Small Loup have big ideas
The fright Birr received in Carlow last weekend was only a precursor of what was to come on Sunday. Crossmaglen, firmly installed with Nemo's absence as All-Ireland champions in waiting, were shocked by Derry champions The Loup.
Quite apart from having the most wonderful name in club football, The Loup illustrated the romance of club competition in Clones.
It's standard when clubs fashion a shock of this magnitude to talk about the size of their parish and it was no different after the Derry side's accomplishment.
But, there is something in it. Remember how amazed people were when they realised the size of Ballinderry. The Loup is even smaller.
"We would be smaller than Ballinderry," says Padraig O'Kane, the club's solid centre-back. "There are around 100 families around the shores of the Lough [Neagh]. When you pass through the Loup, what you see doesn't amount to a whole pile, but even though there are 100 families, we are like one big, extended family."
The success of the likes of Ballinderry and Bellaghy in recent years had buoyed the Loup into believing that, if they cleared the county hurdle, they could make a concerted effort for bigger glory.
"When we saw the success of Ballinderry and Bellaghy, people were always saying if we could get out of Derry, we might do something," says O'Kane.
"But, to be honest, I never thought we would get into an Ulster final. Even this year, looking at our draw in the Derry championship, I didn't think we would win the county."
O'Kane remembers the championship campaign as being one in which the Loup were underdogs the entire way through, though they did surprise Ballinderry early on. Derry clubs traditionally do well in Ulster and beyond and The Loup seem to be following that trend.
"Well, it is often said the standard of football among Derry clubs is higher than in most counties.
"And I think you do have an awful lot of tough games to get through Derry. The standard is always high, and it stands to teams when they come into Ulster. A lot of sides in Derry who we have beaten this year, have great histories, teams like Lavey and Maghera."
Of course, the richest recent history in club football belongs to Crossmaglen. But Loup didn't shrink in the face of their reputation on Sunday. Victory over the Armagh champions must be a great fillip for the club as they look ahead.
"It is great beating Crossmaglen. They are probably the best club team in Ireland.
"They certainly have the reputation and history for that title. And a lot of big guns have gone out of the championship, both in Ulster and the other provinces.
"But all we are thinking about is the Ulster final in a couple of weeks' time, whether it is Four Masters or St Gall's. Our feet are remaining firmly on the ground, there is nobody getting carried away yet.
"It was great to beat them, but we realise Cross probably weren't at their best on Sunday, they were taken away from their home patch and that might have affected them.
"And we were going into the game as underdogs. Nobody expected us to do very much against Cross, so that helped. We were going into this game with an awful lot of belief, but because we have beaten Cross, everyone knows about us now. We won't be that much of an underdog again."
Still, one more big gun is gone in the club championship. With most of the established names licking their wounds, it may be a club with a most unusual name that teams are watching out for between now and next Spring.
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