Dowd insists that every player has got a ‘fair crack of the whip’
BRING ON THE KINGDOM: Mark Dowd is hopeful that Roscommon can put in a performance against Kerry and see where it takes them. Picture: INPHO/Dan Clohessy
Mark Dowd feels that every player has got a “fair crack of the whip” as he sits down this week to pick his starting line-up for Sunday’s trip to Fitzgerald Stadium, Killarney.
Roscommon will be rank outsiders heading to the home of the All-Ireland champions but despite mixed results in the FBD League, the new Roscommon manager is confident that his side can produce a performance to generate some momentum for the remainder of their Division One campaign.
“When lads come in, they have to put their hands up and take their chance. There will be no one saying after three games in the FBD that they didn’t get a fair crack of the whip. Some lads have put up their hand looking for that starting spot against Kerry.
“We have a panel of 35 players there at the moment, excluding the St. Brigid’s and Strokestown lads. In fairness to the players we have, they’re training hard. We’ve mixed a bit of experience with youth and freshness. If they’re called to go in next weekend, at least they’ll have game time under them.
“We’d be working hard to try and get a result going down to Kerry with a full-strength squad. It’s the same attitude with what we have,” he said in the aftermath of Friday evening’s one-point defeat against Sligo in the FBD Shield final at the Connacht GAA Centre of Excellence in Bekan.
Reflecting on that performance against the Yeats County, Dowd felt that Roscommon had upped the ante in the second half after a disappointing opening 30 minutes where they were probably fortunate to be only two points behind at the break.
“We wouldn’t have been happy with our first-half performance. We felt that we were too ponderous on the ball.
“We asked for a bit more aggression and cohesiveness in the second half, and I thought we got it. Our intensity levels were raised after half time. What we asked for at half time, we got in the second half. The workrate was there.
“For some lads, it was their first game on the pitch this season. It was important to get minutes into those guys, which we did, and that was good to see as well,” he pointed out.
While Friday evening’s overall performance lacked cohesion, the role of the FBD League, in Dowd’s eyes, was to give players game-time as opposed to prioritising results.
“We’ve tried a number of players through the FBD. We’ve played challenge games, and it has been the same thing. We’re conscious that we wanted to get as many minutes into as many lads as we could.
“Winning a FBD League Shield final in the middle of January wasn’t our ultimate goal. It was a case of minding a few bodies (on Friday evening) — resting a few players to give other lads a chance. We want everyone to put their hand up and be in contention for the next day,” he concluded.
