Mohill need to be mentally strong to take on physical Pearses

Mohill will need to be mentally strong if they are to challenge Roscommon’s Padraig Pearses next Sunday in Ballinamore’s Pairc Sheain Ui Eslin (1.30 pm throw-in) according to manager Eamonn O’Hara as the Leitrim champions go searching for a long awaited Provincial championship breakthrough.

Having won back to back titles for the first time in their history, Mohill are now seeking a first ever AIB Connacht Club SFC victory and a win over Pearses, who beat Corofin 2-10 to 0-10 last Sunday, would see them into a Connacht Final.

For O’Hara (pictured inset), cleared to stand on the line next Sunday after a 12 week suspension from the replayed County Final was overturned on appeal, the challenge is as much mental as physical as Mohill have not had a game in four weeks with Pearses in action twice since then.

“Would I prefer our path to this position or Pearses’ path?” Eamonn told the Observer, “We just have to be happy with our own path and as I said, it'll come down to us on the day. We just have to be mentally prepared, mentally strong and as I keep saying to the lads, you've got to turn up on the big day. No one else can do that apart from yourself.

“We’ve trained at high intensity but there is nothing prepares you for, no matter what anyone says, until you get into the cut and thrust of a Connacht Club Semi-Final against a very physical outfit and we have to be mentally prepared for the collisions, if and when they come, but at the same time, you hope to advantage of the freshness that I hope we have. The turnaround for them is going to be challenging, a six day turnaround and we just have to try and take advantage of that as well.

IT WAS A BIG STEP UP FOR US SAYS MELVIN GAELS GARETH FOLEY

Pearses, 2021 Connacht champions, present a formidable challenge but Eamonn stresses Mohill have to look after themselves: “First and foremost, we’re going to have to look at ourselves. We’ve been waiting so long to have a game and we spend all our times looking at who it could be and who it might be but all our focus has been on ourselves and getting to the pitch of the game.”

Strangely, Eamonn is not surprised to be facing the Roscommon club next Sunday: “Obviously the favourites tag was given to Corofin but I was looking at it, I didn’t think it would go Corofin’s way, I think Pearses had more than enough to do the job and the way they did it was very, very comprehensive. 

“It was almost scary to the level that they performed at. Their first half execution was just phenomenal and it's probably the best I've seen any club team play this year and that’s across the country in terms of the games that I've seen. Whether Corofin had an off day, they had a good start but after that, Pearses’ dominance was outstanding in that first half.”

Countering Pearses’ strength while also playing to their own strengths will be key for Mohill: “It's a case of making sure that we're not eight points behind by half time and completely over the game. You have to look at a strategy around that but we also have to play to our strengths. We've got good footballers too.

“In Leitrim, we can be putting a lot of teams up on pedestals and you have to do that because of the history. Last year there was a lot of talk around Brigid’s capabilities and when you go up and you do relatively well against them, it's almost like there's a patronising type of ‘oh Jesus, you were unlucky but at the same time we never expected you to win’. On any given day, you just have to perform on the day and I think that's what it comes down to.”

Playing in Ballinamore will be a help but at this level, Eamonn believes home advantage is not much of a factor: “It doesn't matter anymore. I think teams nowadays are looking for good pitches and that's what you've got. Down in Ballinamore or up in the Hyde, you get the same thing. 

“We'd be happy to go up to the Hyde as we did last year. It is a case of having the mindset that you have the bravery to go first. Not to have a naivety that things are just going to happen for you, having control and a mature way of how you manage the game. Come away with a shot on every attack.

MOHILL ARE THE LAST TEAM STANDING

“I keep saying that to the guys all the time once we get into that danger area, that shooting zone, come away with a shot. Because Pearses, they’re super aggressive in their tackling and once they turned that ball over, they were gone - it was like a 100m sprint from defending to attacking. Corofin couldn't match them and they made hay particularly in the early days in that first half. They were just super aggressive so we just have to be very aware of that.”

If anything, Mohill now know what to expect next Sunday: “We know now we just have to prepare first and be ready for that type of thing but at the same time, we've got to play our game, we've got to play our strengths. We've got good team players playing really, really well around the pitch. We just have to get a little bit more out of it than we got the last day and hopefully that'll be enough to make us very competitive.”