By Michael McMullan

FORMER Cavan defender Aiden Watters feels Ballyhaise’s young guns have benefited from playing senior league football.

As part of a three-man management team with fellow club stalwarts Noel Walsh and Pat Duggan, Watters helped steer the club’s U17 team to championship glory in 2019, the same year they also led the senior team to a division two title.

After stepping away last season, they are back again and have Killygarry man Damian Keaney – son of former Cavan Chairman Brendan – in as trainer.

Ballyhaise face Butlersbridge in Sunday’s Cavan intermediate decider, their fourth in eight seasons. They won their second title in 2015, bridging a 47-year gap.

Eight players remain from their winning team six years ago, including their entire current forward line that includes Stephen Smith and Kevin Tierney. They can also call on goalkeeper Gary O’Rourke, who is Raymond Galligan’s understudy at county level.

Watters admits to having a couple of ‘injury concerns’ concerns ahead of Sunday’s visit to Kingspan Breffni.

“We are not going too bad,” he said. “We are getting all our ducks in a row. We’ve a couple of knocks that are alright and we could’ve done with another week of rest to let them get over it.

“We had a lot of games on Sundays in a row and it is not easy on players, playing Sunday in and Sunday out, particularly at club level, but hopefully everybody will be okay.”

Watters played for Cavan for 16 years and after a spell with illness played club football until just before he turned 40 and is well placed to pass on his experience to the next group coming through the club.

“We won a minor championship in the same year the seniors won division two. A lot of those players, we have brought them through, so that brings a bit of consistency,” Watters said.

The league was a baptism of fire for the younger players, bedding into senior football in division 1A with Cavan Gaels, Kingscourt, last year’s senior finalists Crosserlough and Ramor United who will contest this season showpiece decider with Gowna.

“It was a tight group and we actually beat Ramor and we beat Kingscourt and were beat by the Gaels and Crosserlough,” Watters points out. “We would have a lot of young lads and it was a good learning ground for them.”

Going into Sunday’s game, Ballyhaise will be able to call on the crux of their 2019 side, with some of their young players pushing around the edges to add to the overall mix. For Watters and the management team, it’s about managing the excitement that county final brings.

“The management and players are keeping it fairly low key, we are just focusing on the next match, so we are not really tuned into what is going on,” he said. “It is a small rural village and we’re doing well to be in the final, so the locals would be very excited. We have enough to concentrate on.”

EXPERIENCE… Ballyhaise’s Gary O’Rourke has played Sigerson football for UCD and is part of the county panel