Stephen Bradley: ‘Our style of play wears teams down mentally and physically, and when that happens gaps appear and we exploit them’

Macdara Ferris reports from Roadstone

It is the usual busy Sunday morning at the Shamrock Rovers Academy with the boys and girls teams gathering in the Roadstone venue. The men’s senior team meanwhile are getting their food after a light training session ahead of Monday’s match against Shels.

It seems the sun is out for the first time in the year, just as it seems the season looks to be really kicking into gear for Shamrock Rovers. After their impressive 3-1 win in Derry on Friday, the Hoops will go top on Monday if they win in Tolka Park against Damien Duff’s Shelbourne.

To escape the clamour of the underage teams, extratime.com steps into the empty Rovers transition year class room with three other members of the media to have a relaxed chat with the Hoops Head Coach Stephen Bradley.

The win over Derry was yet another match this season when the Hoops have put their opponents to the sword in the second half. Of Rovers’ goals this season, just the two of them have come in the first half, the remaining 15 have all been second half goals.

extratime.com asked the Hoops boss was there any frustration with the lack of first half goals or is it a case of credit to his team for taking on board half-time instructions? Bradley believes it is more a case that his team’s possession based play wears down their opponents in the second 45.

“There is no frustration,” said Bradley about low number of goals in the opening 45 minutes of their matches. “People will look at those facts and jump on them but if you look on Friday, Richie (Towell) has a ball cleared off the line from two yards out (in the first half). If that goes in nobody is talking about it (first half goals).

"I'll take every goal in the last minute if we win 1-0. It doesn't bother me when it comes. First or last minute.

“What it does show is that the players adapt very quickly to what they see on the pitch and that our style of play wears teams down.

"Sometimes it’s not enough, I know people will say ‘get it in the box, get it forward’ but I think over a period of time our style of play wears teams down mentally and physically and when that happens gaps appear and we exploit them.

"It’s definitely a bit of a compliment to how we play, we know what we do is draining to the opposition.”

Group think

The four-in-a-row was won last year with a dozen players playing a part in each of the title winning campaigns. Being able to work with a stable squad over the years enables the manager to tailor the amount of information he gives each of his players thinks Bradley.

“Over time when it’s the same group, you can layer more detail onto it because they understand the basic principles of what we do. When you know the players, you know you can give them layers of information rather than just snippets.”

The Hoops have lined out with three-at-the-back throughout this latest four-in-a-row era. In the last calendar year they have played either a 3-4-2-1 or 3-4-1-2 formation more than half the time (with 3-5-2 or 3-4-3 equating to over 25%).

“What really helps is our principles and our style doesn’t change, you have to respect the opposition but our core principles don’t change. I think that goes into the information we give them. But because the group is so steady over the years, you can give them that and over the game, week on week, and you can layer that up. 

“You have Graham (Burke) who is really mature in how he plays now, you can really load him with information. There are certain players you won’t give all that information.”

Bradley smiles when there is a polite request to name names, noting simply that he knows there are some players who they won’t load up information on as “you’d just bog them down.”

Having been in the job with the Hoops since 2016 and having brought all the players in the current squad to the club, the Rovers gaffer knows his players. 

“You see who wants the information and whose willing to take it and if you give the wrong person the information, he’ll just think about it all game and not play his game. It’s about understanding individuals.”

Talking about Josh Honohan who joined the Hoops this season and has played in every game (starting all but one) in a year when he is also completing his Commerce degree, Bradley said: “Josh has learnt a whole new system and a completely different way we play. He’s played five positions already this year for us.

"We’ve got to be really careful of overloading Josh. He’s come from Cork (who were relegated last season) to where the club expects to win, and you’re trying to layer information and he’s got to learn on the job.

“He’s gone from left back to right back, to outside centre back, he’s finishing his exams in college, and he’s working with Mary (Larkin – Rovers’ sports psycologist) off the pitch. There is so much that goes into his head, so you’ve got to be really careful. He’s got a lot going on.”

Statement

A win on Monday in Tolka Park will send Rovers top after, what is put to Bradley, was a statement 3-1 win in Derry. 

“Genuinely we are not about making statements, that doesn't come into our thought process. We don't talk about it. We do what we do and whatever people make of that outside, they make what they want. 

“This club and this team, you are only ever one result away from a crisis,” said Bradley about the view of Rovers from the outside. “We lose in Tolka a few weeks ago and 'the world is ending, we're finished'. We are not about making statements.

"We focus on what we do, what we did well, and what we didn't do well in the last few weeks. If people want to label our results a certain way, that's fine.

“It's not a disaster for us in here (when the team loses) as you understand the process and what we are doing, but outside, yeah. You have to take a bit of pride in that as you've built it to a standard where people expect us to win and you have to be very careful with that as you've no divine right to win any game of football.

“You can't become arrogant with that as a team or a club, you need to stay focused. We are pretty good at staying focused and staying measured if we win, lose or draw. I understand the reaction outside to our results as people react to results and if it's bad, it's doomsday and if it's good, it's high.

"You take pride in that as we have built to that with the levels over the years. We've been the ones striving so we take that as a compliment.”

Top TV action

Monday’s match will be played out in front of a sold out Tolka Park crowd with Virgin Media TV’s cameras transmitting the live action around the country of a game where a victory for the Hoops would send them above Shels and top of the table.

“If we win, we are top, but what is it, April? If we stay fourth until early November and then go first, that means we are going to win the league, so it doesn’t bother me (about going top now) because I know where the group is, I feel they are getting better, but there is so much more to come.”

When the sides met earlier in the season at Tolka Park, Shelbourne won 2-1 – the first league win for the Reds over Rovers’ first team since 2005. “We didn’t respect the game for 20 minutes over there and we were 2-0 down which lost us the game.

"We know how they will set up and we will treat them with the respect they deserve. They are top of the league. 

“But 90% of what we do is on us. The players have the detail of what Shelbourne do but it is about what we do. If we perform as we are capable of doing, it is about them having to worry about us rather than the other way around.

"We did that on Friday (in Derry). And we will do it in Tolka. We are not saying it is going to be easy but that is what we aim to do. We will not be worrying about opposition.”

The Good Place

Bradley gave a brief update on his squad’s not so brief injury list after the Derry game. “We pushed Rory Gaffney a bit last week. He was still a bit sore but he came through Friday no issues. Trevor Clarke got more minutes. Johnny Kenny came on and he had no reaction. Sean Kavanagh was back on the bench.

“You look what we have to come back into the group and I feel they are going to get better. I sense a real focus and calmness around them at the moment and I like when we have that focus and calmness off them. I feel we are in a good place.” 

After we finish up speaking with Bradley, Jack Byrne stops for a quick chat with the assembled media. He is back running and is expected to play next month.

When he returns to the Rovers line up, then the Hoops will be in a very good place and possibly in postion on top of the table.

Watts the story in Derry glory – Bradley on Dylan Watts’ vital contribution to Hoops win over Derry and their season so far https://t.co/f5ddGYPQJ5pic.twitter.com/RIeZ2FA6t4

— extratime.com (@ExtratimeNews) April 21, 2024