Uíbh Laoire book Premier IFC final spot as they ease past Aghada

FINAL BOOKED: Uíbh Laoire have booked their place in the Premier IFC final against Aghabullogue in two weeks time. Picture: Eddie O'Hare

Cork Premier IFC semi-final: Uíbh Laoire 1-19 (1-1-17) Aghada 1-8 (1-1-6)

The Uíbh Laoire train just keeps on rolling. They don’t know what lies around the next bend, yet, but the journey that they embarked on ten years ago has brought them to yet another final. Whatever happens in the McCarthy Insurance Group Cork PIFC final in a fortnight’s time against Aghabullogue, they have by no means reached their final destination, yet.

Ten years ago, they won a first Mid-Cork Football title in 30 years. Three more followed before they made the leap to the Lower Intermediate grade in the covid delayed 2020 campaign and by 2022, they had arrived at Premier Intermediate. Three seasons at Cork’s third grade had seen them fall at the penultimate hurdle twice, while their quarterfinal loss to Cill na Martra in 2023 cut deeper than most. That penultimate hurdle has now been cleared. They are 60 minutes away from senior football. Their manager, Barry Oldham, can’t quite believe it, but there is no chance of them letting it pass them by.

“It’s fantastic for the club. I know we’ve won the County Junior, won the Lower Intermediate County, but we’re not used to that around Uíbh Laoire. This crop of players has been unbelievable for the club, great servants. What they do week in, week out in training, they’re just an unbelievable bunch of players.

“For youngsters at home looking at them at training and that kind of stuff, they’re looking up to them which is great for a club. It’s great, it gives a lift to the locality. We’re only a small club, a population of 400 or 500 people and we’re in a Premier Intermediate final, striving to be senior, and that’s unbelievable.” 

In Páirc Uí Rinn on Saturday afternoon, they had too much class for an Aghada side that seemed short on the gas that powered them past Glanmire two weeks ago. Their talisman, Chris Óg Jones, kicked 1-5 from play, Cathal Vaughan pulled the strings at centre-forward, Timmy Roberts was imperious at midfield while their defence conceded 1-3 to the great Pearse O’Neill and only 0-4 off play to the rest of the Aghada attack.

O’Neill’s goal gave Aghada a 1-0 to 0-2 lead after 11 minutes, and though his first point leveled the game for the second time on the quarter hour, once Jones pushed Uíbh Laoire a point clear soon after, they were never going to be caught. 1-2 from Jones, 0-2 from the classy Vaughan and a point from Ian Jones had them 1-10 to 1-2 in front at the break and once Vaughan, Jones and Ciaran O’Riordan added to that after the interval, the result was never in doubt.

Jamie O’Hanlon kept showing for Aghada and was rewarded with a couple of points, O’Neill once again belied his age while Kyle O’Shea ran himself to a standstill.

But this day belonged to Uíbh Laoire. Oldham knows what it all means, and is grateful for their coach, Niall Allen.

“We need to embrace it and enjoy these times because the wheel is always turning. Look at other clubs. They went up senior; they’re coming back down towards junior level again. It happens. You come across a good crop of players, you get good results, and it takes you to the top. And then you have to keep working on it.

“The last two or three years when we won the Lower Intermediate Final, we knew that we had to get up to a different level to be in this final in two weeks’ time. I put a lot of that towards Niall Allen, our coach. We never did strength and conditioning in our club. We started it three years ago. The lads love it now, they’re big into it, and he brought the professional side of things to Uíbh Laoire. We’re delighted to have him, he’s an absolute gentleman, and hopefully, in two weeks, we’ll reap the rewards.” 

Scorers for Uíbh Laoire: C Óg Jones 1-8 (3f), C Vaughan (0-3), T Roberts 0-2,  C O’Leary 0-2 (2pt), C O’Riordan 0-1, B O’Leary 0-1, I Jones 0-, S O’Leary 0-1

Scorers for Aghada: P O’Neill 1-3, J O’Hanlon 0-2 (1f) and J McKenna 0-2 (2pt), C Hegarty 0-1.

UÍBH LAOIRE: J Creedon; B Murphy, D O’Donovan, C O’Riordan; K Manning, D O’Riordan, C Galvin; T Roberts, C O’Leary; S O’Riordan, C Vaughan, B O’Leary; S O’Leary (c), C Óg Jones, I Jones.

Subs: B Cronin for C O’Riordan (50), S Pickering for B O’Leary (50), F McSweeney for Manning (53), A O’Dea for Murphy (57), B O’Riordan for S O’Riordan (59) 

AGHADA: C O’Shea; J O’Donoghue, K O’Shea (JC), E Leahy; J Tynan, J Colbert, R Murphy; D Phelan, C Hegarty; D Byrne, T Hartnett (JC), D Wallace; J O’Hanlon, P O’Neill, S Morrissey.

Subs: S Whyte for Byrne (h/t), C O’Driscoll for Tynan (39), J Norris for Hegarty (44), J McKenna for Wallace (48), M Aherne for Morrissey (55) 

Referee: Andrew Whelton (Clonakilty).

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