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Mon 15th Mar 2010
While Omagh CBS joint coach Ciaran McBride insists that tomorrow’s BT MacRory Cup final stands as its own huge challenge for his team, he still sees the bigger picture of teams in the Ulster Colleges’ televised show-piece as feeding into the ambitions and aspirations of younger players in the school.
“Omagh CBS has been in a position to challenge for the MacRory for the past decade, because every youngster who comes through the door wants to play on the MacRory team and wants to play in Casement Park on St Patrick’s Day.”
This is Omagh’s sixth final in the decade. They began by sharing the 2001 title with St Michael’s Enniskillen after Foot and Mouth prevented a replay of the final.
2002 saw Ryan Keenan lift the Cup for Enniskillen at Omagh’s expense but the Tyrone school broke a 31 year wait from their only previous success when they beat St Louis Kilkeel in the 2005 final.
There was also success in 2007, before they fell to Dungannon in the first ever all-Tyrone decider last St Patrick’s Day.
“Those final appearances inspire young lads down the school, and give them the incentive to work hard at their game so that they too can play on St Patrick’s Day.”
The school’s development system has the same football management team taking the boys through their seven year school career – meaning that Ciaran and Noel know their charges well and also have grown to know the opposition over the years.
It also means that those that suffered last year’s final heartache have had a fresh approach that brought them success earlier in their school careers.
“Yeah, this group of boys lifted the Dalton, Corn na nÓg and Brock titles and we would have gone into the Rannafast final two years ago aspiring to add to that sequence.”
However St Colman’s played superb football on the day to take the title and Ciaran expected that the Newry school would probably be their biggest obstacle in the MacRory.
“Noel (Donnelly, the other joint coach) and I would have come through the school ourselves at a time in the mid to late 1980s when the big two were St Colman’s and Maghera with Abbey also strong,” said the former Tyrone All-Ireland star.
“It certainly was no surprise to us when Derry and Down made the All-Ireland breakthrough in the early 1990s, and that players we had faced in school matches were making big contributions.”
“Down football is coming again with Abbey and St Louis Kilkeel having contested finals and now St Colman’s back in contention once more.”
If Omagh win tomorrow the four year winning sequence of two titles each for them and Dungannon will equal the four in a row that went to Down schools (1957-60 – St Colman’s and Abbey) and Maghera (1982-5) and many players involved in those teams went on to collect All-Ireland senior medals.
“A number of years ago, you would have expected a winning MacRory team to produce maybe 4 county senior players. But such is the strength of the Tyrone senior set-up at the moment that only one or two get a chance to stake a claim for a place on the panel.”
“The McMahons were with us in those early finals and, I suppose only Sean O’Neill, Peter Harte and Ronan McNabb in more recent teams have been making an impact.”
Turning to tomorrow’s final and Ciaran expects that the neutral will see a good match.
“Well both teams are good footballing sides and when each have got into full-flow in their knock-out games they have been a pleasure to watch.”
“The team that plays the best tomorrow and then puts scores on the board will enter the folklore of their school and without a doubt inspire another generation to emulate them. Naturally we believe that we can be that team.”
Irish News 16-03-10
Submitted by: Seamus McAleenan
