McGrath: Croker for All-Ireland final a whole new level
There's plenty of tricks and tips a team can avail of to get them ready for the biggest game of their lives - but nothing can prepare a player for the first time they run out of the Croke Park tunnel on All-Ireland final day, according to former Tipperary ace Shane McGrath.
'Listen to the roar' has become something of a catchphrase for RTÉ Sport's own Marty Morrissey. And as far as McGrath is concerned, players won't have much choice but to listen to the deafening sound of Headquarters as they burst out of the Hogan Stand tunnel on Sunday.
Speaking on this week's RTÉ GAA podcast, McGrath suggests that, while Limerick have plenty of experience of the game's biggest day, the key thing for Galway on Sunday is not to be flattened by that wall of noise.
"What this current Galway group haven't done is play in an All-Ireland final. These things are so massive," McGrath said on this week's hurling episode.
"When you’re going up for an All-Ireland final for the first time, first of all, there’s a wall of noise that comes at you when you come out the tunnel that, no matter what you do, you cannot plan for.
'A wall of sound comes at you like nothing else you're going to experience in your life'
"You've been kind of pent up inside the in the dressing room, or you’ve had a team meeting and the week has gone – and you should enjoy it.
"But when that door opens and you hear that little noise coming down the tunnel, when you take that corner – and I’m speaking as someone who has been lucky enough to do it – a wall of sound comes at you like nothing else you’re going to experience in your life.
"It takes you the warm-up to get used to that. So Limerick are used to all that, but as prepared as they are, what will the Galway boys do?"
For teams experiencing the white heat of the final for the first time, there are some work-arounds that they can take on ahead of time in order to go someway to building that match-day feeling. McGrath's Tipperary tried a few on for size ahead of their 2009 meeting with Kilkenny.
"From my own experience, of our first time before we went up – and we’re talking about one-percenters here – you would get the noise or the sound of Croke Park, you could get those noises and those sounds," McGrath explained.
"We’d play it as loud as we physically should on our speaker or sound system in our stadium – so that’s Semple Stadium for us. So that would be turned up to the last so that when you’re playing you’re A-versus-B, you’d still be able to hear each other but not as comfortably as you normally would… because you won’t hear each other on the day in Croke Park – so that’s one thing teams do."
And to answer an age-old question, what does a masseur do when they're not ironing out the kinks of a player's tired legs and back at the end of a long summer? They stand in for the President of course.
"The other thing, they will line-up and maybe do a mini-parade. Pre-parade, a lot of teams to get into the headspace of meeting the president, they will go through that," McGrath added.
"So, we 'met’ the President and the ‘President’ that day was a guy called Mick Clohessy, who was our masseur!
'The experience from running out to that wall of noise in 2009 helped us in 2010'
"For other teams, it might be the manager or a member of the backroom team and they’re the ‘President’ for the day. All these things are trying to get you into a mindset to be as comfortable as you can in this uncomfortable environment on the day."
On the day itself - along with the noise - the pageantry of the whole affair can leave a squad short of time before throw-in to go through all of their usual pre-match rituals.
On the same Sunday as the All-Ireland final, the World Cup final will take place and is set to include an extended, 25-minute half-time break to allow maximum promotional opportunities.
Galway and Limerick don't necessarily need more time at half-time. But a few extra minutes pre-match wouldn't go amiss, with everything that will be going on on the day. Teams must prepare for this eventuality as best they can.
"Your warm-up is curtailed slightly because you have to meet the President and the parade and the anthems, maybe a moment’s silence, all those things are factored in," McGrath said.
"Limerick are used to all these things. For Galway it’s their first time experiencing it and that is a factor too.
"I don’t care what anyone says, playing in Croke Park, first of all, takes some getting used to. But playing in Croke Park on All-Ireland final day is a whole different level.
"The experience we got from running out to that wall of noise in 2009 helped us in 2010.
"They will not be able to hear a word anyone is saying on All-Ireland final… even the ref talking to you, in open play, they’re not hearing each other. These are all the things you have to get used to."
Listen to the RTÉ GAA Podcast on the RTÉ Radio Player, Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or wherever you get your podcasts, and email us at sportpodcasts@rte.ie
Watch the All-Ireland Hurling Championship final, Galway v Limerick, on Sunday from 2.15pm on RTÉ2 and RTÉ Player. Follow our live blog on all matches on RTÉ.ie/sport and RTÉ News app and listen to commentary on RTÉ Radio 1
