Offaly SHC final preview: Screeney keeping his feet grounded amid a sea of hype and expectation

ADAM Screeney and Offaly U-20 hurlers provide no shortage of special memories last year as they went to the All-Ireland U-20 Hurling Championship final, performing admirably in a loss to a very strong Cork outfit.

The highlight of the year was the Leinster U-20 Hurling Championship final win over Wexford. One of those rare, magical GAA evenings as Offaly came ablaze with excitement and hope. They made up a considerable majority of a sellout crowd in Carlow, the atmosphere truly nerve tingling as Offaly showed their class by beating Wexford.

Later that evening, there was a very special, hair raising addendum to the whole occasion. It was only witnessed by a few but even now, the memory of it is enough to tug at the emotions of those who were present.

As the victorious squad arrived back in Digan's public house in Tullamore a few hours after the final whistle, the packed gathering stood to attention, affording them a spontaneous round of applause and standing ovation.

Firstly, the winning players had to deal with back slapping supporters and congratulations from people – many of them well seasoned, wizened supporters who had witnessed similar scenes back in the 1970s, '80s and '90s. Then as calm emerged, the players had an opportunity to breathe as their own age group gathered in their vicinity. There was no shortage of sisters, girlfriends, friends and aspiring girlfriends around that evening and it was very funny to watch it all unfold.

With a number of the squad also starting their Leaving Certificate examinations in the following days, several parents were there to both celebrate with their sons and to make sure that they didn't party too long. As midnight approached and then went by, you could almost see the mothers in particular getting more on edge and having repelled the best that Wexford had thrown at them earlier in the evening, they had no answer to mammy as they were duly frogmarched home.

Adam Screeney put a broad grin on his face when he was reminded of that evening last week and told about the enjoyment some people got from observing that whole episode develop.

Screeney had been the star of the show in the final, scoring 1-12, winning man of the match and literally taking the breath away with some of his skill and shooting. As a young man, he has to cope with a level of adulation and expectation that has not been experienced by an Offaly hurler since the 1990s. No one likes putting that sort of pressure on any young lad, still finding his way in life and having to transverse the many pitfalls that have often ensured that early potential goes unfulfilled.

To brush it to one side, to pretend that it wasn't there, however, would be to deny reality and it is something that the young Kilcormac-Killoughey star has to live with and manage. Thus when the request was put in to chat with Screeney ahead of Sunday's Senior Hurling Championship final renewal with Shinrone, neither the player or his manager, Shane Hand, tried to avoid it – and that was great to see. Those things should be embraced and despite a long accepted perception, interviews and pre-match previews don't actually have any real influence when it comes down to the nitty gritty of a game on a Sunday.

You would have to be blind and deaf to not be aware of the excitement that surrounds Screeney. He still has loads of physically developing to do, hard lessons to learn and there will be days when he won't play well or he will be marked out of it. But in a county used to famine and bad days, the emergence of a tremendous young team and the different talents that make this up is always going to generate hype and hope.

Screeney spoke with genuine humility and honesty about how he manages this as such a young man but he didn't avoid the questions or deny that it was there: Is it something that could get to ye as young lads?

“Definitely. Over the past few years you've seen it get to young lads and they can't really deal with it. But we were very well prepared both in club and county to not let that get to you. If it does get to you it can be quite dangerous and you can get ahead of yourself and be put down fairly quickly. Any of the lads that are with me now, none of them are getting ahead of themselves. They are all still concentrating on their game plan and what they want to succeed in.”

Considering he has played in two All-Ireland finals in successive years, it is a sign of this humility that he was actually more nervous ahead of this year's Offaly Senior Hurling Championship clash against Kinnitty in Tullamore. It was his club senior hurling debut, another big step in his development and while K-K were hot favourites to win, he was on edge in a very different way than he had been for the big games Offaly minors and U-20s played in the last two years.

His confidence and self belief is evident from the way he hurls, the things he takes on but he spoke about that evening: “Yeah, and I would say that. I was definitely more nervous because it's something completely different. You didn't really know what to expect. With the 20s you're after playing four of five games, you know what to expect, Obviously with the crowd there it was going to be different. But with the senior, you didn't know what to expect, and with different lads around you, you didn't know what way they were going to take it up. But I was really nervous that day and I still am but I have got a bit better at it now and I'm gelling well with the lads and it's really good.”

18 years of age since January, Screeney is now studying arts in University of Limerick and will be playing freshers hurling for them this year. “It's something different. I was trialling during the week and it's actually been a good experience meeting lads from different counties that you hurled against for the last four or five years and now you're getting to hurl with them and you'll be hurling against them for the next few years. It's quite enjoyable.”

This is your first year playing adult hurling. Is there much of a difference to playing underage?

“Definitely. It's a huge step up from hurling against lads your own age to hurling against lads that are fully grown men. Hurling with the county this year it's a bit slower, way more physical and definitely a different game. It takes a bit of getting used to but most of us are well used to it now.”

You're happy with your form this year? KK have done everything that was asked of them?

“We've won all our games and beat Rynagh's at the weekend. We're looking forward to playing the county final. It's going to be very tight. There's been nothing between us in an of the games we've played this year and we're looking forward to a good game.”

As a young lad whose reputation precedes you, do you find you're a marked man? Are lads trying to shake you up?

“Yes of course. But you don't let that get into your head. You have to keep your concentration on the game, keep to your game plan, stay hurling and let your hurling do the talking and that's all you can do.”

Do you feel pressure before games or is it just water off a duck's back?

“Definitely you feel pressure. Especially this year. I had never hurled senior before and I was nervous going into all the games and the different ways, what way we were going to hurl. I was really nervous at the start and still am nervous going into games. It is different hurling with lads older than you. I think I've adapted well and I'm excited to be playing senior hurling for the next few years.”

KK haven't won one since 2017 and they've won four but there's a bit of pressure on now because it's a big club and there's demands and expectations.

“Definitely. There's huge expectation around the club. For the last five years people have been saying KK are the best team but they're obviously not. They haven't won a county title since 2017. Obviously we have to have our heads screwed on [for the final] and we really need to get down to business. It's time we won one and we're all looking forward to it and it's time we gave it a good rattle.”

It's an exciting time for Offaly hurling with the minor team and the generation there, the Under 20 team. There's a sense that there's something happening there that hasn't happened in a long time.

“Yeah, the excitement around the county, even during the club championship there was more people coming to watch. It's good to see because Offaly haven't been great for the last number of years. It's good to see them coming back up and seeing the crowds coming to club games and having good competitive club games.

How do you cope with it as a young lad? The Leinster final against Wexford in Carlow was one of the most special occasions I've seen since the '90s.

“It was very different to what we're used to. We got a taste of it for the minors and we started the Under 20 this year and it really took off. It was very different and it was very hard to believe what was happening really when you went out on the field and seen that many people there. We all adapted to it fairly quickly because we all knew we had to get used it, big crowds at games because Offaly hadn't been successful in a while. No, we were all warned by management that we needed to get used to it and keep our heads screwed on, hurl to your game plan, just keep hurling and don't let if affect you.”

Does the fact that you have such a reputation bring its own pressure or is it something you take in your stride?

“It does and it doesn't. It was bigger last year. I couldn't believe what was happening but this year I got used to it and carried it in my stride as something extra. I don't really think about it, I just go out to hurl and enjoy the game and whatever happens, happens.”

You seem to be mad into hurling. I heard a funny story that against Dublin (in the Leinster U-20 HC when he got concussion this year), you got the head injury and the doctor was trying to put you through the protocols and all you were doing was jumping around and saying,'When am I getting back out on the field?'

“Hurling is number one and I just want to concentrate on getting out hurling and enjoying playing it. Whatever happens after that happens. I just love playing the game.”

You must do a lot of work on your own as well?

“Yeah definitely. It takes huge work and it's like anything, if you want it you have to put in the work from a very young age, from four or five. It's like learning to talk, you have to do it at a very young age or you won't be able to develop it as you're older. I think you put down the foundation when you're young, up to 12 or 13 and once you have it you just keep practising and practising. Practising each day when you're a 19 or 20-year-old lad sounds stupid but I think it's the most important thing. “

We're coming into an era where a lot of young people are going abroad, not out of necessity but there seems to be a real travelling bug in going to Canada, Australia and different places. Would you have any interest yourself in that or is hurling something that is going to keep you around?

“Definitely. Obviously I'd like to travel and see what the rest of the world is like but at the minute hurling is number one and the next while. Maybe I'd go for a summer somewhere but I don't think I'll be going away for a year or two years at the minute.”

You're at a stage of your life where you're in serious demand. You're U-20 and senior, Freshers in college, you never know about Fitzgibbon Cup, you're obviously of a calibre where you could be asked to go onto a Fitzgibbon panel. Maybe even Johnny Kelly is going to ask you go to onto the Offaly senior panel. How do you manage all those demands?

“It's hard with all of them coming to you at the once. It's pride, it's what you've worked on since you were four or five and it's coming to show now. Everyone around the county, different people, being asked into the Under 20 last year, or making the club senior team this year, that was a huge thing for me. It's something different. I wasn't really expecting it and then going out to hurl with your clubmen that you've been watching. I've been watching those lads since 2012, 2013, 2014 when they were winning, going to all the trainings and idolising them. Now I'm going to be hurling a county final with them. It really is amazing.”

As a young lad, you're now playing with lads who've been playing since 2007 or 2009, some of them married men with children. Is this daunting?

“ It's a savage experience. Me and some of my friends would have been at their training when they were in Leinster finals and county finals and we'd be back at the celebrations. You never really thought you'd be hurling with them. You'd have thought they'd be watching you in a couple of years' time. But it's amazing that you can go out to the field and be able to hurl with the likes of Ger Healion and Conor Slevin and Killian Leonard and all them. They have been there before and are obviously still hungry for more. “

How big a help is it to be coming from a club like KK which is such hurling mad territory?

“It's huge when it's predominantly hurling. Any time you go up to the field you meet someone you know who has a hurling ball and there's always someone there that you can hurl with and someone who you can ring that will give you a hand with hurling.”

Is it a help having an older brother (Jack) on the team?

“Yes it is. This is my first year to hurl with my older brother so it is a good experience to get to hurl with him because when you go home in the evenings all you'd be doing is cutting the back off each other but now that you're hurling together it's something different.”

People have been talking about the talent of KK. Obviously you've won the whole shebang from underage up and have had a large number of people on the minor and Under 20 panels in the last few years. They're saying that when you get to 20 or 21 you're going to dominate but it's not that simple?

“No. If it was that simple most places would be doing it. It's going to take huge work, obviously Shinrone, Rynagh's, Birr, Ballinamere, they all have serious youth coming up as well and it's all about trying to bring these lads into the senior team. They might be good underage hurlers and they mightn't be able to hurl at senior level. You just never know. We're definitely working hard at getting them all into the team and trying to move forward.”

You have to win your first one first?

“Yes, for me that's going for my first or any of the older lads that are going for their fifth, the hunger is still there. Everyone wants to see a county medal coming back to Kilcormac.”

What are your memories of last year's final?

“Really like, it's sickening to see. Losing any final or semi-final is sickening. Obviously we've been concentrating game by game this year and now that we have Shinrone in the final it's good to be there again and get another go at them. Obviously I was in the stand last year and you wouldn't believe it last year that you'd get to hurl in the very same position this year, except to be playing. I'm really looking forward to it now.”