AFTER a six-month break, Down resume training tonight just over four weeks away from their vital Division Three fixture against Leitrim.
When GAA activities were suspended in March there were two League games left and Paddy Tally’s side need to win both (against Leitrim and Louth) to clinch promotion before they turn their attention to an Ulster Championship quarter-final against Fermanagh.
Tally and his management team – Gavin McGilly and Mark Doran – were in the Pairc Esler stand on Sunday night to watch the Down senior championship semi-finals. He intends to do all he can to have the Mournemen fully prepared for their return to action at the Newry venue on October 17/18. Promotion will give Down a perfect platform for the Championship so, in many ways, the 2020 season hinges on beating Leitrim.
“It’s a very significant game and it’s all we’ll focus on,” said Tally.
“We’ll be getting prepared and getting ready to go again and ensuring that we get the best and most productive training done we can because, before we know it, we’ll be running out here for that match and we need to make we’re ready for it.”
Way back on March 1, Down beat Offaly by eight points in Tullamore to move to within touching distance of promotion and they could well have sealed the deal had the Covid-19 pandemic not brought the GAA to a standstill.
“We were in good form at that time, the team had turned a corner and we had just started to play well,” said Tally.
“We had a good performance against Offaly in Tullamore and it left us in a good spot.
“If we had been playing the following weekend, it would have been great because the momentum was there. It has been broken now and it’s really important to get that back as soon as we can, so what we do between now and then is going to be very important to get the boys up to speed again because getting promotion is very important for Down.
“This is the second year with this squad and they have been building pretty well. They had a good year’s experience last year and now they’re ready and if they can gain promotion this year it will be fantastic and a really good start. That’s the priority at the moment – it’s very important for Down to get up a League.”
Tally says that club-county split has been very positive for his players, not just in Down but throughout the country. He has watched club games all over the county and has been impressed with the talent coming through.
“The players have games under their belts and they’ve had a couple of months’ of training,” said the Galbally native.
“The feedback from the players is that they’re looking forward to getting back in on Tuesday night.
“It’s been just over six months since we were together and you would never usually be apart for that long. Even if we had been knocked out of the Championship in June, normally you would be back for pre-season in November. This is the longest break these boys have had a way from county football so there’s a job of work to do to get them back together and get going but we’re looking forward to it.
“The squad is more or less the same as where we’d left off. Everybody who was involved at the end of the League will be back in but we’re also looking into bringing new players in too – boys who have been playing really well in the club championship – and we’ll see how they get on.
“There is an opportunity there for players to show what they can do because it’s really important at this stage that we get players who are in good shape physically, have no injuries and are playing well.”
