Packie McElwaine hoping Bonagee produces a strong performance against Cabinteely

Bonagee United manager Packie McElwaine might only be in the job less than three months but he already knows that games don’t roll around as rapidly at this level.

That is perhaps why his side is chopping at the bit to play Cabinteely in the WFAI Amateur Shield semi-final this weekend.

Before taking over the role as Bonagee manager in April, his team had already been eliminated from the Cup. They've had several league games since then plus a number of friendlies, but to get a chance of competing in a national competition has been the driving force in keeping McElwaine's players motivated.

“It’s been a long stint, from when we got eliminated from the cup competition, to now,” he said.

“There are only three teams in the Donegal women’s league, which really can’t go on because it’s tough when you go to these competitions and you’re only playing friendlies or a few league games.

“That in turn results in us losing players which has happened with three going to play more regular football in the north and you can’t blame them for that either.”

With the team travelling to the capital on Sunday morning, regardless of what preparation has been done or how many games have been played, Bonagee is still hunting for that win.

“In terms of this weekend, it’s something that we’re really looking forward to and something that the players deserve because as I said, there’s only so much training you can do,” the manager said.

“I came in as manager at the end of April and at that point we had already lost to Salthill in the cup but we still have a semi-final now in the shield and we just hope that we can pull a result together this weekend.

“Our last training session was on Thursday evening, just to get the final preparation in place before the weekend. It’s been a long few months, so hopefully this weekend will make it worthwhile.”