KEVIN CASSIDY: The new Kings of Ulster

LAST week I felt Errigal Ciaran had a chance but my main concern was that if Kilcoo shut the two Cannavan brothers down where would Errigal get there scores from.

About five minutes into the game last Sunday, I knew that this game was there for the taking for Errigal if they could create a few more scoring chances.

The way the Kilcoo set up meant that they left an awful lot of space in the inside line for that early dink ball in. I actually thought they would create more goal chances than they did.

They did that once or twice in the first half, letting the ball in early. With the fast thinking and fast hands of the Canavan brothers it looked like they may create a lot, but, for some reason, they didn’t do it as often as I thought they should have.

Kilcoo did okay in the first half but my main concern for them heading in at half-time was the fact that they were heavily reliant on their halfback line for scores.

For me, at the half time, that would have been an easy area for Errigal to clamp down on for the second half.

There is no getting away from it. The sending off had a big bearing on the game, and, in reality, Kilcoo can have no complaints.

They have played on the edge for the last 10 years or so. Most of the time it worked in their favour but unfortunately for them they were punished this time.

As soon as Darryl Brannigan left the pitch, Errigal’s leader Peter Harte stepped up to kick an inspirational score. From that point on, you really got the feeling that only one team could win this.

You still have to give credit to Kilcoo. They dug deep and hung in there and had chances to snatch it at the end.

However, when Errigal sit down to analyse this game, they will see just how wasteful they were with the extra man. The amount of ball that Errigal turned over and kicked away was criminal and this is an area that they will have to tighten up on if they plan on going the full distance.

A lot of the time when they brought the ball forward, they just took the wrong option. They sometimes put the wrong weight on the pass, carrying it over the line end line. On other occasions, they were not kicking the ball when it should have been kicked.

There are a lot of areas where they can improve on and I’m sure that’s the kind of material that Enda McGinley will use to bring these guys down to earth when the celebrations come to an end.

It’s a massive win for Errigal and now they have a great opportunity in front of them over the next few weeks.

The big plus from an Errigal Ciaran point of view is how they managed to win with the Canavan brothers being very quiet. You can rest assured that when they hit the semi-final stage, these two lads won’t be as quiet. That gives them a massive boost heading into the next phase of the competition.

Kilcoo have been amazing champions and an amazing club over the last number of years. They deserve tremendous credit. They have set the bar for the rest of the clubs and Ulster to follow and I have a feeling that before long, Conor Laverty may be back pulling the strings again. It won’t be long before we see them as champions once again.

Before I sign off this week, I would like to pay my respects to Jody Gormley. During the week, the news broke about Jody’s sad passing. We knew what was ahead of us but it never makes it easy because it just doesn’t feel right.

Jody came to the Gaoth Dobhair a few times recently with his Trillick team for their bonding weekends. The passion that man had for the club, and for GAA in general, was something to behold and he was such a lovely human being.

My thoughts and prayers are with his family and close friends at this sad time. May God give them strength.