By Niall Gartland

ERRIGAL Thirds are proving a much tougher proposition than in previous years, and manager Cathal McAnenly says their players have been greatly encouraged by their upturn in fortunes.

They mustered only a single league win last season (albeit it was a shortened campaign) but this time around they already have three victories to their name and that’s with five rounds of action still remaining.

The Division Three outfit have been particularly impressive in the last month, picking up victories over Fintona, Drumquin and Brackaville, and McAnenly is understandably pleased with how things are going.

“The boys are enjoying their football and that’s what it’s all about at the end of the day.

“We have plenty of lads with the ability to play football, and they’re willing to put in the hard work, but they’re enjoying their football and that makes it easier to perform.

“We’re proving ourselves to be competitive and that’s very important for us – in years gone by we haven’t been as competitive so it’s a lot more encouraging for the lads.”

While Division One and Two have been on hold this last number of weeks, the Junior League has carried on as usual and now we’re approaching the business end of things.

McAnenly said: “The boys are happy as all they want to do is continue playing football. By the time we play another four or five games, we’ll be in the middle of September and hopefully the championship will get run off.

“ It’s important for the lads to have a closed season so they have the time to recharge the batteries and go at it again.”

Errigal have been pitted against bottom-placed Coalisland Thirds in the first round of the championship, but McAnenly says he hasn’t looked that far down the line as they have enough on their plate right now.

“We haven’t even thought about it and that’s no word of a lie. We’re taking each game as it comes especially as we’ve had to accommodate other clubs by switching games and things like that. We know the standard we’re at and we’re expecting no miracles, but we’re playing to the best of our ability and you can’t ask for more than that.”

McAnenly, who was involved with Tyrone’s All-Ireland Minor Championship triumphs in 2008 and 2010, also said he’s happy with not only the numbers at training, but the aptitude and commitment of his players.

“We’re definitely getting good enough numbers, the boys aren’t just turning up, they’re training hard as well. We have to balance it with lads work and where they happen to be at any given time, but generally the boys are happy enough to get a wee bit of football and it’s good for their mental health as well.”