Bitterly disappointed after great game of football - Naomh Columba’s Colin McNelis

Naomh Columba Ladies had to settle for second best for the first time in a final in a long time when they went down to Monaghan champions, Truagh, in the Ulster Intermediate final in Killyclogher on Sunday.

While five points separated the sides at the end, that doesn’t tell the story with Naomh Columba having to play the final 10 minutes of the game with 14 after what looked like a very harsh red card picked up by Laoise McGinley.

Speaking afterwards Naomh Columba coach Colin McNelis said the feeling around the camp was one of bitter disappointment after a great game of football and felt the red card made it very difficult for the Donegal champions.

“It was a great game of football and I thought the two teams really went at it. They were maybe a wee bit more experienced than us but I thought that the two teams left everything out there. The game went all the way to the end.

“We went down to 14 players and in the last 10 minutes that made it difficult for us but we left everything out there. It’s just bitterly disappointing.”

Asked about the red card, McNelis said: “I didn't see too much on it. But I'm not the referee. We thought it was fairly innocuous to be quite honest. I think our player was pulled first. Maybe she pulled back or whatever it was.

“I don't know if it was called by the linesperson or the fourth official. There didn't seem to be much in it as far as we were concerned.

“It was disappointing at that stage because the game was on the line. It certainly was a big turning point in the second half. But look, at the end of the day we're not going to blame any referee or anybody else for that.

“But we would have been disappointed with it because we didn't feel there was much in it,” was the honest response from McNelis.

Naomh Columba were five points down at half-time and still brought it back to two before going five down again and bringing it back to three before the red card more or less ended the game as a contest.

McNelis agreed that his young team showed some nerves in the opening quarter and turned over a lot of ball and also conceded two soft goals.

“We are a young outfit and we did sense a wee bit of nerves at the start and definitely one of the goals we felt was a poor goal from our point of view.

“The other goal was probably a good goal from them. But we were happy enough at half-time to be in touch because we knew we would kick again in the second half. We would be in very good shape.

“So we knew there would be a kick in us, which there was. But we just wanted to tidy up our play because we were giving the ball away a wee bit in the first half.

The second half comeback was led by Emma Cunningham with the two goals and it is something she has been doing on a regular basis.

“She thrives on scoring goals and she gets herself into those very good positions. But we have goal threats all over the team as well.”

McNelis paid tribute to manager, Eugene Doherty, for the great success the team has achieved over the past two seasons, at junior last year at championship and Gaeltacht and this year at Intermediate which means the club will be playing senior championship next year for the first time in their history. They will be playing senior alongside the men.

“Yeah, it's the first time in both, men and ladies together. No, look, we've been on some journey. We're always had good players in Glen.

“There was a good foundation there to build from. It was just about getting everyone together. It was just about getting everybody to coach a game plan and try and have everybody comfortable in it, which is what we've done.

“This is bitterly, bitterly disappointing today but we have to be grateful as well for what's happened in the last two years because they've gone to a completely different level and the players have just been unbelievable, to be quite honest.

“They've put their lives on hold for two years and they deserve all the credit and they deserve every bit of success that came their way,” said McNelis.