Loyalty trumps sentiment for O'Rourke and Wattys
13 November 2022; Alex Doherty of Glen gets past Errigal Ciaran goalkeeper Darragh McAnenly on his way to scoring his side's second goal during the AIB Ulster GAA Football Senior Club Championship Quarter-Final match between Glen and Errigal Ciaran at Celtic Park in Derry. Photo by Ben McShane/Sportsfile
IT wasn’t as if he had a few sons and several nephews on the team, but all the same the last fortnight had been uncomfortable for Malachy O’Rourke. On Sunday, his Glen team physically overwhelmed his home club, Errigal Ciaran, in the Ulster club quarter-final.
O’Rourke has won Tyrone county titles as a player and manager with Errigal, but he is on a mission to justify Glen’s odds as favourites for the Seamus McFerran Cup this season and had to put sentiment to one side.
“It was difficult, no point trying to dress it up any other way,” he said after their four-point win.
“At the same time, I felt that when you commit to the club, the boys have given absolutely everything, that you owe them as well. And it was just a case of trying to prepare as best they could and may the best team win and we were lucky enough to get over the line in the end.”
That great variable of winter football – the breeze - had its role to play here. The wind whipping in off the Foyle usually does.
By the break, Errigal were four points up. Indeed, Glen were fortunate to be that close as the first score of the game came when a Conor Glass shot fell short and Glen attacker Conor Convery appeared to put a challenge in on Errigal goalkeeper Darragh McAnenly in the small square.
Nevertheless, he did what all children from under-12 are taught to do; play to the whistle.
The second goal came with a brilliant cut-back and back-door pass from Ethan Doherty to brother Alex, who rounded McAnenly and slotted home.
The rest of the first half belonged to Errigal though, lit up by some sumptuous attacking with the Canavan trio in Tommy, Ruairí and especially Darragh accounting for 1-5 of their 1-8 in the opening half. Tommy’s goal came when Mark Kavanagh fed Ruairí Canavan who did a clever switchback to take out the retreating Glen defence.
It became an eight-point swing in Glen’s favour throughout the second half. In real terms, Errigal struggled badly on their own kickout. McAnenly faced a wall of green and gold in the three Doherty brothers, Emmet Bradley and Conor Glass. From his first ten kickouts, they secured possession just three times. Unable to get the ball, they faced a row of runners hungry for the ball and the energy seeped out of their challenge.
The flow of points came with the aid of the breeze, but a goal in the 37th minute really gave them impetus and levelled the score when Ethan Doherty got in behind the Errigal cover for a run on goal. Dermot Morrow, originally from Kilrea of Derry, got back on the line but was powerless to stop the shot finding the rigging.
From that point on, the scoring was 0-7 to 0-3 in Glen’s favour. Errigal had a late ‘goal’ from Eoin Kelly disallowed for a square ball infringement called by referee Paul Faloon, but overall, Glen were the superior team.
On 47 minutes, O’Rourke reached for Stevie O’Hara, renowned for his shooting ability. He hit two shots in the 53rd and 57th minutes that he let hang in the air and sail over as the game went down the stretch. They managed their resources better.
They now go into an Ulster semi-final against Antrim champions Cargin. The wait for a Tyrone team to win a game in the Ulster Club senior Championship stretches back to 2016 now.
A Doherty (1-1), C Convery, E Doherty (1-0 each), S O’Hara (0-2), E Bradley (0-2), T Flannagan, J Doherty, C McGuckian (0-1 each), D Tallon (0-1f), C Glass (0-1 ‘45’)
T Canavan (1-4, 3f), D Canavan (0-3, 1f), R Canavan (0-2), P Óg McCartan (0-2), P McGirr, M Kavanagh (0-1 each)
C Bradley; C Mulholland, R Dougan, C Carville; A Doherty, M Warnock, E Mulholland; C Glass, E Bradley; E Doherty, J Doherty, C Convery; C Gallagher, D Tallon, C McGuckian
T Flannagan for C Gallagher (HT), S O’Hara for C Convery (47m), A McGonigle for A Doherty (62m)
D McAnenly; Ciaran Quinn, A McCrory, D Morrow; Cormac Quinn, N Kelly, P Óg McCartan; M Kavanagh, P Harte; B McDonnell, T Canavan, P McGirr; R Canavan, D Canavan, J Oguz
C Corrigan for McGirr (44m), P O’Hanlon for Morrow (44m), E Kelly for Kavanagh (49m), O Robinson for Ciaran Quinn (60m)
Paul Faloon (Down)
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