Barnsley FC v Cambridge United: Conor Hourihane on inspiration from Paul Heckingbottom, lockdown lessons and sacrifice

The fifth ‘anniversary’ of strict curbs on life being imposed to tackle the spread of coronavirus in the UK arrives on Sunday and the midfielder’s ‘work from home’ saw him not only keep his fitness up, but start preparing for a second ‘career’ in football.

A significant milestone in that regard arrives at Oakwell today in his first interim home match in charge of Barnsley. Family - including Hourihane’s parents who have come over from his native Ireland - and friends will be in attendance.

It is somewhat fitting that a team from the city of Cambridge - one of England’s great seats of learning - provide the opposition given Hourihane’s journey to the dug-out, which has involved seminars, classroom work, courses, countless hours of home study, meetings and above all else, sacrifice.

On when the managerial seed was first planted for him, Hourihane said: “It was probably in and around the lock-down time and I was with Swansea with Steve Cooper and he’s a big mentor for me.

"I loved how he worked and dealt with players. I am still close to Steve now. That period made me think that is for me and how I see it and it tended to snowball from there.

"I started my coaching badges and studied the game and how I’d like it to look. Obviously it developed and adapted from there.

"I really looked into the coaching side of things over that period. I was always fascinated with podcasts and articles from managers, sporting directors, chairmen and owners. I’d write something down and think: ‘I don’t want to forget that.’

"I was always a collector of things I liked and it was in that lockdown period where it accelerated really.”

When life gradually returned to normal after Covid restrictions were lifted, Hourihane had to manage his time observantly.

After a day’s training, a different discipline would kick in as the conscientious student had to fit in study time.

When his team-mates were probably resting at home or fitting in a few rounds of golf on days off, he was doing something entirely different.

He continued: "In the last two or three years on my days off, I’d go and meet a sporting director or a head coach or somebody to pick their brains.

"It’s just a work ethic in always wanting to develop and putting the time in. I was a big believer in hard work as a player and it’s exactly the same as a coach.

"These opportunities don’t happen by chance, it’s through hard work, dedication and sacrifice and I feel like I’ve put that work in over the last three or four years to get to this period. That won’t change and hopefully the hard work will yield some results.

"It’s how much you want it in where you want to go.. Not just football and being a head coach, but in life. How much hard work and sacrifice do you want to do?

"I am a big believer that if you do the hours on your days offs that other people might not be doing, you will come through in the end."

Hourihane’s place in Barnsley folklore is assured, courtesy of those intoxicating events in 2015-16 when the Reds were victorious at Wembley on two golden occasions in the space of 57 days with the Corkonian leading the all-conquering Reds to glory against Oxford United in the EFL Trophy and Millwall in the League One play-off final.

What made that dual spring denouement stand out even more was what preceded in amid some dark days in late autumn and early winter when Barnsley were embarrassed in the FA Cup at Altrincham and looked in relegation danger in a season which ended up in promotion.

It provided a salutary lesson in the art of the possible.

The current Barnsley side which Hourihane has inherited are far from in that same spot, but plainly need reviving.

It is pushing it to suggest that a late-season renaissance in 2024-25 would propel the Reds into the top six.

But if Hourihane can breathe some life into the playing side of the club between now and May 3, he’ll have done his job and boosted his hopes of being around in the longer-term.

Just as Paul Heckingbottom did in the spring of 2016 after taking over from Lee Johnson, initially as interim head coach.

On inspiration in that regard, Hourihane, who left Barnsley to move to Aston Villa in February 2017, added: "We were near the bottom of the league around November time and Hecky takes over and the rest is history.

"That’s really important and I said that to them after Mansfield on Monday morning - they need to believe in themselves for it all to come together. Anything is possible whether it is this season or moving forward.

"Obviously as a player I had success. We had a tough period to start with (in 15-16) and then it developed into something special towards the middle to end.

"I believe in the lads and they need to believe in themselves to achieve anything they want off the back of that.”