Dave Colbert rejoices in Fr O'Neill's ‘golden age’

Joint manager Dave Colbert was overjoyed with Fr O’Neill’s Premier IHC victory.

“I am thrilled with the performance. This is massive. You have to track where we come from. It is a golden age for our club. We are just lucky to be here for it. Promotion to senior A was guaranteed for us before any ball was thrown in but we wanted to go up as champions. I am just delighted we did it. We will celebrate this.

“We just dug in. Kilworth are a serious outfit, they punished us in the first 10 minutes. We settled, played the spaces and got players onto the ball. We got Dalton onto good ball too.

“Deccie (Dalton) is special. In the last two years, he has changed his diet, his lifestyle. He is just a super, super hurler. A fantastic fella to have on your team. Deccie will fight for everything.

“But it is no one-man show. In the last two games, we’ve had eight scorers (and again this time). We have shared the scoring around a bit. They are a fantastic group. They are the best group we ever had in the club. I am fierce proud of them.”

Declan Dalton said it was an emotional occasion.

It is a very overwhelming experience, especially when our club was only junior 14 years ago.

"This is a great achievement, not alone for the players that played tonight, but in the last 20 years, and the progress we have made. Hopefully, we can push on in Munster. We are very close bunch. We all hang out together. It is the bond that makes a team.

“It means absolutely everything. You see it down in our parish of Ladysbridge, Ballymacoda, Garryvoe and Knockadoon. When a parish so small wins a county everyone is here. You see the amount of people that came up from east Cork today.”

Dalton’s hard work is paying dividends: “I was in goals three years ago but for where I want to go, I know I have to change my diet, definitely push on from here and get fitter. That is where I am trying to go.

“When I practise, I practise to perfection. I get myself a target and I try and hit that all the time. If I miss a free, I will always finish on a positive. I will strike the next one as best I can. That is the way I train. If I miss a ball, I will always go again and finish on a good one.”