McClure continues to lead the way for Clonoe

By Niall Gartland

CLONOE skipper Declan McClure knew that removing the emotion from their first-round clash with perennial rivals Coalisland would be half the battle, and now they’ve surmounted that particular hurdle, they’ll be licking their lips at the prospect of facing Edendork in Friday night’s Senior Championship quarter-final.

Last year’s Intermediate double winners have acquitted themselves well in their return to the top flight, and they’ll quietly fancy their chances of reaching the Senior Championship semi-finals for the first time since 2022.

They can call upon players of the stature of McClure, Connor McAliskey and Mickey O’Neill, all of whom have O’Neill Cup medals, as well as a battalion of younger stars like Tommy Taggart and Shea Coney.

They shouldn’t be discounted and McClure is excited by the prospect of a proper Championship run.

“We wanted to get back up to Division One and it’s gone well. It brings on all the young lads coming through and helps their development. We wanted to get over the line [against Coalisland] and try to get on a run. We’re in the quarter-finals now, and we’ll see how it goes.”

Reflecting on their opening day win over Coalisland, McClure acknowledged that it wasn’t just another Championship clash. They were jubilant at the final whistle, and that said it all about the nature of the rivalry.

“We knew coming into the game that it was a local derby, so much emotion builds up, bragging rights at stake, years and years of tradition. It goes back decades, and we knew it wasn’t going to be easy.

“League form goes out the window, especially when you’re playing your rivals. You just don’t know what to expect, and you have to make sure you’re well drilled, take the emotions out of it and try to stick to the game plan.”

That said, the O’Rahillys didn’t have it all their own way and trailed at the break. Once they got to grips with proceedings, however, they were rampant, winning comfortably in the end up.

McClure added: “We had a really good start to the game, then conceded a goal that caught us off guard. We went backwards instead of kicking on. In the second half, we regrouped, made a few positional changes, changed our line of pressure, talked about the defensive structure and tried to get our key scorers on the ball. Thankfully, it worked.”