'We don't want pats on the back' Armagh Minors not happy to play the role of plucky underdogs against Derry this Sunday

The Armagh Minors will be hoping to write their names in the history books this Sunday as they contest the All-Ireland final against Derry.

The last All-Ireland crown Armagh won at this age grade came in 2009 when they defeated Mayo. Players such as James Morgan, Rory Grugan, Andrew Murnin, Gavin McParland and Niall Rowland were a part of that team and went on to make their mark on the Senior team.

The current crop with stand-out players like Shea Loughran, Daithi O’Callaghan and Diarmaid O’Rourke will be hoping to follow in those players footsteps.

The opposition is once again Derry, who defeated Armagh by just two points in the Ulster Final. Armagh came in as underdogs for that game, and their performance was generally applauded by the press and supporters.

However, Armagh manager Aidan O’Rourke saw things differently.

“The Ulster Final was a funny thing, because we kind of got credit for the Ulster Final when we felt we didn’t play well and were very frustrated after it,” he reflected.

“It was a bit galling to be getting pats on the back because we lost an Ulster Final. We would have felt that if we were anywhere close to our potential that we would have won the thing.

“So, it is Derry in the All-Ireland Final, that is fine, but it is an All-Ireland Final on its own merits, so irrespective of Derry or Kerry, it would be a huge task and huge opportunity.

“Where the boys have come from and gone to since the Ulster Final we don’t have any fears, it will be a big day and a big occasion and you fellas will have plenty of nerves and all the rest, but there is nothing to be afraid of in terms of ability and capacity to compete and to be at the level.”

‘They don’t need much guidance from us’

Armagh may have been underdogs going into the Ulster Final, but they have since proved that they belong at the top table, with a comfortable 13-point win over Leinster champions Longford followed by a seven-point win over the Connacht champions Mayo in their two most recent outings.

In the win over Mayo, they were level at the half-time break, but found another couple of gears in the second half, producing a remarkable performance which Armagh Senior manager Kieran McGeeney hailed as ‘probably one of the best underage performances we have ever seen from Armagh.’

So, what changed at half-time?

“They talked among themselves, it took them 10 or 12 minutes to settle into the game, they were very nervous for whatever reason,” said O’Rourke.

“There were a couple of mistakes, we gave up scores early on and snatched at couple of chances as well. I think it was 10 minutes before we got a score on the board and with the goal going in you would have been forgiven for thinking it was not going to be your day.

“But once they settled in and they were playing as well from that 15-minute mark in the first half as they played in the second half. They just settled into their groove and played their football, tackled hard and ran hard and continued where they left off in the second half.

“They don’t need much guidance from us really, they know what they are doing.”

Armagh were hit with a sucker punch first-minute goal in that game, as well as hitting the crossbar twice inside the opening 15 minutes.

Many other teams may have crumbled mentally, but for Armagh it seemed to galvanise them.

“They showed that against Longford. They scored a goal against the run of play and we didn’t panic,” said O’Rourke.

“There is a quare sprinkle of maturity across the group and fair sprinkle of experience of playing club at a very high level, playing schools at a very high level, that all helps and the lads on the pitch take ownership of that stuff.

“They can’t hear us on the side-line, so it is alright us ranting and raving but we are not getting anywhere with that stuff.”

Armagh a ‘business-like’ bunch

Armagh’s reward for that win over Mayo was of course a place in the All-Ireland final and with that comes increased pressure and interest, but Armagh assistant manager Stefan Forker says that it won’t be difficult to manage the big occasion, as the lads are ‘business-like’.

“That's the crop we're dealing with. The boys don't seem to get too high or too low, and that's exactly the type of person you want in your camp.

“We're business-like. Training is on this evening; turn up with the right attitude, be ready to work, get our plan, get our house in order and then execute it on the day.

“That was the big thing with the Mayo game in the second half, we executed exactly what we wanted to do and that's because the work was done.

“So how do you prepare for the day and produce on the day? You have to have your homework done, your training done, you're well versed on what you're supposed to do and you go with the right attitude.

“Hopefully it all comes off. Sometimes it doesn't, but we're hoping that we prepare them well. At the end of the day, we bring them to the table and they're hungry for it. They gobble it up.”