NAOMH COLUMBA MADE THE step back into Division 2 of the All-County League having won Division 3 last year and now it’s all about continuing the progress.
Brendan Doherty’s team (pictured above) have taken well to the second tier and appear set to consolidate their place.
Since the heady days of the 1990s when contesting senior championship finals became an annual ritual for the folk of Glencolmcille, the stock dropped considerably, but Glen are on the right track again.
“We have six or seven young lads coming in now at the right time and it’s all about nurturing them and making sure they can play at senior level for us over the next few years,” Doherty says.
“There’s been a lot of work put in with underage football, too. We got good structures in place when Noel Hegarty took over as the Minor Board Chairman a few years back.
“We had great players back in the 90s, but those boys had to be replaced.”
Naomh Columba’s youngsters have also profited from involvement with the Colaiste na Carraige teams.
The likes of Ryan Gillespie, Pauric Cunningham and Paddy Byrne have graduated to become integral members of the Glen team.
There are others, too, who have made the step up, but experienced campaigners such as Michael Maguire, Kieran McBrearty and Martin Cunningham remain vital assets.
Andrew O’Gara sits out this weekend because of a broken thumb while a broken collar bone means that Declan McGuire is out of contention ahead of Saturday’s Intermediate Championship quarter-final against Gaeil Fhánada in Convoy (throw-in 5.30pm).
Those aside, a full compliment will be aboard the bus.
“It’s all baby steps for us,” Doherty says.
“This time last year and one freak result could have sent us anywhere, but we’re back up in Division 2 and the season has gone well thank God.
“It’s so tight still. A couple of results and we could slip into the relegation battle, but a couple of results on the flip side of the coin and we could be looking at promotion.
“We’re not looking beyond Sunday. We know the reward of winning the Intermediate is getting back into senior football, but really the baby steps are what we need to take – talk of playing in the senior championship is way down the road for us.”
After shipping five goals on Sunday to Sean MacCumhaills in a 5-8 to 1-14 loss, Doherty is keen to plug the gaps.
He says: “If we concede five goals this weekend, we’ll certainly not be playing in a semi-final, that’s for sure. We were maybe a wee bit naïve last weekend and we’ll have some alterations to make this time.”
Kerry native Michael O’Connor will be at Croke Park on Sunday to cheer on his home county against Dublin in the All-Ireland final, but first he’ll attempt to steer Gaeil Fhánada into the Intermediate semis.
The Portsalon men are in real relegation trouble in Division 2, but after winning three out of three in their Championship group – including a narrow win over Naomh Columba – their tails are up again.
O’Connor was alongside Kevin ‘Cookie’ Gallagher last year before taking on the job himself this time around.
“It was a learning curve last year and the first couple of months were challenging enough this year,” he says.
“It was a big challenge to get results. We’ve had a lot of injuries and had a lot of fellas away, but we’ve turned the corner now and we’re in a good place again
“Our target was to stay in Division 2 and see where that took us for the Championship.
“We don’t want to go out of Division 2, but that’s dicey enough at the moment. We have four games to keep us there and it’s still in our own hands, thank God.”
Seimi ‘Nanny’ Friel is based now in London while Paddy McConigley is playing his football in Kilkenny, meaning O’Connor is down two players of considerable quality.
That said, Sean McElwaine has stepped up to senior level and hasn’t looked out of place while Brian McVeigh and Ronan McAteer have made the transition and young Joe Blaney is back from injury.
“We have a lot of young players in the squad now,” O’Connor says.
“We’re trying to take down the age profile of the squad. We have gelled well together as a unit.
“This is a very competitive championship and you couldn’t rule anyone out. We have a full-strength panel, but we know what we’re up against – a club with a superb championship pedigree in Naomh Columba.
“We’re in good shape, physically and mentally, so hopefully we’ll give it a good rattle.”
At Pairc Uí Shiall last month, Michael Sweeney’s goal was the big score as Gaeil Fhánada won 1-9 to 0-11 in the meeting of the teams in the group stage.
Sweeney (pictured below) operates between midfield and full-forward depending on where the need is greatest.
O’Connor says: “Michael is a big talent and he can play anywhere for us really.
“He gives us a lot of options and it’s about where best we can use him.”
