Connolly hopes to lead new-look Drumlane to glory

JFC final preview

Having won the Sean Leddy Cup in 2018, one would be forgiven for presuming that many of the Drumlane side will be looking for their second junior medal this weekend. You’d be wrong, however; only seven of the 18 who saw game time in that replayed final win featured against Drumalee in the quarter-final 10 days ago.

There has, then, been a lot of flux on the Sons of O’Connell line-up. It’s a fresh side and, says captain Ryan Connolly, they’ve been learning as they have gone along.

“We’re in the final and it’s definitely where we set out to be at the start of the year. Going down was a big disappointment and it was obviously the number one aim for the group to try and get back up,” Connolly said.

“We have had an up and down year and we showed good character at times to turn it round. We are where we want to be, yeah.”

Drumlane went into last season being mentioned in despatches as dark horses for a run in the Intermediate Championship but ended up losing their status. The season dragged on; they won a league title on penalties in winter and that gave everyone a lift. When 2022 came around, there was no moping, just a renewed focus.

“There was no feeling sorry for ourselves, at the end of the day, you are where you deserve to be. We approached it 100pc from the start of the year. It was said at the first meeting, if there’s an ego or an arrogance about you, you’re not going to get out of junior football.

“That hasn’t been the case all year. We are a young enough team and new sort of team and before this year, a lot of us wouldn’t have played 10 or 15 games with each other between lads with county commitments and injuries and so on.

“Now this year, the other night was our 20th game. We are getting used to playing with each other now and getting a bit of a bond and gelling on the field is probably helping us.

“I was just saying to someone the other day, in a strange sort of way, the year going on as long as it did last year has probably stood to us. We had an absolute dog fight against Drung to get through to a league final and our young boys really pulled us out of a hole that day and the same in the league final – we had it won, had it lost and then we had to go to penalties.

“And at the end of the day, it was the young boys who scored the penalties and the likes of me who were missing them!

“I think just getting more and more games together as a group of players has helped. During the Covid years we played half-leagues and then some lads were with county panels and you’re coming back… Nothing beats playing together and training together and we’re starting to know each other’s games inside out now.”

The experience of having played in, and won, a junior final is there to draw on but it’s not a major factor, Ryan feels, especially as opponents Arva also have been there and done that.

“It will help but it’s still very much a new team though, I think there will probably be only four or five who will start this final who played that day. Hopefully some of us can pass on a bit of advice, we’re going to be going in as underdogs again but I don’t think these young lads read too much into it. They mightn’t buy the Celt once in the year so they’re not going to be too worried about who’s favourites and who’s not favourites! It’s just a game of football.”

Connolly was full of praise for manager Martin Dunne. The Cavan Gaels clubman took over this year and, says the captain, has been a breath of fresh air.

“He's been brilliant from day one. He’s fresh from playing and it probably suits us because we are a young, hungry team, mad to learn and mad to train. He’s a young manager starting out his own coaching career, obviously he has high aspirations for where he wants to go, we hope we can hang on to him for another couple of years.

“He knows what players want and what players don’t want, he knows when to have a bit of craic and when to take it seriously. It’s no surprise the successful career he had when you see the way he approaches coaching and how he approaches managing us.

“He has been excellent, I’ve seen him spending time with some of the younger fellas. Small things and it’s invaluable.”

Final question. As a fellow marksman, has he picked up much from Dunne?

“A couple of tellings off after a few league games!” Ryan laughed.

“He gave out to me for some shots I took, I had to remind him I watched him playing football for 10 years!”