By Pádraic Ó Ciardha

WHEN the rest of us were tucking into our turkey sandwiches and selection boxes on Stephen’s Day, the Maigh Cuilinn footballers were being put through their paces on their home pitch in Baile Dóite as they continued their preparations for an All-Ireland semi-final meeting with Derry champions Glen.

While it’s usually a period of indulgence, and overindulgence in most cases, it was a very different Christmas for Don Connellan and his players this time around. After a hectic 2022 campaign which saw them crowned Galway senior football champions for just the second time and which also saw the Connacht title follow the Frank Fox out west in early December, there hasn’t been a whole lot of time for Maigh Cuilinn to sit back and savour their success as this weekend’s trip to Croke Park loomed large.

Connellan says the players were given some time after that Connacht final victory over Tourlestrane of Slige to celebrate and recuperate, but it wasn’t long until the bibs and cones were out again and it was back to business as training continued over the holidays.

“We did a bit Stephen’s Day, just to keep it going. It’s new territory for us,” says the Roscommon native. “It’s different if you’re Corofin, where maybe they had every winter and Christmas planned down to a tee, but it’s all new to us. We’ll see whether we managed it ok.”

Outside of the pitch, Connellan says he was light on the instructions given to his players on how to enjoy their Christmas, believing there wasn’t much need to warn his men off the extra slice of ham or the heavy pour on the wine.

For more, read this week’s Galway City Tribune.

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