'Every time we go training and play a match we’re still thinking of him' – Offaly senior football captain on an emotional few weeks

Any family who has been through a bereavement will tell you about the moment when they first close the door and look around the house and see only themselves, and really feel the absence of the person that they’ve lost.

The community has just rallied around them for a few days, but for the world at large, who have the best will in the world, life goes on. But for the people within those four walls, the process of dealing with their loss will take a long time to process yet.

That’s where Offaly football is at right now. All four provincial football championships will get underway at the weekend, and understandably, supporters are thinking about the big games that are in store. Local derbies in places like Castlebar, Armagh and Aughrim capture the imagination, while contests like the meeting of Laois and Wexford in Portlaoise might open up the door for someone to add a redemption arc to their story after an unsuccessful league campaign.

For team captain Declan Hogan and his colleagues, it’s much tougher to look forward with the same optimism.

“It’s been a tough couple of weeks emotionally” the Tullamore man said this week.

“As a team we’re still coming to terms with the fact that Liam [Kearns] isn’t at training. It’s been a difficult couple of weeks in terms of preparation for games. It’s something that hasn’t happened before, something we haven’t been used to as a team. Naturally, we’re still coming to terms with the whole thing and there’s a void in the dressing because Liam was such a strong character and such an inspirational man. Every time we go training and play a match we’re still thinking of him” he said.

“He was only with for about seven months in total, but it felt like we knew him for years. He knew us all inside out. He was very quick to come in and understand what every player was about. He was a great man to grasp what our strengths were and what our weaknesses were. It was a pleasure to work with him for the time that we did have him. He left a real stamp on the team and created a great platform for us. It’s a platform we hope to use for the next couple of weeks and beyond”.

Bereavement counsellors often talk about finding comfort in what’s familiar, in routine. For Offaly, nothing could be more familiar than a meeting with Longford. This Sunday’s clash at Glennon Brothers Pearse Park will be the 13th meeting of the teams in league and championship over the last decade, and the last three meetings will give a fair indication of how the teams sit in relation to one another; two draws, followed by Offaly’s 2-14 to 1-16 win at the Longford venue last month in the Allianz League.

“It’s fair to say either team could have won that day” said Hogan.

“We were lucky enough to win and get out of there with two points. No doubt it’s going to be another tough battle there again on Sunday”.

“Our record in Leinster hasn’t been fantastic over the years. We’d like to get a win against Longford, that goes without saying, and we’ll see where we can go after that. We haven’t picked up as many wins as we would have liked but we’re hopeful we can put that right”.

Gracefield club man Martin Murphy, who enjoyed a great run of success just across the border with Portarlington in recent years, steps up from his role as selector to wear the Bainisteoir’s bib for the remainder of the season, and Hogan says that largely speaking, it’s been all quite familiar.

“Martin is going to put his own stamp on things, he has plenty of experience and he’s had plenty of success with Portarlington as well. He knows the players inside out, he’s been involved since the start of the year, and he’s had previous experience with players at U-20 level. No doubt he’ll look to build on the platform that Liam has led out of us there.

“He’s come in and laid out his plans, and the two of them were working in tandem the whole year anyway, so it’s been a seamless transition.”

Conversations like these are not what Hogan imagined when he took on the mantle of captaincy this year, but it’s a role that means even more to him now as a result.

“It’s a massive honour. Liam rang me there at the start of the year and I suppose with the circumstances now it’s a phone call I’ll never forget. To captain you’re county is the greatest honour that can ever be given to anyone really. It’s the greatest honour of my career anyway. It’s not something I take for granted at any stage. From my own perspective, I’m just trying to lead by example and do things as well as I can both on and off the field. More importantly you try to perform as well as you can, to lead the way on the pitch as well as you can and that’s all that you do really.”

Close the door, look after the family, do what you can. Life goes on for Offaly football, starting this Sunday.