Fachtna’s chance to make final mark

Manager Colman O’Driscoll acknowledges the curtain is slowly falling on St Fachtna’s bid for a fourth Corn Uí Mhuirí crown.

Twenty three years have elapsed since the West Cork nursery last annexed the holy grail of Munster colleges football and with the proposed Skibbereen community school set to open its doors in 2016, incorporating St Fachtna’s, Rossa College and Mercy Heights, the sandglass is quickly running low on efforts to add to the trophy cabinet.

Keenly aware the final chapter in the school’s history is theirs to write, O’Driscoll said his players are hugely determined to end on a positive note.

“We know the great legacy of the school and the lads are anxious to finish with a flourish, to inscribe the school’s name on the cup perhaps one more time before we close the doors here for good,” O’Driscoll said.

“We won an U16½ there last year so it is our intention to go out on a high with regard to football. There is a great tradition here. We want to make sure we keep that going right to the end.

“If you look at Coláiste na Sceilge they are an amalgamation of schools as are Pobalscoil Chorca Dhuibhne. A lot of schools have come into the competition through amalgamating with other schools. When we won it back in 1990 and ’91 we had over 350 pupils across five years, now we have 290 students across six years.

“We have got smaller whereas those around us have got bigger and bigger. We’ve always boxed above our weight, consistently qualifying for the knock-out stages but have been maybe one or two short of going all the way in recent times.”

Coláiste na Sceilge provide the opposition this afternoon with O’Driscoll first to admit St Fachtna’s interest in the competition could — and probably should — have ceased back in late November. Having lost to St Francis, Rochestown in their final group outing, St Fachtna’s fate would be determined by the meeting of Rochestown and St Brendan’s Killarney. The Sem prevailed by 13-points, but had the margin been any smaller the West Cork outfit were headed for the exit door.

“We were there in Cloughduv watching it unfold. It was unbelievable the way it went. We thought Rochestown were going to do the business after starting so well, but the game was turned on its head in the second-half.

“Because of the scoring difference had St Brendan’s won by 12-points there would have been a play-off, had it been 11-points we were gone. There was a massive slice of luck involved and the lads realised you just have to pick that luck up and run with it.”

The success of our feeder clubs has been the strongest contributing factor in our run to the last eight.

“Castlehaven had great success last year winning both the minor and U16 and we reaped the rewards of that. Ilen Rovers, Skibbereen, Tadhg MacCárthaigh and Kilmacabea have also done well and that benefits us as we are getting the players in, they are in great shape and hungry to succeed with their school.”