MAC'S VIEW: Naomh Conaill have capacity to advance to Ulster semi-final

Naomh Conaill represent Donegal in the Ulster senior club championship this Sunday in Kingspan Breffni Park against Cavan champions Gowna and I have a great feeling that the Donegal champions have the capacity to win and advance to the Ulster semi-final.

They have built up a great deal of experience over the last 15-20 years and they have a game plan that is not easy to play against.

They are coming up against a Cavan club that has a great Gaelic football tradition, but as regards the Ulster club championship, Cavan have not made any great inroads, which is surprising. They are just one of two counties (Fermanagh being the other) that has not had a winner in the competition.

I remember having some great battles with Crosserlough in the 1960s with St Joseph’s. We met them three years in-a-row and managed to get over the line by a point or two each time. They were a tough, tough team.

We also met Cavan Gaels in Ballyshannon during that time when Gabriel Kelly was still playing. There have been some great Cavan clubs like Jim Reilly’s Kingscourt Stars teams which made the Ulster final but didn’t manage to win it.

The last Cavan team to make the final was Bailieborough Shamrocks and they were managed by the late Seamus Bonar.

I’m not that familiar with the present Gowna team but they did have the likes of Dermot McCabe in the past. But overall, you would think that Glenties have the edge on experience, with many of the present team playing in their sixth Ulster club campaign.

And while they might not have that marquee forward, like many other teams, they have scoring power from all areas of the field, especially from half-back, where the ageless Anthony Thompson is a leader among leaders.

They also have a manager in Martin Regan, who has been there with this Naomh Conaill team as a player and he has vast experience of the Ulster club competition. They have lost two Ulster finals narrowly in that time. You would expect that they will be good enough to advance to the semi-final on Sunday.

INTERMEDIATE

It will be a good day for Donegal in Breffni Park as Downings will be in action in the curtain raiser against the Cavan Intermediate champions, Ballyhaise.

I remember back in the day two players that played for Ballyhaise and Ulster in Stephen Duggan and Enda McGowan, who was originally from Manorhamilton.

Fair play to Downings for coming through a difficult Intermediate championship in Donegal and they are worthy representatives.

Bundoran played in the first round of the league here in Bundoran and beat them. I thought that Malin might have won when it came to the final but Downings seem to be able to get over the line in tight matches. They can do that again on Sunday and it would be a good start to the day in Breffni.

Conor Cunningham steps down as Kilcar manager

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NA ROSSA

I felt very sorry for what happened to Na Rossa last weekend in Letterkenny in the Ulster junior club championship. It seems there were many decisions that went against them but the one at the end when the goalkeeper was penalised for overcarrying seemed to be the one that broke the camel’s back.

The problem seemed to be that the referee was not experienced and then lost his way. I feel really sorry for Na Rossa, as it is tough on them to survive with such a small pick. It was great to see the likes of Adrian Sweeney with them this year and get a junior medal.

But overall it was a sad way to bow out of the competition. Still they have next year and the Intermediate championship to look forward to. They have some young, talented players and they will just have to put Saturday’s game behind them and start again.

I always enjoyed going down to play Na Rossa at their old pitch and there were many good nights after games. They now have a brand new pitch and are working hard on improving their facilities.

While it may not have gone the way of Na Rossa in the Ulster junior club championship, their neighbours, Dungloe Ladies made it all the way to the final with a one point win over Tyholland of Monaghan.

Congratulations to them and to manager, Tony Boyle, who has five daughters on the team. That’s a good start! And I hear that they can play as well, but they didn’t pick it off the stones. I remember Seamie Granaghan here in Bundoran also had five daughters but there was no football back then.

Finally, this week, congratulations to Brendan Devenney, who was honoured by the St Eunan’s club last weekend in recognition for his services to the club and his great work for charity in recent years. I was hoping to get down to the event, but I have been  troubled by sciatica in recent times and didn’t make it.

Brian McEniff was in conversation with Peter Campbell