The Dublin lads have been around the Croke Park block a few times in recent years. They know the drill.
Still, there are a few of the current squad that will be making a quick dash to the toilets before a ball is thrown in and Mayo come into clear focus.
Ahead of Sunday’s All-Ireland final – Dublin’s fifth in seven years – SportsJOE spoke with Alan Brogan about pre-match preparations and found the Class of 2017 are some men for taking massive days in their stride.
Alan Brogan
The three-time All-Ireland winner played three championship summers under currents Dubs boss Jim Gavin and stresses that the most important thing on All-Ireland final week is avoiding the side-shows. He says:
“Most of the decisions about suits for the post-match dinner and ticket allocations for players will have been sorted by Jim Gavin and his staff weeks in advance. Jim takes all that razzmatazz away from the players so they can focus on the task at hand. All the players will get to their hotel room and find all their suits and casual gear laid out for them.”
Told about Richie Hogan [nine All-Ireland wins] sleeping on the team bus on the way up from Kilkenny to Dublin, Brogan reveals that pre-match snoozes are a common enough practice.
“There are about seven or eight of the Dublin lads that would have grabbed some sleep in the lead-up to the match. In my last few years [of playing], when the kids arrived, my sleep might not have gone so well leading into a game.
“There was a room where you could head in to get away from stuff and throw yourself down on a beanbag. I’d go in around 11 or 12 and get an hours’ sleep or so.
“You might be a bit nervous when you wake up on the morning of the game but I always found that once I met up with the lads it would bring on a real sense of calm.”
That sense of calm may last all the way up to arriving at Croke Park and doing warm-ups on the pitch but, as the game drew closer, Brogan always recalled a change in some quarters. “One or two guys would have struggled with the nerves,” he says, “and there might have been some late dashes into the jacks.”
Bernard Brogan
Bernard Brogan does not have big brother Alan close at hand on matchday anymore but his own preparations have not changed too much over the years.
After getting in a breakfast of omlette, toast and coffee, the Dublin forward has made a habit of visiting his parents’ house for a chat about everything and anything. Preferably not about football.
He used to make the trip to the Gibson Hotel with his brother but Paddy Andrews is his new travel companion for those short hops. Brogan prefers to block out all thoughts on his upcoming match until he arrives at the ground. Once he gets there, music helps focus the mind. Brogan says:
“I wouldn’t be a massive music man. Some of the lads would have headphones on four hours before the game. I listen to a few tunes prior to the game to get a bit of energy going.
“I’ve an awful taste in music. I’m into my commercial dancing and I like a bit of Michael Jackson. I always like to listen to the Michael Jackson stuff [before the game] as well, which is a bit odd but we all have our own issues! The music is just a good way of getting you going.”
Jack McCaffrey
Jack McCaffrey is another creature of habit, and superstition. He says:
“I have the same breakfast before a game. I listen to the same music on the bus as we are heading in. I actually have geographical landmarks, where I now to click to the next song on the iPod.
“When you get to the dressing room, you’re straight out to watch whatever game is on before. In to play a bit of keepie-uppies. Then you go out; same place for the team photo. The [superstitions] kind of creep in but they do relax you before a game.”
A fifth All-Ireland since September 2011 awaits if Dublin can break Mayo hearts this weekend. Winning has become as natural to this team as their easy, relaxed pre-match preparations but, make no mistake, these men are taking nothing for granted.
Alan Brogan training kids at SuperValu’s #BehindTheBall Volunteer Camp at Skerries Harps. The camps are taking place nationwide and are designed to encourage more parents to lend their support and get involved in their local clubs throughout the country.
