Burt hurlers chasing Ulster crown

BY RYAN FERRY

BURT manager Enda McDermott feels his club have been long overdue a good run in the province and he hopes they can grasp their opportunity when they face Lavey in the Ulster Club Junior Hurling Championship Final.

McDermott was part of the Burt side that won the Ulster Junior crown in 2011 when they defeated Creggan Kickhams after a replay.

The Hibernian Park side won four county titles on the trot after that but quite couldn’t crack the provincial Intermediate code, and their dominance at home then started to wane.

However, they have been to the fore at u-21 level in recent times and it’s no great surprise that they are on the hunt for honours now.

McDermott and co have also seen how the likes of their great rivals Setanta and Castleblayney have kicked on at the higher grade after winning the Ulster Junior title, and they’d love for a victory over Lavey to provide a similar platform for them.

“I was part of that team in 2011. It’s a long time ago now.

“These things don’t come around that often. It was 14 years since we progressed in any way in Ulster. It’s long overdue in my opinion.

“We beat Creggan in 2011 after a replay and we ended up playing them again in the Intermediate a few years after that and they ended up beating us.

“They have made steps forward and are a good senior team now in Antrim.

“Setanta have moved through the grades as well and it’s definitely a good thing for a club.

“Hopefully it’s a stepping stone for us as well towards next year too.”

It has been a peculiar season for Burt.

They relinquished their Donegal crown at the semi-final stage but with champions Setanta entering the Ulster Senior Championship and beaten finalists St Eunan’s going into the Intermediate, there was a spot open for a Donegal side to make a mark in the Junior and Burt have brought a good attitude to the competition.

McDermott is adamant that the scheduling of the Donegal Hurling Championship title does not help teams when they head into Ulster in late Octoberearly November.

“I’m like a broken record at this stage but from the time we played Setanta in the county semi-final to when we played Castlewellan two weeks ago, it was 13 weeks of a break.

“I think something has to be done for the Senior Championship in our county to help teams progress and give Ulster a proper shot.

Burt could have written the year off when they were eliminated in Donegal but when the opportunity to play in the Ulster Junior Championship was mooted, they viewed it as a real chance to finish the year out with a bang.

They’ve beaten Castlewellan (Armagh) and Con Magees (Antrim) to reach the decider.

“When we got the word that there was a possibility of Ulster, we sat down that week to discuss it and we were back training the following week.

“I was interested and the boys were more than interested.

“Since then training has been very good and our numbers have been brilliant. You have 22, 23, 24 during the week when boys are away at college and we’re hitting the thirty mark on a Friday night when everyone is about.

Lavey have made light work of Cuchulainns (Armagh) and Cootehill (Cavan) on their way through to the final and are a highly-rated side.

“Lavey even years ago were one of the main teams in Derry.

“I know they might have had a few years where they maybe dropped a wee bit.

“But you can still never underestimate them.

“We have some notes on them but I’m one of these people that prefers to put the focus on our game.”

If Burt succeed, not only will they land the Ulster crown, but they will also advance to the Twinning Final against the British champions where a spot in the All-Ireland semi-finals will be up for grabs.

“It would be massive for us,” said McDermott.

“Even after winning last weekend, the text messages I’ve been getting have been unreal and the buzz that people are getting from it is great.”