GAA/Interview: Keith Duggan talks to Tom Carr as he prepares Roscommon to face his old charges in Hyde Park.
A sideshow, Tom Carr describes it as. And he is right. The pathos of the occasion is appealing to the general public; tomorrow's league game of the day is undeniably a reunion of sorts for Carr and his native county.
In his adopted home at Hyde Park he will stand as close to the Dublin players as when he worked and nurtured them through a high-profile period that brought both elation and uncomfortable exposure. When he sees the fluttering blues of the jersey that he wore for a generation, certain feelings will be evoked. You don't forget where you are from, especially when that has defined you. But in this case, it really doesn't matter.
"To Roscommon football, it is an irrelevance where I am from. It is just circumstance. And all the paraphernalia attached to this game, it is not important. The players are aware of that. What is significant here is that we persevere with our aim of preserving our division one status, because we are not safe yet."
The Roscommon post was the perfect managerial follow-up to Carr's high profile and exhausting tenure with the capital city team. He wore his heart on his sleeve throughout his days with Dublin, an articulate and impassioned young manager who did a lot of things right but seemed to skip Sunday school the day they doled out good luck. He was a player's manager and accepted the botched manner in which the county board terminated his services with a lot of dignity. His public utterances about Dublin since his dismissal have been measured and utterly supportive of his former players.
During his winter drives to Roscommon, he has been allowed shed the "former Dublin Manager" skin at his leisure. His performances in the loaded section of Division 1A have been quietly reassuring and allowed Carr to reflect on the differences in managing his native county and a solid if conservative county like Roscommon.
"In Dublin, of course, expectations are always excessive. Regardless of the talent available, the demands do not change. I think in Roscommon, the ambition of the players and perhaps the supporters are maybe the opposite and I would like to see them raised again."
It has given him a chance to reflect, working with a county that is fairly much left to its own devices. In Dublin, he could hardly buy a new pair of shoes without drawing comment. That is the nature of the job. On his way through his new county, he can drive for miles without seeing a soul. Achieving that distance from his home city has been instructive, just as getting to know what Roscommon's about has, thus far, been an enriching experience.
"I found a county with a strong football tradition, undoubtedly. A county with a tendency to come strong now and again and to achieve something of significance about every 10 years. The way I would classify Roscommon now is that we are in the chasing pack behind the five or six top teams in the country. We are at the next tier but are capable of challenging for a place in that top flight. Why Roscommon aren't already there is something we have to identify. Because I don't believe the counties lack players - there is no great difference in the resources available here than there was in Dublin. I think it comes down to belief and experience and expectation."
In a group that has been notoriously difficult to read - and play in - the steadiness of Carr's early campaign has been notable. Armagh began the season on a different plane, pushing aside all comers to extend a winning streak that was finally severed by Tyrone a fortnight ago. But all the other teams have been sniping of each other and Roscommon, apart from an aberration against Kerry, have made close outings of all their games.
"Theoretically we could lose our final two games and survive in this division but as far as we are concerned, we have more to do yet. But so far is has been quite pleasing. We have challenged in each of our games and I think the team responded well to the more unsettling aspects of last year's experiences."
One of the features of the league has been the fact that Roscommon have finished three games with 14 men. It is not a fact that the manager is overly concerned with.
"Well, two of those were for second yellows and I think the challenges were exuberant rather than malicious. And also, I think that the issue of the double yellow is being handled quite poorly because too often you see a first yellow given out for fouls which really don't merit them. I think its something that should be looked at but in general, I have no worries about our discipline."
Two weeks ago, Carr was surprised to see his team engineer a facile 2-10 to 0-8 victory over Galway, their championship opponents in Salthill on May 18th. While glad of the points, he rightly emphasised that the game would be of absolutely no consequence when the teams met again. That May encounter represents a daunting beginning to Carr's championship era with Roscommon and such is the complexity of the league table going into the closing round of games, it is possible that it will be utterly forgotten about. A general dogfight for survival begins in earnest tomorrow.
With Donegal already consigned to a season in the marshes, Galway and Dublin face a tough run in. Roscommon are balanced between a sticky few hours and a late push for the play-offs. It is a nice position.
"All of the games have been big games so far and this is no different. Any game against Dublin is big but as regards my old involvement, that is insignificant."
He admits he is happy that he does not have to take the journey back to Parnell Park for a day that resonates strongly enough as it is. "Yeah, I think that's true. I think this way is easier." And anyway, Hyde Park is home now.
