'It's the same players from junior all the way up to senior' — Allen salutes rise of Uibh Laoire's rocket men

MAGIC MEN: The Iveleary team celebrate their defeat over Kiskeam in the Premier 1 Football Fiinal at Pairc Uí Chaoimh. Pic: Noel Sweeney

A quick comparison of two starting teams. The Uibh Laoire county junior winning side of the delayed 2020 season set against the history-makers of October 31, 2026. The comparison shows 10 players started both finals.

The point to make is obvious and outrageously impressive: the group of players who lifted the club from junior to intermediate is the same group who, five years later, have delivered senior status for the first time in the history of the Inchigeelagh club.

And just to further emphasise the above point: the first two subs introduced during Saturday’s Premier Intermediate final victory over Kiskeam, Kevin Manning and Brian Cronin, were starters for the Junior A final win over Boherbue in August of 2021.

“The club’s rise in such a short space of time has been incredible and, you know, there's a small pool of players there, it's basically the same players from junior all the way up to senior now,” said Uibh Laoire coach Niall Allen.

“You've maybe Sam Pickering coming through, Jack Sweeney coming through. You've a few other young fellas like that, but generally, the core of the team is still the exact same.

“And just the amount of work they put into it and the commitment they give, it's just rewards for what they're doing. I couldn't ask any more of them, and I'm delighted that they've been rewarded for their efforts.” Beaten quarter-finalists in 2023, beaten semi-finalists in ‘24, and beaten finalists in ‘25 - losing to the eventual champions on all three occasions - Allen spelled out his take on why 2026 had a different outcome.

“Aghabullogue were brilliant last year and there were no complaints in coming second there, but you definitely learn from being in the final, you learn from the whole experience of being around the final and the sideshows that lead up to it.

“You try not to get distracted but it's a novelty and it's new, whereas this year it was just really focused. We approached it as another game and there were no sideshows around the razzmatazz in the lead up to it. We really went after just performing, not playing the occasion but playing the game. And I felt like we put in a really good performance there.” 

A performance where Conor O’Leary and Cathal Vaughan were so impressive pulling down restarts on either side, where Timmy Roberts and Sam Pickering were so impressive on the breaks around restarts not clearly fetched.

A quartet, though, that sit behind the headline grabbing contribution of the Jones brothers. 3-2 for Ian, 1-10 for Chris Óg. A combined championship total of 11-45, all bar one of which arrived from play.

“They are out and out ballers,” continued Allen, whose been on the line with this team for the past four years.

“If they see a sniff of a goal, they'll go for it all day. They've such pace and they're clinical. It's just something they have, they really go after them.

“We've brilliant kick-passers, we've brilliant inside forwards, so once you can give yourself a platform for the kickouts and really go after it, then you give yourself a massive opportunity.”