Away days help new faces to grow in confidence

By Shane Brophy

Another away day for Tipperary in the Tailteann Cup might not be welcome in terms of the county board coffers for bus trips and overnight stays but there are benefits according to defender Mark Corcoran.

The Clonmel Commercials youngster has made one of the corner back spots his own, and having played away to Sligo and Antrim so far in the competition, has welcomed the opportunity to get to know his new teammates better in recent weeks.

“I would be one of the younger lads on the team and staying with the lads with it being my first year on the panel so getting to know all the lads on the panel which is a good way to get to know the lads.”

He added: “It’s definitely a good competition for a young team so there's no doubt that we will be around for a while.”

A first year panellist, Corcoran has found the step up tough, both on and off the field.

“The biggest step up I have found is the sessions are a lot longer,” he said.

“It's tough going, a lot more intense, the ball moves a lot quicker, and that was tough getting the head around, and as well lads are a lot more physical, a lot bigger compared to what they are underage. You are a big man underage until you come into a senior set-up.”

It helps that he has worked with manager Niall Fitzgerald at underage level and understands what he expects of his teams.

“Fitzy would have had a lot of us underage and knows what we are capable of and has given us a lot of shots which is good,” Corcoran added.

“He is easy to work with, like so and you know where you're getting out of him every time.”