Scots must attack Irish - McNeil
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SCOTLAND manager Drew McNeil has promised all out attack as his side attempt to overcome a six-point deficit in the second leg of this year’s Shinty/Hurling international.
The match goes ahead at Cusack Park, Ennis, in County Clare, and is the highlight of a weekend of events with Friday night floodlight international action at under-21 level while a Scotland women’s team will face a Clare Camogie select tomorrow.
Late goals from Kevin Bartlett and Neil MacDonald have kept the Scots in with a fighting chance after the first leg, but they still need to pull back six points against a formidable Irish side.
The Scots were given a boost in midweek when last Saturday’s tormentor in chief Pat Horgan pulled out of the Irish side, but his replacement Seamus Callanan is a top grade hurler and is certain to cause the Scottish defence plenty of problems.
Horgan hit 23 points in his side’s 25-19 win at Bught Park and a measure of his standing in the sport was given this week when he was voted into the GAA "All Stars" team along with Kilkenny’s Tommy Walsh, who will face the Scots tomorrow.
McNeil’s promise of taking the game to the Irish on their own turf is not just hollow rhetoric, but is based on the change of tactics which saw Scotland recover from a hesitant start last weekend to produce a strong second half performance.
"We decided to push more players forward to support John Stewart in the second half and it worked, said the Scots boss. "We will be doing the same on Saturday, so I am confident we can get a result.
"We have a young team and they are on a steep learning curve. Last Saturday was an eye opener for some of the new players and they are desperate to have another go at the Irish."
Under the arcane rules, Ireland lead the 2012 series 3-1 with two points awarded for the win and another for scoring two or more goals. Scotland’s late flurry, which brought two goals, earned them a single point.
The aggregate score of the two matches will decide the winner in the event of the points being tied.
