By Barry O’Donnell

WHILE acknowledging that any promoted side will face a ‘rocky road’ on their journey to establishing themselves again as a proper senior outfit, Clonoe manager Kevin Madden admits it’s been a case of so far so good for the Rahillys on their return to Division One.

An encouraging victory over Dungannon last time out leaves the team sitting on a respectable six point haul in the table heading into the summer break, goals in either half from James Taggart and Daniel McNulty helping to see them across the line.

While under no illusions that they still face a tough battle to stay clear of the relegation zone when action resumes, Madden is satisfied with how the first part of their campaign has unfolded, as last season’s Intermediate double winners reintegrate themselves back into life in the top flight.

“We’ve had a rocky road at times but we told the boys at the beginning of the year that this wasn’t going to be straightforward. There was going to be ups and downs and there would be times of adversity. It was how we respond to that adversity which is going to be important.

“Two weeks ago we were beaten by eighteen points by Ardboe after having two brilliant draws against Carrickmore and Dromore and they were games we could have won.

“But we went to Moortown last week and won and then against Dungannon we were two points down with fifteen minutes to go. We dug it out and won by five at the end. That just shows there is serious character in this team.”

The matches have come thick and fast over the past two months, and at one juncture many sides played six games in the space of sixteen days, a punishing schedule which puts a real strain on playing resources. This was a point not lost on former Antrim star Madden.

“It’s an unbelievably tough league and unless you have played in it or managed in it it’s hard to appreciate from outside just how difficult it is every week.

“With those games every week comes challenges. Against Dungannon we lost three or four men who went off hurt so it not only tests the fifteen it tests the panel. Every given day it takes 19 to 20 men to get over the line.

“We are far from where we want to be but we are another step closer on our journey. That win puts us on six points so we will regroup and try and get a few bodies healed up and get back at it after the break.”

Reflecting on the 2-19 to 1-17 victory over the Clarkes last time out, Madden agreed that the Rahillys could have won with more to spare, after spurning a few decent scoring opportunities in the third quarter, which then allowed Dungannon to establish a foothold in the game

“That could have been a turning point in the game. We were really on top and had a goal opportunity to go six up and then they came back and had a good period of momentum with a couple of two pointers.

“Thankfully we weathered that period and had a bit of luck of our own when the ball came in to big Danny at the right place at the right time in around the square to fist to the net. That gave us the momentum to go ahead again and from there we showed maturity to see the game out.

“I suppose that is the journey we have been on this last number of years. Sometimes when we have been in that position before everything is too frantic when we have control of the game. I felt tonight we played with composure and patience and waited for the right opportunities when the gaps appeared in the last ten minutes and thankfully we got through.”

In some previous years Clonoe may only have required one more win to cement their senior status for another season but Madden feels that given the dog-eat-dog nature of the relegation battle in 2026, even ten points might not be sufficient to survive.

“Two years ago it would have taken double digits to stay up so we know all about that. You have three teams coming up this year, ourselves, the Fianna, who have great quality and will now have their county men back, and Eglish who are flying at the top of the league. No disrespect to the teams who came down last year who were hit with men emigrating and retiring but three really good teams have gone up this year.

“I think this year seven or eight teams will be keeping an eye on the bottom of the table. You can’t afford to take your eye off the ball. But we won’t get caught up on whose got this many points, for us it’s just about the next performance and the next game with another two points up for grabs.

“We have had some really tough assignments though I don’t think there is any easy games in Tyrone. We have had Dromore, Moortown and Ardboe all away which are tough games. But we have a few more home games to come.

“We aren’t a million miles away from being a decent team as the last couple of performances showed but the performance against Ardboe showed what happens when we let our standards slip. We are not guaranteed to beat anybody so we just have to concentrate on what we have done well this last number of weeks.”