Inside Track: Johnny was right: A team’s strength is in its subs

We were togging out for a club game in St Brigid’s Park. There were only 18 of us, and that meant the team more or less picked itself.

When it was read out, Johnny (we’ll call him that because that was his name.) hadn’t made the first 15.

“Ah,” said one said one of the boys, rather cruelly I thought, “you’re in the subs again, Johnny.”

READ NEXT: Inside Track: We read about it just hours after Rory sinks that final putt

If Johnny was upset with what Billy (same as above) said, or with not being picked, he didn’t show it, but instead came out with a remark that has stuck with me ever since.

“It’s not so long ago since you were in the subs, Billy, but let me tell you, a team’s strength is in its subs.” Big cheer all round, Billy sorry he had opened his mouth.

As I said, I have often recalled the bit about a team’s subs, especially over the past number of weeks while taking in Louth’s league matches and the championship outing with Laois.

Back in the day, club and county managements worked with no more than about 24 players at most. Now there are upwards on 40, 26 for match days, the rest in the training party.

Ger Brennan and his sidekicks have had to go through the list quite often as injuries and players’ loss of form took their toll. What they came up with to start games and make changes over the 70 minutes has worked well.

The totem pole, Sam Mulroy, had to sit out the crucial Meath match. In his absence, a new-look forward line went to war and came up with a winning formula.

There were even more gaps to fill for last Sunday week’s championship in Newbridge, and this time there was need for further change, Tommy Durnin joining Mulroy on the edges. The midfield pairing was together for the first time.

Durnin entered the fray just before the break, and was joined later by Craig Lennon, for whom the selectors had to find a replacement for almost the entire league.

What they came up to replace the St Mochta’s player helped garner enough points to make sure Division Two sides will again be visiting here next season.

Players called from the bench during the last two matches made an impact, Conor Brannigan in the Meath match and Dylan McKeown last Sunday week. And, of course, also important the last day was Durnin and Lennon’s introduction.

What it all means is that Brennan knows that, like Johnny, when he looks to the bench, or in his case the panel, he sees strength, players he knows can do a job if called upon, or even put in from the start.

Louth’s game with Kildare on Sunday is a repeat of last year’s semi-final, and the third time both sides have met in a little over twelve months. Louth won both games, the first victory helping Brennan’s side retain league status.

It was tight at Carlow and again for the championship tie. Louth took most of their chances in the Croke Park match, but Kildare frittered away several of theirs. It ended 0-17 to 0-14.

To illustrate a point made earlier, as many as seven players who saw duty that day, either as first choices or substitutes, probably won’t start next Sunday, maybe not even make it on to the programme. The selectors won’t lack confidence in who they send in.