Pobalscoil will be up against it in the McGirr Cup final
ALL-IRELAND POST-PRIMARY SCHOOLS U-16½ FOOTBALL FINAL
THREE years after the same two Schools met in a Hogan Cup Final, Pobalscoil Chorcha Dhuibhne and St Pats, Maghera of Derry will meet again in another All-Ireland Post-Primary Schools Final this Saturday.
This time it’s the relatively new All-Ireland Junior Final (U-16½) for which the Paul McGirr Cup is awarded to the winner. First played in 2014, the competition gives an All-Ireland Series to Frewen Cup winners going forward and Pobalscoil manager Eamon Fitzmaurice welcomes the All-Ireland element on a busy weekend for the Kerry boss when he also has to head for Cavan on Sunday for the Allianz League encounter in Kingspan Breffni Park.
“It was one thing I always felt a bit disappointed for Frewen Cup winners in the past in that they had nothing really afterwards like the Corn Uí Mhuirí winners do with the Hogan Cup. I think this is a great competition because with the age for Minor going down to U-17 next year, I feel this will be very important for preparing players for Minor level afterwards. In the same way I think the Hogan Cup will also play a big part in preparing players for the new U-20 grade in the future,” Fitzmaurice said of the All-Ireland Series at this level. Much like 2014’s win in the Hogan Cup Final for Pobalscoil (after a stirring second-half display), the Pobalscoil manager believes that Maghera will present a formidable challenge to the West Kerry side.
“They are a bigger school than us in terms of pupils and they have a great track record of success down through the years while we are still relatively new on the scene at this level,” Fitzmaurice said about facing the Derry nursery once more. One knock-on effect of Pobalscoil’s success in the Hogan Cup in 2014 was the fact Annascaul players starting enrolling into the school.
“I think 2014 showed those from there that were still in Primary School at the time that Football was something that was an option for them here and certainly I would feel that we wouldn’t have won the Frewen Cup without their input,” Fitzmaurice said of players from the West Kerry club.
The campaign has been a bit rushed for Pobalscoil in getting here having to play three games in the space of 10 days as a consequence of the Tralee CBS and Chriost Rí saga at Corn Ui Mhuiri level delaying matches elsewhere. They beat the Green in the Frewen Cup Semi-Final before going on to defeat The Sem in the Final a week later and only a three day break to the All-Ireland Semi-Final win over St Attracta’s of Sligo. Fitzmaurice believes good momentum has been built up in this run to the decider.
“Our first half performances haven’t been great but the only thing we have felt is that the momentum from each game would stand to us in the end much like it has been for us with our second-half displays in games. While we know we are up against it on Saturday against Maghera we would feel if we can combine what we have been doing in the second half of games with the first then it will take a heck of an effort for any team to beat us.”
With the Sem having lost the decider in this competition back in 2015, the opportunity is there for Pobalscoil to become the first ever Kerry School to win this grade. Alex Doherty (scorer of 3-5 in their semi-final win over St Marys Edenderry) and Cahair Glass (brother of Conor) look likely to provide Pobalscoil their biggest threat in advance but they will hope players such as Gearóid Ó Leidhinn, Cillian Ó Failbhe, Franz Sauerland, Dylan Ó Géibheannaigh and Ruaidhrí Ó Beaglaoich can inspire them to a historic win.
St Pats Maghera