Conor keen to make amends

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CONOR Finnegan admits that getting over last year’s county final defeat to Pat’s took longer than he would have expected - and he’s determined not to endure it again.

‘I’d say it took a good few months to get over it because the following week we had them in the semi-final and we thought we gave a good account of ourselves, but we didn’t get through in the replay. It was a tough couple of weeks after all that.’

But a new year meant a new leaf and it turns out that last year’s final defeat checked none of O’Mahony’s momentum

‘We met back up in January and the new management team have been a breath of fresh air and we’ve kept some of the management from last year too.

‘We had a good chat about what we wanted to do and the different aims that we had. We told each other at the start of the year that we wanted to be here, so it’s great to be here now and we just want the week to be over and just get out on the pitch on Sunday and do the job.

‘There was a lot made last year about not getting a break but we saw it as a positive, we were winning and we had huge momentum. In saying that after last year it was good to have a break and we all relaxed and came back with the batteries re-charged. We started training in February and from the word go you could see we were hungry to set things straight in the championship. We set out with one aim which was to be back here in the final on Sunday.’

Finnegan insists there’s no great secret to O’Mahony’s amazing rise to prominence - just sheer hard work.

‘We’re going now three years with a tried and trusted system and basically it’s all down to work ethic and intensity. Every player gives 100 per cent. I don’t think anyone could say we don’t leave everything on the pitch.’

They certainly didn’t leave anything behind against the Geraldines in the quarter-final and Finnegan feels the win over Pat’s was a watershed moment too.

‘The Geraldines was a tough game and the Pat’s in what was their first game was tough too. They didn’t have a great league campaign, but we knew they’d be a different kettle of fish in the championship. They were very strong and it was great to get the win.

‘In the Geraldines game a few people had them as favourites but we showed great character. The majority of our games are tight and we’re comfortable with that because we know what to do to grind out results. It’s very rarely we win by more than seven or eight points, but we know how to get the job done and I’d expect Sunday to be tight too.’

There has been one small blip along the way in the form of a heavy league semi-final defeat to Dreadnots, but Finnegan thinks that has stood to the team.

‘We didn’t perform at all in the league semi-final. We can’t put our finger on it but we knew we had to set things right. We drew a line under it and went out all guns blazing into the Geraldines game. Our reaction to the Dreadnots defeat said it all. Questions were asked of the players and we’ve stood up and answered them.’

The Mary’s have impressed Finnegan, but he feels if O’Mahony’s perform at their best they will be celebrating down the Quay once more.

‘The Mary’s semi-final win was a brilliant performance and similar to our win over the Dreadnots last year. We knew we had a great chance of winning the championship after that last year and I’m sure the Mary’s feel the same this year.

‘They’ll be going in on a high after beating the favourites. We’ll respect them like any other team, but we’ve a job to do and we’ll get it done this year, I’m sure of it.’