into what makes McCarthy so special, the Dublin manager paid the Ballymun Kickhams man the ultimate compliment.
“He’s probably the greatest we’ve ever had,” said Farrell.
“Just, he’s all in it. It’s all about the team. He’s the most low maintenance individual you can come across. Every day he’s like a lion out there.
“He just wants to play football and be the best version he can for football. I’ve the upmost admiration for him – as do all the lads.
“I know it’s cliched – the spiritual leader, the warrior – all that type of stuff. But it would be a tough day going out without James McCarthy, that’s for sure.”
McCarthy is 33 years old and in his 13th championship season for Dublin yet remains as effective a performer as ever to the extent he’s a live contender for Footballer of the Year.
Even Farrell admits he’s surprised by the level that that McCarthy has continued to maintain.
“Yeah, you don’t know where he gets the resources of energy from,” he says. “He’s just…I think he’s had as good a season in some of the bigger moments in the last couple of games, he’s been immense. He’s just able to find it from somewhere.”
“He’s just all in it. It’s hard to describe. I think he has some really admirable characteristics. First and foremost I think it’s his sense of selflessness.
“He’ll do whatever it takes. If you told him he couldn’t be part of the 26, he’d take it on the chin. If you told him from start to finish, he had to do handstands up and down the pitch…whatever it takes, he’s just all in.
“He’s such a competitor. There’s no backward step with James.
He’s full of bravery, full of courage. Fearless is a great word to describe him.”
James McCarthy stands for a portrait during a Dublin media conference at Parnell Park in Dublin ahead of the All-Ireland Senior Football Championship Final. Photo by Sam Barnes/Sportsfile.
On Sunday, McCarthy and two of his team-mates, Stephen Cluxton and Michael Fitzsimons, can make history by becoming the first players in the history of the game to win nine All-Ireland medals.
It would be a remarkable achievement and arguably a fitting way for one, some, or all of them to sign off on their inter-county careers, but Farrell insists it’s not a source of motivation for them or the group ahead of the showdown with Kerry.
“There hasn’t been that conversation. I’m not sure what that says – you might be trying to clutch at straws. We’re focused on delivering a performance every day we go out rather than trying to pull on the heart strings or have a crutch because some of that can be a false motivation.
“Whatever we do, it has to be intrinsic and it has to be for the right reasons. There’s definitely a really good sense in the group, with so many younger players coming in bringing the energy, rejuvenating the older lads, there’s a sort of a father/son going on or a student/mentor thing going on with that dynamic in place.
“it’[s been very interesting to wacth that and the conversations that have been had around tables or laptops. They’re brilliant to hear from a manager/coach perspective.
“Sometimes the worst thing you can do is interfere. That’s where there’s great learning but there’s also great connection. The older lads definitely want to help set these young fellas on the right path.
“They’ve appreciated, or got a sense, that others before them have passed on their knowledge and supported them when they were in that situation. Now it’s their turn to pass on the baton, if you like.”
