Damien Duff's decision not to impose 'ridiculous' booze ban is reaping rewards
Shelbourne captain
Damien Duff doesn’t see the point of slapping booze bans on his Shelbourne players - and his captain reckons it’s a masterstroke.
Shels had to fight for their right to party since claiming the title on a dramatic final day of the season and Mark Coyle admits the champions milked the celebrations. But he makes no apologies for rinsing every last ounce out of team bonding nights - whether it’s before, during or after the season.
If the play hard, party hard mentality was good enough for Roy Keane’s Manchester United-led team back in the day, Coyle believes it’s good enough for the Reds.
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In an era where footballers’ every move is monitored and policed by an army of sports scientists, and where other codes impose rigorous alcohol bans, Shels cut loose. They were celebrating the end of an 18-year trophy drought after all, with Duff waking the sleeping giant of Drumcondra.
Coyle said: “I was listening to Brian O’Driscoll’s autobiography and they all emphasise how important those bonds are. You have training sessions where it’s tough and it’s hard and you get each other through. But on a night out, people start to open up a bit more and you get to know them on a deeper level and that matters massively.
“And especially when it came to the end of last season when the going got tough, because we all know each other so. You want to stand up for the man next to you and that was seen in the last three games when it really mattered - we all stood up for each other and did the job. I definitely think it’s a load of nonsense if you ever have a drinking ban to be honest with you.”
But Coyle accepts that players have to be smart about their socialising, as the era of weekly team sessions in the pub belongs to a bygone era. It’s a case of picking and choosing the right moments and Coyle said: “It’s not about getting drunk, it’s about bonding and getting to know your team-mates.
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“We pick the right times. It’s never going out on a Wednesday, that’s not allowed. It might be a weekend where we don’t have another game for seven or eight days. We have a thing where if you don’t have a genuine excuse to come out, you have to pay a fine because we know how important it is, and that’s the way it is.
“If you go out, the alcohol is out of your system after a day or two and when we do (go out) you know the next training session is always tough. You’re nearly coming in on Monday going ‘I wish I didn’t now’ because you know how tough it’s going to be, the way the manager is. We know it’s about your standards. You can enjoy yourself but you’ve got standards that he expects from us. To me, it’s so important to the game.”
Donegal man Coyle continued: “We work extremely hard and that allows us (have nights out). It’s not at stupid times, but when we do it, we make sure we party hard as well . You look at all the great teams, or you listen to The Overlap now and you’d hear Roy Keane and them about United and their bonding sessions. It’s probably proved over the test of time that these things are important.”
But the pints have been parked since December 16 as that's the day Shelbourne returned to pre-season training ahead of their title defence in 2025. Duff has been busy bolstering his squad of late with Mipo Odubeko, Daniel Kelly, Ellis Chapman and Ryan O’Kane already through the door as new signings. If some League of Ireland fans felt Duff might have burned himself out by now, they are wrong as he faces into his fourth season at Shels.
“His standards will go through the roof again next season, and he has warned us already that it will be tough,” said midfielder Coyle. “That's why it's exciting, it’s a new challenge. He had a glittering career in England and this is what he’s done his whole life, so I don't see him burning out any time soon.
“Even though he loves us lads and loves Shelbourne, he gives everything for the league and he cares about Irish football as a whole. He knows that for the national team to improve, the league has to improve and a lot of his stuff is to improve the league, get it the recognition it deserves.
“That's one of the best things about him, he actually cares a lot about Irish football and I don't get why he gets so much criticism from people outside of Shels. He has brought so much recognition to the league, to us as a club and to us as players.”
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