Father and son duo driving Cocks' Leinster bid

A chip off the old block. Never has the comparison been so apt. Mattie Dowling may be getting towards the end of his career now. And when he does hang up his boots, he will surely be remembered as one of the club’s greatest forwards. He made scoring look easy.

Now his son has arrived on the scene. This year, Aaron Dowling captained St Martins to an historic first ever minor football A championship win scoring 1-6 out of a total of 4-14. In the Leinster Junior Football Championship semi-final against St Brigids the 18 year old nailed 2-5. Like father. Like son.

Was it something Aaron was aware of?

“No. I honestly thought I took it off the mother,” he joked before getting a little bit more serious.

“Of course. Going to matches the whole time and watching him, seeing him at practice matches and going to training sessions. Both of us being inside forwards, I suppose I would have taken something from his game,” agreed Aaron.

On the field, the youngster exudes confidence. Not in a bad way. He doesn’t let things upset him either. For Tullow CS last week, he missed three early chances but didn’t over think it before ending up with a total of 0-9.

“You have to be confident. Especially in big games. You don’t want to be doing something too fast. You don’t want to put yourself under pressure. When you are calm on the ball things come to you,” he reasoned.

Yet despite his scoring feats this year, he is aware that there are others around him who also know where the posts are.

“I suppose there is a bit of pressure but in the forward line, the likes of Alan Quigley, Mattie, Cillian Fagan we are all well able to take our points. Alan and my father have been doing that for years.” 

Aaron understood what the impact for the club was when they won the championship in Carlow this year.

“It meant the world. We have been stuck in junior for so long. It is just brilliant to get there.” 

Aaron’s father, Mattie, has taken the rough with the smooth. There have been disappointments. Never more so than when they won the intermediate title in 2012 and they were then made aware that they would not be promoted to the senior grade. That season, Carlow had decided to cut their senior championship structure to eight teams from twelve. The Cocks took the legal route and after what seemed an age they won their case. Up to this year the intermediate win had been the pinnacle of Mattie’s career.

“We won junior in 1999. I was a year older than Aaron is now.

“I played in the half-forward line. I was only a young lad then and I had great experience around me. I think I did ok that day. No-one gave out to me anyway."

Despite the board room shenanigans, the 2012 team was special for Mattie.

“We had a good crop of players. A bit like this year. There was a good mix in the side. We got seven, eight good young lads and then we have a good management team.” 

If they could mix it on the field of play, the Cocks proved to be doughty opponents when it came to the politics in the board room.

“We fought our battle to go up to senior. We would probably have stayed senior but they changed it from 12 to 8 teams. Rangers beat us in a relegation final by a point. That was a blow.” 

So now they are back intermediate. They lost a junior final two years ago to St Mullins. That hurt. Brothers, Gary and Kieran Nolan, lead the management team. Locals who are doing what is best for their own club.

So what kind of father does Mattie see himself as. Is he a visible presence on the line? Can he hide his emotions when his son makes a mistake?

"He (Aaron) doesn’t do a whole lot wrong,” says Mattie.

“I don’t shout into him. I might talk to him after a game. I hope he listens. I hope he takes in a bit. If he takes in a small bit I don’t mind. He is smart and intelligent enough to play his own game. He has been in with the county at underage. As for football intelligence, he is up there,” says Mattie, who admits it was special when the two of them lined out to win a SFL 5 title recently.