All to play for in Minor final

This Sunday at 13:45 in Breffni Park, the Division 1 Minor Football Final will see Southern Gaels and Mullahoran GFC battle for silverware after impressive semi-final wins. With just one week to prepare, both sides now face the challenge of fine-tuning their squads for what promises to be a high-quality decider.

For Mullahoran, the journey has been defined by togetherness and resilience. Coach Sean Smith admits the small panel size has shaped their season, but also helped forge a close-knit unit. “We have a very small group of players. We have 18 players in total. So it’s a great opportunity for this young group. As excited as we are, it’s coming quickly after our semi-final win on Saturday afternoon.”

Smith has been involved with this group for several years, working to keep them developing as one. “Our intention has always been to try and keep this group on their own together for as long as possible. It’s brilliant now they have reached the Division 1 final because, after playing minor, a lot of these lads will be moved off into senior. It’s probably their last real opportunity to go and win something for themselves.”

The coach is quick to highlight the story of Emmett Reilly, a player who represents the importance of persistence in underage football. “He didn’t really feature at school football, but he really progressed. He is one player for me that has really, really shone through. He’s shown great athleticism and will go on to have a great career in the future.”

Smith believes Reilly, along with others such as Conan Smith and Harry Mulligan, shows the value of late development. “With a little bit of perseverance, both from coaches and the players themselves, and of course to keep them going and keep bringing them to games and training, they can develop late and go on to have a very good football career.”

Mullahoran’s semi-final victory over Killygarry proved they are peaking at the right time. “From a neutral point of view and from a supporters point of view, it was a very good game of football by both sides. It was open football, end to end, with great skill. It was probably one of the best games I’ve seen at minor level this year. Thankfully for us, we came through on the better side.”

On the opposite sideline, Southern Gaels manager Ciaran Brady is equally enthusiastic about the opportunity, despite a short recovery period. “We’re looking forward to it. It’s a short turnaround. It was only Friday since we played the semi-final, but we’re definitely looking forward to it this week. It’s just about getting the head straight, preparing for the match, loosening out.”

Brady acknowledges that Mullahoran have already set the benchmark. “We played Mullahoran earlier this year. They bet us by a few points, but they deservedly won. They had an impressive win over Killygarry, and now we have to focus on ourselves.”

That focus has been a theme throughout Southern Gaels’ season. “From the start of the year we’ve never set ourselves any goals, we always said this is a process, and we’ll take the league and the championship matches one match at a time, and focus on our games one at a time.”

Southern Gaels also have the added motivation of last year’s disappointment. After reaching the final twelve months ago, they will be eager to avenge that defeat against Kingscourt and secure silverware at the second time of asking.

Both clubs have faced their own challenges - Mullahoran’s limited numbers, Southern Gaels’ balancing act with players across minor, U16, and senior commitments - but those obstacles have only sharpened their resilience. As Smith sums up: “It’s all on the day. Southern Gaels are a really, really formidable side with some great footballers. Sunday will be a completely different game.”