Monday 8 September 2014

INTERVIEW: CRAIG MCCLEAN [CRUSADERS]

Danske Bank Premiership side Crusaders were kind enough to loan their defender Craig McClean to us earlier in the summer for a brief interview. The results of which are as follows;


How do you feel last season went for the club?
All in all it wasn’t a bad season when you consider we qualified for Europe through the league and also got to two cup finals and a semi final of another cup. But, at the same time, we will think back on what might have been. We could have had two cups had we won two penalty shoot outs. We are also disappointed how the league campaign finished when you consider we were top just before Christmas. Hopefully these disappointments can drive us on to go a step further this season.
What were some of the highs and lows of the 2013/14 campaign for you personally?
I’m not really one for looking back, this coming season is what matters now. The lows were obviously losing two cup finals and on a personal level getting a knee injury at the end of February was disappointing. But, I’m back to full fitness now and excited for the new campaign starting.
How has pre-season gone for you on a personal level so far?
Pre-season has gone very well for both myself and the team. I feel fit and hungry, I’m ready for the domestic campaign to start. Due to our European campaign we have had four high quality competitive games and only a limited number of friendlies against local sides. The European games are a great experience, especially away from home. The fitness gained from these games can not be replicated by running hills or playing local opposition from lower leagues.
We're quickly approaching the 2014/15 kick-off, what are you looking forward to most this season?

The Irish League is very competitive with lots of teams at a similar level, therefore every game is a tough game. I’m looking forward to seeing how things pan out over the first number of weeks and hopefully we can get off to a good start, that is very important if we are to challenge for the title as we hope to do.

No comments:

Post a Comment