Take a trip

THERE were two pieces in last week’s Gaelic Life that should be of interest to any prospective managers who want to be successful. The Termon Ladies told their story of how they won the 2010 Donegal and Ulster Championship, and John Toal explained his career with Armagh, and in particular the 2002 season. The connection that is of interest is holidays. One of the reasons for Termon’s success in 2010 was that before they went on a run they went away together to Belmullet. Similarly, Armagh famously went to La Manga. Trips away, help to focus the team’s mind, or let them work on training methods. But in the case of those two teams, and according what was said in the interviews, the trips allowed the players to spend time together. Teams want to win, but the teams that win are those that want to win with their teammates. If there was no bond these teams would not be successful.

RONAN SCOTT

THERE were a few eyebrows raised when Dungannon fans invaded the pitch on Saturday night after they stunned Errigal to reach the Senior Championship final for the first time since 1986. But life has pretty much got back to normal in a lot of respects, and if people can attend parties and restaurants and go travelling and whatever else, then I think 100-odd people wandering about a pitch in the open air is harmless enough. At the end of the day, if cases are small – and they’re at tiny levels in the Fermanagh-Omagh district anyway – then people are going to adjust their behaviour accordingly, and who can blame them really. And let he without sin cast the first stone and all that.

NIALL GARTLAND

I HAVE to admit, I was – and probably still am – a bit unsure of where I stand on using penalty shoot-outs to decide championship games. If put under the barrel of a gun, I would say I’d still like to see two five-minute periods of extra-time follow normal extra-time first, and then onto penalties if need be. Still, my stance is weakening. It seems over the last few weeks that shoot-outs are cropping up everywhere, and the drama is unbelievable. Last year was a mess with some counties using free-kick competitions and others penalties, so the uniformity has helped. And as Pearse Og captain Paul Duffy said to me a few weeks ago, penalty taking is still a skill.

NIALL MCCOY

RICHIE Donnelly has suffered plenty with injuries down through the years, and he was a major doubt to play against Coalisland at the weekend. The Trillick midfielder gave a great account of himself in the circumstances even though it was obvious it was a struggle for him to bend his back. Straight from the second-half throw-in, he broke through two Coalisland tackles to set up a goal, and it turned out to be the game’s defining score. Afterwards, he was limping around and it’d make you wonder are some GAA players half-mad to put themselves through all this, but hopefully he’ll be in better shape in the final. Jeez, come to think of it, I haven’t even given St John’s one-armed bandit Domhnall Nugent a mention.

NIALL GARTLAND

The Dungannon Clarke’s victory at the weekend to reach the county final is an intriguing one. The East Tyrone side are now in the final, and will battle to win their first senior title since 1956. Dungannon, it should be noted, have won the second most Senior Championships in Tyrone (10). They were a mighty side in the ‘40s and ‘50s. That they are playing Trillick in the final is notable, as it was Trillick who beat Dungannon in 1986. The last time the latter were in the decider. But what is also important is that these are two teams who battled up the ranks. Dungannon were a Division two side three years ago. When Trillick won their 2015 title, their first since 1986, they had been in Division two the year before. What this tells us is that Tyrone’s club competitions are very evenly run, with the strength of teams in the intermediate level closer to that of senior than perhaps many other counties.

RONAN SCOTT

Carryduff have reached their first ever Down Senior semi-final and while it is ahead of schedule, it’s still not a huge shock. The club has won the last three Down u-21 titles, and have had to fend off suggestions that their team was littered from players from other clubs when the actual number was minimal. They also have had huge representation on Paddy Tally’s Down team over the last two seasons. There is undeniably a lot of talent there, and the way they dismissed Bryansford on Monday suggested a team that is getting used to the demands of senior football. Sunday’s clash with Ballyholland is winnable, and a great few years could yet get even better.

NIALL MCCOY