By Kieran Lynch

THIS Sunday, Ballycran face Portaferry in a fourth consecutive championship final, and after losing last year’s decider, Portaferry are determined to get their hands back on the trophy.

Their manager Jamie Fowler said, “At the start of the year the goal is to win the championship for every team, and that’s what we set out to do. Our aim was to be playing on the 31st. We wanted to make the final, and by hook or by crook we were getting there.”

With there being only four teams in the Down senior championship, every team knows each other very well, and this is especially true with Ballycran and Portaferry.

“We know each other inside out, and to be honest, in Down there’s no real secrets – that goes with Ballygalget and Bredagh too. They know as much about us, as we know about them, and we know they’ve got good players, so it’s just up to us to worry about that on the day. We’re concentrating on ourselves and our own preparation, and Portaferry will be doing the same.”

With last year’s final still fresh in the mind, the competitive rivalry between the two clubs is as fierce as ever, and Fowler believes his side can use that defeat as motivation this time around.

“It wasn’t nice last year being on the wrong end of it, but we’re a hungry team. From the youngest to the oldest, everybody on our panel wants to get the job done. There are boys in that team who have won championships and know the feeling, and they will want more. Plus, you have the young boys coming in who want to win one and prove themselves too.”

Still, reaching a championship final is never a straightforward process. Ballycran had to find some form after losing to Portaferry in Round 1, which they have done, winning five games in-a-row since.

“We knew it was going to be a process. We got it tough the first day out against Portaferry, and we just reset ourselves. I think over the last four or five games we’ve started to hit a bit of form and we’re playing the way we want to be playing.”

With two evenly matched sides colliding this Sunday, Fowler believes the final could come down to which side has better control over the finer details.

“Basics win you championships. The smallest margins will count on Sunday; whoever makes less mistakes, gives away less silly frees – things like that all count. So it’s up to us to be concentrated for the full 60 minutes. If we go to sleep at all, Portaferry have the players that will put us to the sword. Our plan at the start of the championship was to get to the 31st, and we’ve got to the 31st. So, it’s up to us now to go out and not let that good work go to waste – Just get the job done.”

BIG DAY… The Down county board held a promotional day for the county hurling final