Bishopstown's Conor Dorman hoping he will miss his flight Down Under

Conor Dorman in action for Cork against Galway in 2017. Dorman is back from Australia to help Bishopstown’s Senior A push. Pic: David Maher/Sportsfile

Friday, September 23 is the date of Conor Dorman’s departure flight back to Melbourne. It’s a flight, truth be told, he is hoping not to be on.

The semi-finals in the various Cork hurling and football championships are scheduled across the weekends of September 24/25 and October 1/2, and so if Dorman doesn’t find himself leaving on a jet plane on September 23, it’s because his native Bishopstown are still standing in the Cork SAFC.

But before semi-final involvement can even be contemplated, Bishopstown need first to secure their ticket to the knockout stages. And given the delicately poised nature of Group C heading into this evening’s final round of action, taking hold of one of the two knockout places won’t be easily achieved.

Bishopstown’s position is such that they could defeat group leader St Michael’s and yet fail to advance, while, conversely, they could suffer a second defeat of the championship but still squeeze through to the quarter-finals.

What’s certain is that they have an improved chance of progression with the former Cork senior footballer back in their ranks - albeit temporarily - after three seasons away.

It was back in February when Bishopstown manager Diarmuid Vaughan was in Melbourne visiting emigrated friends that Dorman mentioned to him he was half thinking of coming home to play championship this season.

“And sure of course Diarmuid latched onto that,” Dorman laughs when recounting the hatching of summer plans.

The O’Neill’s ball was never too far away in the intervening months. Dorman’s Melbourne club Garryowen took the local championship in June, with the Bishopstown management then sending him on a programme to keep him ticking over until he arrived home on the August Bank Holiday weekend.

His lining out at corner-forward in Bishopstown’s season-saving Round 2 win over Knocknagree was the first time he had worn the maroon jersey since the club’s 2018 Round 3 defeat at the hands of Clonakilty.

“It was 29, 30 degrees in Mallow against Knocknagree and so the lads were saying to me, you are well used to this, but I was coming from playing football in 12, 13 degrees because it was winter over in Australia, so the heat here was a bit of a shock.

“It was weird pulling back on the Bishopstown jersey, but something I had been looking forward to for a while.” Having taken flight in early 2019, Covid and the lockdowns it heralded means the current trip home is his first since emigrating.

“You get sick of facetime so it’s nice to see family and friends in real life and not from behind a screen. It has been great to catch up with everyone.

“A lot has changed, and nothing has changed. You still have your same core of people playing and same core of people involved in the club, but then a lot has changed in terms of facilities.

“I left a club that I thought at the time was a good standard club, you had your gym, pitches, and indoor sports hall. But I am coming back now and it’s like an inter-county set-up with the new gym, full-sized astroturf pitch, two full-sized pitches, and S&C coach. Everything genuinely is probably better than any of the facilities I ever had when we were with Cork. It is all located in one place, which is unique, and I doubt many clubs have that.” 

Cork U21 captain in 2014, Dorman was in and around the county senior team across the following few years, lining out at centre-back on the afternoon of Cork’s 2015 Division 1 League final defeat to Cork.

His subsequent travels have seen priorities shift, but for these eight weeks he’s at home, there’s the strongest of desires to assist in and prolong Bishopstown’s campaign.

“Michael’s will be fancied in this grade overall, but I don’t see any reason why we can’t win. I know they are a good team, but we’re a good team too.

“We showed in the second-half against Knocknagree what we can do. We were really fluid and fit, and that’s testament to the work that has gone on for the last two years, aided by the facilities that is there.

“At the moment, my flight is September 23 but hopefully will have to get changed!”