No drama for Reilly as Stars sparkle again

SFC final build-up

There are certain truisms on the local football scene that should never be discounted. One was proven again last Sunday evening – when the Stars of Kingscourt make it deep in the championship draw and get the scent of outright victory, they should never be discounted.

Despite winning their four group games, Kingscourt were given little chance of beating Cavan Gaels in many quarters, including this one. Much of that was based around the sides’ respective form in the quarter-finals.

Kingscourt struggled for long periods against a Mullahoran side who, benefitting from results elsewhere going their way, had limped into the quarter-finals off the back of three successive losses while the Gaels had hit the high notes in their 10-point win over a fancied Ramor.

But once again, the Stars confounded expectations; all over the field, players raised their games as they ran out emphatic winners.

With Kingscourt captain Padraig Faulkner having gone to hospital after picking up a nasty knock in the semi-final win over Cavan Gaels, Barry Reilly stepped into the breach for media duties. Reilly may have a dozen years of outstanding service under his belt but he has still not hit the 30-mark and, of late, has been playing as well as ever.

Given that Saturday will mark the sixth county final, including one replay, he has played in, Barry wasn’t getting overly excited. He knows, by now, what the big occasion is likely to throw at him and his team-mates and how the pulse of a championship can slow down and quicken as the rounds go on.

So, it’s fair to say that he didn’t panic after the close shave in the quarter-final and he won’t be doing so when he takes his place behind the band this weekend, either. They may be Stars but they don't tend to get carried away with drama.

“It’s 2015 since we were here last. There are a lot of boys on this team with championship medals so… we know what we’ll be about next Saturday evening,” he told The Anglo-Celt.

“We never, ever get anything easy against Mullahoran. We always struggle with them and they brought that three weeks ago and we struggled again. We were going in against the favourites tonight – but, look, we love playing the Gaels.

“We brought a bit of intensity, training was good the last two or three weeks. We knew what we were going to be about tonight.”

The form of full-forward Joe Dillon, who had recovered from a cruciate ligament injury, was key as the Stars cruised through the group stages. Against Mullahoran, the powerful full-forward was again moving well but an innocuous slip on the sideline, in front of the stand, saw him sustain a serious groin injury which will necessitate six months on the sidelines again. It was the most cruel luck.

“Joe is a big loss but he’s still down at training pushing other lads on, he’s like a lad that’s half-possessed at times at training,” said Reilly.

“Joe has just been very unfortunate over the last few years. I think I’m right in saying that’s his fourth major surgery over the last six years.

“I know if it was me, I’d be putting a pin on the wall and hanging my boots up. But Joe is just not like that, he keeps coming back and coming back. He’s actually the most professional athlete I’ve ever played with.

“We lost Padraig again tonight so I don’t know what way he’ll be for the final, I suppose his father will have to get a couple of steaks and pad him up for next Saturday.”

Coming into this campaign, Kingscourt’s form of the last two years was poor by their standards, losing out in the quarter-finals both years and scoring just 0-14 in total over the two matches. What has changed to see them string together six wins in succession in this year’s renewal, culminating in their best performance yet on Sunday evening?

“Going back to what ye always say, we are in transition. Look, we have lost a lot of players since 2015 and going back to 2010. Your Mossy Malones, Philly Smiths, Christy McGowans, Ryan McCormacks, all the sharp shooters, they’re gone.

“But we’ve great young lads coming through, you’ve John Oates, Killian Farrelly, Sean Burke, I could name them all. They’re all stepping up to the plate.”

Reilly’s stylish artistry on the ball has been an adornment on the championship for the last decade and he has been at his best again this time around. It’s clear that the 29-year-old farm manager is enjoying his football.

“It’s been an enjoyable year. It’s short, it seems to be more attacking, there doesn’t seem to be the emphasis on all this defensive craic… I think it’s made for an excellent Senior Championship this year,” he said.

Reilly has won Senior Championship medals as an inside forward and even at midfield but is best known as a half-forward. On Sunday evening, he was everywhere, spending a lot of time deep in his own defence, mopping up ball and launching attacks. Did that happen by accident or design?

“We’re not a team that’s going to go and score 2-20 and win a game by 10 points, we have to grind it out. I stayed up in the half-forward line and full-forward line for the first 20 minutes but I’m playing football a long enough time to know how to manage games and be in and out of games so I went where I had to go at times.”

It’s getting cold as we finish up and the experienced Reilly is not one for talking into a Dictaphone for the sake of it. A final question – what do you make of this young Crosserlough side?

“I know nothing about them!”

Can’t say fairer than that.