Dunloy now have belief they can find Holy Grail
In 1990, the north Antrim club won its first ever senior hurling title; the first baby step on the quest for the Holy Grail of club competition. They won in Ulster before losing to Glenmore of Kilkenny in the All-Ireland semi-final.
Seven times since then they’ve made that journey but never once have they prevailed. Yet here they are again, once more on the threshold of glory.
Now 32, O’Kane has been there through it all. He is convinced that physically, they had the tools, had the hurling, the fitness. Lacking was one crucial ingredient, conviction, but this year he reckons, everything is finally in place.
“Maybe in years gone past we just lacked that bit of belief to take the final step but this year, since Gerry O’Neill (a Tipp-man) has come along, the management have worked on that whole mental aspect. We’ve gone to Tipp, played teams down there, did well, and everyone is positive about their game now. We know we’re good enough, we’ve proved it over the years, it’s just getting that final hurdle out of the way.”
It sounds like a classic case of ‘fear of winning’, that age-old curse of the perennial underdog, a paralysing fear that causes teams, individuals, to seize up within sight of the winning post. In Dunloy’s case, though, Gary begs to differ. “I’d say the only time anyone could say we really froze was against Sixmilebridge (’96 final). We had played exceptionally well against Glenmore of Kilkenny in the semi-final (2-13 to 0-7 win), and maybe that was our final, we peaked too early. Against Sixmilebridge, we just never got started, things didn’t happen for us. We were never that far away, but anytime we came back at them they seemed to pull away from us.
“In the ’95 final against Birr, we hurled really well the first day and should have beaten them. In the replay, they got two early goals, and it’s very hard to come back from that, especially against a quality team.”
Mention of Birr, their opponents again on Monday, and Athenry, brings up the thought: these three teams made their senior county breakthrough at around the same time. Athenry appeared in the All-Ireland semi-final for the first time in ’88, Dunloy in ’91, Birr in ’92.
Since then, each has gone on to become the dominant force in their own county and within their provincial championships. But in the one that counts the most, the All-Ireland, Dunloy have been left behind.
In ’95, they beat Athenry in the All-Ireland semi-final, drew with Birr in the final, suggesting there was little between them, but in the meantime, both southern sides have won three titles apiece, while Dunloy have yet to break their duck.
Again, the difference, reckons Gary, is mental. “If you take those two teams, Birr and Athenry, all those lads have won All-Irelands at under-age, minor and U-21, Offaly won two seniors. Maybe that’s just the final step, they’ve been there, done it, they know what it takes to get over that final hurdle. Hopefully this year we’ve got it sorted.”
“If we do win it, it will make us a better team again. They said in the past, last year, the year before, this Dunloy team is finished, but every year we’re bringing in another young player or two, we have a good mix. In fact, I think this is the best Dunloy team I’ve played with, better balance, stronger panel.
“I know we’re up against it, Birr are a class team, top-class hurlers; they’ve won three All-Irelands, and you don’t get them easy. We respect them, but we’re not afraid of them.”
As to what it would mean to Dunloy, for once the eloquent O’Kane is caught for words. “Hurling is our life here. Maybe it’s hard for people in Cork, Kilkenny, to know how much it means to us, but this wee village revolves around hurling. We’ve been disappointed so many times, but we keep coming back, every year. It would be unbelievable, just the thought of it. I was there in 1990, when we won our first Antrim senior, and the celebrations were unbelievable, after waiting so long.
“Most of the lads on that team had won everything, from U-12 up, but the club had never won a senior title. I couldn’t describe that day, but if we win on St. Paddy’s Day, those celebrations will pale into insignificance”.
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