KEVIN CASSIDY: Shortening the winter

AS the club championships are drawing towards the final stages all over the country, the anticipation and excitement ramps up.

For anyone who has played the game and was lucky enough to reach the latter stages of the competition, especially the final, then they will know just how special this time of year is.

The evenings are shorter as you head towards your club’s floodlight pitch. Most other teams are finished for the year but you are still on that journey on a Tuesday and Thursday. When you get to that stage that gives you an extra pep in your step.

After training you return home to the house where the kids are maybe doing their homework. It’s pitch black outside. You’re soaking wet and cold as the elements have taken a turn, but as you head for the shower, there is no better feeling knowing that you are one step away from immortality.

I have always said that there is something special about the club scene, but when you get to this stage of the competition, it just takes on a life of its own.

If your club is in the final then every shop you go into, every pint you sip, even on the way out of mass, all that is discussed is the game and whether or not you have a chance of winning.

It’s amazing the effect that reaching a county final can have on a parish as it unites everyone and inspires the youngsters.

It brings the parish together and most importantly it shortens the winter because everyone is looking forward to the big day.

Schools get decorated. Flags are hung on lamp posts. Permutations are discussed. In reality, it consumes the whole parish and what a wonderful thing that is and what a privilege that is for any player to be able to deliver that for the parish.

The players themselves obviously have to stay clear of this. To them, it’s just another game and that’s the only way that you have to look upon it.

If you think too much about it then it will consume you. If you talk too much about it, then it will overwhelm you. The best thing to do is to stay in your own little bubble and just take it as another game.

When you glance across Ulster, there are some absolute crackers on the horizon as teams now make their final dash for the finish line.

Here in Donegal my own club Gaoth Dobhair will contest this year’s final against an experienced Glenties outfit.

Our lads have done extremely well in reaching the decider but I don’t think there is anyone in Donegal, that knows anything about football, who would go against the fact that they would be up against it in the final. They play a Naomh Conaill team who have contested eight of the last nine finals.

Nothing beats experience and when you have that level of experience, the scales are massively tipped in your favour. For our young lads, I suppose that’s the challenge that lies ahead. When you get into these sorts of positions, you have to put your best foot forward and give the best account of yourself possible and just see where that takes you.

There will be a good buzz in the parish over the next week and a half as we all gear up for the final. In next week’s column, we’ll go a little deeper into potential match-ups and where the game might be won and lost.

For now, both clubs must enjoy the buildup. This time next week, there will be more county final pairings decided when we can start to potentially look at who may come out of each county as the winter draws closer.