Roy Keane, an old-school Sunderland legend and the Oakwell kit washers: Barnsley FC chief Conor Hourihane opens up on his disciplinarian side
AS a player, Conor Hourihane learnt from the best; the very best.
They included legendary former Manchester United and Republic of Ireland captain Roy Keane, whose high standards and abhorrence of sloppiness has extended into his musings from behind the microphone as well as on the pitch.
Similarly, Hourihane likes order, discipline, personal responsibility and people doing their jobs properly.
His Barnsley players already know that, including midfielders Adam Phillips and Luca Connell.
The pair were recently dropped for what Hourihane perceived to be poor standards in training. Phillips compounded things by being late for a recent team meeting, which has seen him not feature in he club’s last two games.
Matters have been resolved since and Phillips is back in the fold.
Interim head coach Hourihane said: "I got a real foundation, first and foremost, from my (Sunderland) youth team manager Kevin Ball. He was an old-school player with real determination, character, focus and standards.
"He kind of embedded it into me really. I probably only kind of realised that the more my career went on.
"At the time, I thought: ‘he’s a tough guy or whatever’. Looking back at it, the foundation he gave me and my learning when I was coming over from Ireland to England as a 16-year-old was amazing.
"You can also throw (other) people into the frame like Roy Keane, John Terry and Seamus Coleman and people like that.
"Seeing that first hand from characters like that, I have been really fortunate and it’s something (discipline) I pride myself on as a coach, player and human being as well.
"I think it's massive how you conduct yourself as a human every single day. It’s just as important as anything else and I am a big disciplinarian from that point of view.”
Hourihane’s work on the training pitch has not yet extended into a craved-for win on matchday, but he is certainly going about things the right way and he has clearly made his mark around the club on a day to day level and earned the respect of many around Oakwell in the process.
For the Irishman, the right culture and standards matter. And everyone at the club matters.
Hourihane, whose side face a daunting trip to League One champions-elect Birmingham City this weekend, added: "I stay up a couple of nights a week and I was sick of seeing Elaine and Jackie (the kit washers) turning everything the wrong way around at five or six o’clock in the afternoon when everyone was gone. Make sure your kit is turned the right way around.
"It’s about application in training in general. I think another thing was when we go to games, we all travel together.
"I thought that was really, really important for me and then if there’s any kit to be unloaded from the bus, at hotels and the ground, everyone mucks in. No-one is better than anyone else and everyone is the same.
"Help the medical staff, help each other, help the kit man and it’s a kind of ‘all in it together’ type of environment I am trying to create.”