Morris: 'We want to make our own history in Ulster'
Gaelic games
Jordan Morris says Kingscourt Stars are determined to end Cavan’s long wait for a win in the Ulster Club Championship when they face Fermanagh champions Erne Gaels on Saturday week (November 8).
No Cavan club has won a game in the competition since Cavan Gaels reached the final in 2017, and before that, no side had managed a victory since 2009 (Cavan Gaels over St Gall’s). For Morris, that represents both a challenge and an opportunity.
“Yeah, I saw that stat and it was a bit surprising to be fair,” the 25-year-old told the Anglo-Celt last week, speaking prior to the Fermanagh SFC final replay.
“Colin Kelly has us well drilled. We were back training during the week and it’s full focus on the Fermanagh champions. He wants to make inroads and so do we. Kingscourt were such a powerhouse in the ’80s and ’90s, getting to Ulster finals and winning games. We want to try and emulate that as much as we can and make our own history. It’d be great to start by winning a game if we can and then who knows what could happen.
“I’ve gone to loads of Ulster Club games over the years. The intensity and hard hitting is as high as any county game I’ve seen. It’ll be a challenge, but I’m really looking forward to it and the rest of the boys are as well.”
The Meath forward, who was instrumental in Kingscourt’s county title win, admits the achievement still hasn’t quite hit home.
“To be fair, it probably hasn’t all sunk in yet. Even winning there a week and a half ago, it still won’t sink in until we walk out and play the Fermanagh champions. It’s an Ulster game, Cavan champions, time to go – I don’t think many saw that coming. It’s an unbelievable feeling to top it off by winning a county championship. I don’t think many saw that coming bar ourselves maybe.”
Reflecting on their impressive county final win over Gowna, Morris said the group never got caught up in outside talk.
“Yeah, it was great but we don’t really feed into any of that talk. We just take it game by game and team by team and it just so happened that we beat Gowna by nine or ten points in the end, which topped it off nicely. Even with two or three minutes to go, I looked up at the clock and we were nine or ten up, I was like, ‘they’re still going to come back’ because I’ve seen it being done so many times and especially Gowna. They made us really work to the very end, no matter what the scoreline was.”
Although better known nationally as a Meath senior footballer, Morris’ roots in Kingscourt run deep. His father Gary played for the club and Jordan was on the team bus when the Stars won the championship in 2010.
“I actually remember it fairly well,” he said of that win.
“I just remember looking up to the likes of Toasty (Alan Clarke) and Philly Smith, big guns for Kingscourt down through the years. What I mostly remember are the celebrations after. The boys were on the lorry and my grandad carried me up with them, celebrating with them. They are memories that stick and they definitely stuck with me, seeing the town turn blue and all the crowds. It definitely played a bit of part in my mind when coming back to the club.”
The TUD student had his share of injury concerns this season but managed to overcome them.
“Yeah, I think most people know about the knee injury I had but maybe a week before the Gaels game I popped my hamstring in training on the Friday night. It didn’t sound too good so I thought it might be an eight or ten-week job, but it only ended up being three or four.
“I got back in reasonable time. I didn’t risk it in the Crosserlough game, it was a bit close to the quarter-final, but everything was all good by the time of the Ballyhaise game. It cleared up reasonably well, thank God. It was grand, there was no re-occurence. There was no minding it, I wouldn’t be one for minding anyway.”
Kingscourt were listed as 16/1 outsiders for the championship but Morris said the chatter about the so-called ‘Big Three’ was never referenced.
“Not really to be fair. It doesn’t really come up. We know we’re in the big three. We don’t have to go out and say it to people, ‘oh we should be in the big three’. We are, and we know we are and we’ll hopefully always be, looking at the underage in the club. It doesn’t really bother me or any of the lads I’d be close to. It wouldn’t really come into our heads. We’re on the other side of the county, we’ll just rock up, we’ll do our work and we’ll go home. That’s it.”
It’s been a long campaign for Morris between Sigerson Cup, National League, Leinster and All-Ireland with Meath before turning his focus to Kingscourt but he insists he still feels fresh.
“I feel fresh anyway but when all is said and done now, I’ll look forward to a few weeks’ break. It’s a long season for county players. I started training last October, the second or third week of October, so I’m on the go now a full 12 months – well, barring the injuries but I was still on the go. For a county player, it’s so hard, I don’t know, maybe to stay motivated for 12 months of the year.
“I feel fresh, but talking to a few other boys, like Summerhill boys who won the county championship, they’re massively fatigued. It’s a tricky one now for the GAA to manage. When you’re training nine months of the year, of course, you’re going to be picking up injuries. It’s going to be a tricky one for them to make the call on. The split season doesn’t really work for a county player, in my opinion.”
He is back in college in Dublin and plans to line out again in the Sigerson Cup after Christmas.
“Yeah, hopefully. Fingers crossed I’ll be fit enough for it. It starts mid-January, so there’s a bit to go yet. Looking forward to that.”
As for comparisons between Meath and Cavan club football, Morris sees little difference.
“I think they’re mostly the same. Both have three or four top clubs that might rule the roost in semi-finals and finals. And in terms of standard, it’s much of a muchness in my opinion anyway, there’s not much between them. There’s no difference that I can put my finger on to be fair.”
And while Kingscourt will be without their county man Padraig Faulkner for the Erne Gaels clash, Morris is confident the Stars can adapt.
“Yeah, Padraig is due a break. It’s probably killing him to miss this game but we have men there to come in to fill the gap. Maybe not as well as Padraig but they’ll definitely do a job. If we get over the line, you might see him again, you never know.”