Johnny Coen interview: Loughrea's golden generation making their mark with Galway
During Galway’s All-Ireland-winning 2017 season, Johnny Coen was his club’s only representative in the maroon and white jersey. The following year, Loughrea clubman Joe Mooney was a member of the Galway extended panel in 2018.
This weekend Loughrea will have four representatives part of the Galway senior hurling panel to face Limerick in the All-Ireland Hurling final. Loughrea’s Tiernan Killeen has established himself on the Galway starting XV this season, Shane Morgan has regularly been part of Galway’s 26 man panel on match day. Kieran Hanrahan’s season came to and when he ruptured his achilles in the final game of the Leinster SHC round robin series against Wexford. Galway U20 hurler Cullen Killeen is also part of the extended panel.
““It’s savage as in there’s four lads there involved from Loughrea which is unheard of really, you’ve Tiernan who’s been a mainstay on the team for a while. He’s nailed down his position in midfield this year. His brother Cullen has been hampered by injury but he’s got very good club pedigree as well but he will be earning his trade throughout,” former Galway hurler Johnny Coen told Tribune Sport.
“It’s obviously unfortunate for Hansy (Kieran Hanrahan) then as well he was in the mix, he was there, thereabouts. It was a nasty enough achilles injury that ruled him out for the rest of the year. Obviously, Shane Morgan he’s part of the first 26, if there is an injury there in the back three in particular, you could nearly see him featuring as well. It’s great to be having a good Loughrea interest but in fairness to all the clubs, they’ve all been putting their best foot forward, there’s good mix of clubs within the whole panel.”
Coen said it had been clear from their underage days that Tiernan Killeen, Shane Morgan, Cullen Killeen and Kieran Hanrahan were players capable of making a significant impact for Loughrea at senior level.
Loughrea have enjoyed unprecedented success over the past two seasons, claiming back-to-back Galway senior hurling titles. This year, Tommy Kelly's side also reached the All-Ireland club final before falling to Ballygunner.
Looking from the outside, Loughrea’s consistently high standard of coaching has been a major factor in that success. With experienced figures such as Tommy Kelly, Shane Cusack, Galway U20 manager Gavin Keary and Galway U20 selector Kieran Corcoran all involved, Loughrea have built an environment that continues to develop up and coming players.
“I suppose but the three boys that came onto the panel in 2021, I’m talking about Tiernan, Shane and Kieran, they were touted from under age that they were going to make a big impact. In fairness, when they came into the panel in 2021, they made an immediate impact, we were kind of in a transition period. For myself, Paul Hoban and Neil Keary we were kind of pushing on as elder statesmen in the team, , it was just great to have youth in the team. In particular, the hurling quality of those lads, they kind of drove the standards in Loughrea and it’s great to see them bringing their club form into the county set-up,” added Coen.
During Coen's final season with the Galway senior hurling panel in 2022, his Loughrea clubmate Tiernan Killeen was brought into the squad. The pair regularly travelled to and from Galway training together, sharing lifts throughout the year.
“In my last year with Henry Shefflin it was in 2022, Tiernan came into the panel that year as well. It was a good dynamic between the two of us, I was on the way out and he was on the way in, the two of us were carpooling together. It does take you time to find your feet in such a high competitive environment of a senior inter-county set up. He actually played against Westmeath in the championship that year, he had a couple of performances here and there. He has finally nailed down the position in midfield, there is a certain amount of comfort in that, he’s a very good player for Loughrea.
“His possessions are through the roof as well, I’ve never seen a man that is an absolute magnet to the ball as much as he is. The use of the ball is unreal, if he’s not scoring the delivery into the inside line particularly when it’s only Jason Rabbitte up there, the precision where he hits the ball into them is second to none,” explained the 2017 All-Ireland winner.
Earlier this year, Loughrea looked on the brink of elimination when they trailed Clarinbridge 2-10 to 0-9 after 40 minutes in their Galway Senior Hurling Championship quarter-final. Tiernan Killeen inspired a remarkable comeback, finishing with 0-12 as the reigning county champions battled back to edge the Bridge 1-18 to 2-14.
That display left a lasting impression on Coen, who felt it was the moment Killeen showed he was ready to make the step up as a starter for Galway this season.
“Last year, when we played against Clarinbridge, if we didn’t have him we would have been beaten by ten or twelve points that day. He was the guy that caught the game by the scruff of the neck and pulled us over the line. His free taking was very good, he got three or four points off Gavin Lee and TJ Brennan was there then as well. They were having a very dominant club campaign and were it not for his presence and scoring ability we would have been dumped out of the championship. This year, I’ve been lucky enough I’ve gone to a good few of the games, this year against Kilkenny I thought he was very good. In the very first game of the championship, his use of the ball and his unselfish play and I just thought, there’s savage role for that. More importantly, he’s contributing in every area of the game as well.”
Johnny Coen solidered for the Galway senior hurling team between 2011 and 2022. During his inter-county career he won one All-Ireland title and three Leinster championships. He has taken great comfort in following the Tribesmen this season.
“I’m four years gone from the panel, I left in 2022. In 2023, I only went to one or two matches that year because I just kind of said to myself I was out of the loop and I didn’t want to be annoying anyone. And I was there for so many years , the dynamic is a little bit different now I’m four years gone.
“My family have always been going to matches but I’ve my own three year old girl as well who I love bringing to matches as well, it is great to be going to all the matches. Everyone was laughing, when I was standing up fist pumping against Cork when they got eight points in a row in the second half, I was as happy as anyone to roar the points over the bar. Any kind of a contribution from the stands or anything like that, they talk about the 16th man in the Hogan or Cusack stand, they’re great days. In fairness to the players they have given the supporters an awful lot to shout about,” concluded the Loughrea clubman.