TJ Brennan says he was "shocked" to discover that the Clarinbridge senior hurling team's player charter had been leaked to the public in late November.
The charter garnered negative attention for some eyebrow-raising demands like players requiring the management team's permission to take holidays and consume alcohol. Players were also obliged to have "no other sporting commitments past June", including golf.
"I didn't think it would get out at all in the first place and then when it did, I was shocked to see how far it went," Clarinbridge and Galway hurler Brennan said at the launch of the 2024 Electric Ireland Fitzgibbon Cup.
Pictured is UL and Galway hurler, TJ Brennan, as Electric Ireland teams up with six intercounty Camogie and GAA stars to look ahead to the upcoming matches and rivalries across the Electric Ireland Camogie Third Level Championships and the Electric Ireland GAA Higher Education Championships. Mandatory Credit ©INPHO/Dan Sheridan
Clarinbridge have a talented squad featuring Galway senior hurlers like Evan Niland, Gavin Lee, Oisin Salmon and Brennan. The 2011 All-Ireland champions exited last year's Galway SHC at the quarter-final stage to Loughrea, a disappointing campaign for the club.
"We probably hadn't put in a huge effort, we felt, ourselves, so we probably went a bit too sternly with [the player charter]," said Brennan.
"It was very sternly [put] alright, but in saying that, we were only trying to improve ourselves as well.
"I think it was just to scare lads really, just show ourselves really that we're focusing on hurling and nothing else. It wasn't meant to be shown to anyone else.
"These things happen. Everyone's human. It's gone now, it's water under the bridge."
30 April 2023; Conor Fogarty of Kilkenny under pressure from Galway players Daithi Burke, left, and TJ Brennan during the Leinster GAA Hurling Senior Championship Round 2 match between Kilkenny and Galway at UPMC Nowlan Park in Kilkenny. Photo by Ray McManus/Sportsfile
One of Brennan's main aims for 2024 is locking down a starting position in the Galway team.
"It's tough to get into the team," said the defender.
"I got a few starts but just didn't hold onto them."
Galway were eliminated from last year's championship by Limerick in the All-Ireland semi-finals, the same stage as 2022. That was despite leading the eventual champions by six points after 29 minutes.
8 July 2023; The Galway squad stand for Amhrán na Bhfiann before the GAA Hurling All-Ireland Senior Championship semi-final match between Limerick and Galway at Croke Park in Dublin. Photo by Stephen Marken/Sportsfile
"I know we finished in the same place we finished in the year previous but I thought we left the Leinster final behind us," said Brennan.
"I thought we did a lot of good things throughout the year, put ourselves in a great position against Limerick but didn't sustain it. We did a lot of things right throughout the year and definitely evolved a bit.
"When Limerick hit their purple patch, we let them score too much and didn't shut it down quick enough.
"We'll always feel like we're in with a chance. Munster is so competitive, you never know who is going to come out of it.
"If you don't believe you can stop Limerick, you're wasting your time going out there in the first place.
"Even talking to Mark Rodgers, my UL teammate, Clare have pushed them closer than anyone and actually beat them in the round robin series last year.
"Just beating Limerick doesn't give you a medal. You have to perform in semi-finals and finals."
Through its #FirstClassRivals campaign, Electric Ireland will continue to celebrate the unexpected alliances that form between county rivals as they come together in pursuit of some of the most coveted titles across Camogie and GAA.
