Phelan proud despite defeat as Laois minors push Galway all the way

LAOIS minor hurling manager Brendan Phelan struck a tone of pride after his side’s narrow four-point defeat to Galway, praising his players’ effort while acknowledging the disappointment of falling short.

Despite the result, the Laois boss was encouraged by the level of performance his side produced against one of the competition’s strongest teams. He pointed to the groundwork laid earlier in the season as evidence that such a display was always within reach.

“Look, you have to be fierce proud of the lads, First and foremost we came to win the game, that was our goal during the week. We didn’t do that though, so we are disappointed with that.” “Performance-wise we knew that type of performance was within the lads. We had a good few challenge matches during the start of the season where the lads performed really well. We knew if we got our own game right that we could bring a big performance.” Competing in Tier 1 has been a challenge for Laois, but Phelan believes his players answered any lingering doubts about their place at this level.

“We said all along to the boys that we are capable of competing in Tier 1 and after today we silenced any of the doubters who have doubted us and maybe thought we didn’t belong in Tier 1.” At half-time, Laois trailed by six points, yet there was no sense of panic in the camp. Instead, Phelan felt his team was exactly where it needed to be.

That belief translated into a strong second-half showing, as Laois battled back and pushed Galway all the way to the final whistle.

“We said to them, we wanted to be there or thereabouts at half-time. We weren’t panicking at all. At half-time, although we were six behind, we were exactly where we wanted to be. We were right in there competing in the match.

“We said to the players to give it everything to the cause in the second half. And in fairness, our lads stood up and were counted in the second half and that’s what you want as a manager.” Attention now quickly turns to next weekend’s clash with Wexford, a game that could prove pivotal in determining Laois’ progression hopes. Phelan is keen to carry the positives forward while maintaining high standards.

“It’s very important to bring in the positives into the Wexford game next weekend. Lads are disappointed because we lost the match, which just shows where our ambitions are. We have ambitions to get to a semi-final.” He also acknowledged the quality of the opposition, noting that Galway remain among the leading contenders for provincial and national honours.

While proud of the effort, Phelan was clear that there will be no complacency. The focus, he insists, is firmly on improvement “Galway are a decent team; they are probably the favourites for the Leinster championship and contenders for the All-Ireland. So, we will bring that performance today and give Wexford a rattle next weekend.

“If we didn’t believe we should be where we are, we wouldn’t be here. We have areas where we need to improve next weekend.

“First and foremost, we have to rectify what went wrong today. We are not going to sit back and pat ourselves on the back after a good performance. We want to drive it on and look at where we can improve. There is always room for improvement.”