Everybody has a plan and Limerick are no different

Before Mike Tyson gained notoriety for his ear bite of Evander Holyfield, or came to the attention of a newer audience in his cameos in The Hangover films, he was celebrated as the youngest heavyweight boxing champion ever.

Iron Mike was a ferocious fighter and one of the hardest hitters ever to enter the ring.

This was summed up in a famous response when he was asked about a future opponents movement and fighting style “Everyone’s got a plan, until they get punched in the mouth!”

The Limerick footballers can maybe appreciate this quote a bit more in the aftermath of the Wicklow game. For 50 minutes the “plan” had worked perfectly.

Going in at half time only  three points down after playing against a strong wind would have been well received, and once Seamus O’Carroll goaled in the third quarter it gave Limerick a one point lead with the wind at their backs.

But then came the sucker punch with the almost immediate concession of a sloppy goal.

And listening on East Coast FM it did sound like Limerick went away from what had been working so well.

Not ensuring guaranteed possession from own kickouts, forcing passes into areas where Wicklow had extra bodies back, allowing them to carry ball deep into the Limerick half without enough pressure and individual efforts instead of the previous team ethic.

You often here players nowadays, including Limerick hurler Seamus Flanagan recently, mention that word “process”.

The ability to stick with the game plan that has been practiced and agreed upon, no matter what errors or incidents happen during the course of the game.

Next ball mentality. You see it especially in the top teams when they concede a goal.

Almost no reaction from the goalkeeper or defenders. Only hit the reset button and get set up again for the restart.

Sticking to the process. It’s how you react to that adversity that defines you, not the adversity itself.

Now if it was as easy as that everyone would be doing it. First of all you have to have total confidence in what the game plan is and how it has been fine-tuned on the training pitch.

But an even harder thing to imprint on lads is the ability to react mentally to the blow.

To be able to park it and move on with the game, making sure to keep doing the things that got them the positive outcomes previously.

From experience, the mental side can be the hardest. It is a very individual thing. Some days it’s easier. Triggers help. A “Next Ball” call used to be one a phrase we used with Limerick.

Nothing too complicated about that. But it needs full buy in from all players, especially in a football team.

What tends to happen more often than not, and by the sounds of it happened in Aughrim last week, is that players decision making is coloured by that blow.

You see it the whole time. Things start to become forced. Low percentage stuff is attempted. It becomes a vicious circle. And games slip away in a matter of minutes like sand from an hourglass.

Leitrim are coming to town this weekend full of confidence. They sit atop the league with three wins from three and are scoring freely.

And their large following will travel in expectation of that being four from four come Saturday evening.

But Limerick know that a win on Saturday would put them ahead of Leitrim on the head to head tiebreak and in a great position again.

For two games and 50 minutes the performances were there and the game plan worked.

The concession of a soft goal was the “punch in the mouth” that Limerick had avoided up until that moment. And chatting to a few of the players this week they were very disappointed with how they handled that.

The great thing about the league is that you don’t have to wait too long for an opportunity for redemption.

And whatever about the result this weekend, the thing that is vital is that there is a positive and controlled reaction from the players on the pitch to any setbacks.

A lot of people might have heard that famous quote from Tyson before, but may not know it was said prior to his fight with Evander Holyfield.

A bout Holyfield won. Which shows that one “punch in the mouth” does not always result in defeat, once you have prepared yourself for it and are willing to stay the course.

This weekend gives Limerick the opportunity to get back up off the canvas. If they can take it to the final bell anything is possible.