League could be stepping stone for Ballymartle

While no club sets out at the start of the year with the expressed aim of winning the league, it’s not the worst of consolation prizes.

Tomorrow, Ballymartle meet Erin’s Own in the RedFM SHL decider at Páirc Uí Rinn (8pm). Beaten by Glen Rovers in the SHC quarter-final, the Riverstick side’s manager, John Crowley, believes ending the year on a high could have a knock-on effect for the 2015 championship.

“For a club like Ballymartle, it’s great,” he said. “It’s their first senior final ever and, obviously, if they win it’s their first senior trophy ever, that can only be a good stepping stone.

“To win would be huge, it would give the club and the players confidence that something can be achieved and then the belief to maybe go and do more.”

At the end of the ‘regular’ section of the league, Ballymartle finished top of the table, having been unbeaten since early April.

“They lost the first three games and maybe some of that was due to the changes being made and tweaking things,” Crowley said.

“We were trying to get a foundation and get to know the leads but they went unbeaten from then until the Glen game and then unbeaten since that too.

“Watching Ballymartle down the years, I don’t know is it something to do with belief or just not tuning in for the first 20, 25 minutes. Even in the Blackrock game in the league semi-final, we were seven points down at half-time.

“Against the Glen, we went in five or six points down and in a quarter-final inside in the Páirc it’s that bit harder to try and get things back.

“Due credit to them, they put up a good last 10 or 15 minutes and could have snuck it, the Glen keeper had to make a few good saves.

“We were bitterly disappointed after that game, we had played a few games up the country and done well but we just didn’t perform on the day, that was the pity.”

The response has been heartening for Crowley and the rest of his management team, however.

“We let them have September off and then we met again for a chat at the start of October,” he said.

“At the end of the day, Ballymartle have never been in a senior decider of any description and the fact that we had done so well during the league, it would have been a shame if we didn’t do ourselves justice and drive on and see if we could win it.

“When you look at the senior hurling championship, there’s very little in it.

“If you get a victory in the league and give yourself even five or six percent more in terms of confidence, it could make a difference.”