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Cody and Loughnane - more similar than different

Sky Sports analysts JJ Delaney, left, and Jamesie O’Connor were at Croke Park at the GAA Games Development Conference in partnership with Sky Sports on Saturday where they took part in a panel discussion on ‘Thinking beyond Tactics’ and revealed the similar management styles of Brian Cody and Ger Loughnane. 

Sky Sports analysts JJ Delaney, left, and Jamesie O’Connor were at Croke Park at the GAA Games Development Conference in partnership with Sky Sports on Saturday where they took part in a panel discussion on ‘Thinking beyond Tactics’ and revealed the similar management styles of Brian Cody and Ger Loughnane. 

By John Harrington

Brian Cody once referred to Ger Loughnane as “that lunatic from Clare”, but perhaps the two iconic hurling managers aren’t that different after all.

That was certainly the take-away from this morning’s entertaining conversation at the GAA’s Games Development Conference in Croke Park between former Kilkenny hurler JJ Delaney and former Clare hurler Jamesie O’Connor.

The title of their discussion with journalist Damian Lawlor was ‘Thinking Beyond Tactics’, and it soon became apparent that their former managers both shared an ability to press the right buttons in order to get the best from their players, even if that meant imparting some tough love along the way.

“Loughnane always had his finger on the pulse of where you were as a player,” said O’Connor.

“There was a player on our panel called Rusty Chapman who was left-handed, awkward, tough, and a bit wild.

“When we were training I was usually marking Rusty, maybe because Loughnane was trying to toughen or harden me up.

“One night we were training and it was a wet, greasy night and spitting rain. Rusty cleared the first two balls that came down between us and the next thing another ball came and Rusty put me on my arse and cleared it again.

“Out of the side his mouth Loughnane said something like, ‘Good man Rusty, you have him cleaned’.

“I was picking myself up off the ground, gritting my teeth, and just absolutely determined to ram it down his throat. After that I think I hit five or six points from play out of pure temper.

“Your man (Loughnane) had just all wrapped around his finger, he knew exactly what to say to us all and would be pressing these buttons all the time.

“That sort of commentary would be going on all the time during training.

“The only time I remember him blowing the whistle was one night in training when Brian Lohan was coming out with a ball and Fergal Hegarty hit him a shoulder and knocked him off balance.

“Three forwards then surrounded Brian, and Loughnane was fumbling around for his whistle to find it before he blew it and said, ‘Free for over-carrying, good man Heggo!’

“Lohan was going back in growling and Eamonn Taaffe or someone was going to get absolutely killed now inside.

“Loughnane knew well that Lohan was going to be like a dog now. He had that ability to know what it took to get the most out of fellas. He was a psychologist really who was ahead of his time.

“Good managers know what they have to do to get the best out of players and I’m sure Brian Cody is something similar in Kilkenny.”

Ger Loughnane pictured with Brian Cody at the homecoming for the 1997 All-Ireland winning Clare team. 

Ger Loughnane pictured with Brian Cody at the homecoming for the 1997 All-Ireland winning Clare team. 

Delaney quickly confirmed that Cody used similar adversarial methods in training to encourage his players to become tougher both physically and mentally.

“Yeah, we would have had similar situations with Brian in training where he’d do the exact same thing,” said Delaney.

“I remember Colin Fennelly would be in on Jackie Tyrrell and Jackie being Jackie would let fly and Colin would take it.

“No free would be given but Brian would be in the middle of the field shouting in, ‘Jackie, don’t do that! Colin, get used to it!’”

Both Cody and Loughnane might have been hard taskmasters, but you’ll only ever get so much from a player if you only use a stick approach rather than dangle the occasional carrot.

According to O’Connor and Delaney, both men were also able to earn the loyalty and commitment of their players by treating them well on a human level, rather than just regarding them as a number on a team-sheet.

“We had a guy on our team who was looking to go for the Guards but he was going to miss out on it because he was short-sighted,” recalled O’Connor.

“As far as I know, Loughnane arranged eye-surgery for him, it was all taken care of.

“There were definitely things like that he did for fellas behind the scenes.

“I’m sure Brian Cody is the same in Kilkenny because they’re two smart guys.

“If there’s a player who’s important for the team and they have a personal issue, then absolutely, no more than Ger, I’m sure Cody would help that player.”

Brian Cody embraces JJ Delaney after Kilkenny's victory over Tipperary in the 2011 All-Ireland SHC Final. 

Brian Cody embraces JJ Delaney after Kilkenny's victory over Tipperary in the 2011 All-Ireland SHC Final. 

Delaney was able to confirm this, because he personally experienced himself that Cody was concerned about the wellbeing of his players away from the pitch as well as on it.

“From my own personal experience I was between jobs in 2011 and we were in Carton House together for a few weeks before the All-Ireland Final against Tipp,” said Delaney.

“I was called in for a chat with Brian and Mick Dempsey and I thought, ‘Jesus, did I do something wrong in training yesterday or what’s the story?’

“Brian said to me, ‘What’s your plan?’ And I said something about wanting to be in the team, but he said, ‘No, what’s your plan for your future? You’re in between jobs.’

“We had a conversation then for around 30 minutes about career path I wanted to be on and Mick Dempsey was talking about the possibility of going back to College because he’s involved in Carlow IT.

“They were looking out for me as a person as well as a player and that made me try even harder for Brian because I appreciated that he just didn’t see me as a number.

“He went above and beyond, but there was a payback then from me because I appreciated that so much.”

Loughnane hasn’t had the same longevity as an inter-county manager as Cody has, but O’Connor believes he would still be capable of managing at the highest level because, like Cody, he is intelligent enough to adapt to changing times.

“Deep down I think that Cody has his beliefs, the fundamental things that you need to do to win, the fundamental values that he has,” said O’Connor.

“Okay, there were things he needed to adapt and change, but I still think his core philosophy, the things he really believe you have to have to win, I don’t think they have changed.

“And, yeah, the game has become more possession oriented and you see Kilkenny going short with the puck-out and working it out from the back and that’s obviously something they’ve worked on in training.

“But I still think if you were to boil it down there are core things that haven’t changed.

“I still think a lot of these management conferences where you’ll often see Cody talking, I think he’ll also be there trying to pick up anything he can. He’s a sponge for information. That’s the ability that he has shown. That he’s adaptable.

“Loughnane was similar. They’re hugely intelligent men. Far more intelligent than they’re maybe given credit for.

“I don’t think their core philosophies would change, I think they’d still have the fundamentals that make them who they are because that’s what they believe you require to be successful.

“But I think that both have the ability to adapt to the changing environment around them, whatever that is.

“I think all good managers have that ability and take on board what can improve the thing while still staying true to what you believe in.”