‘We need to be at a much higher level’ - Chapman

NEWTOWNBUTLER manager, Darren Chapman knows that if his side perform like they did they last time they played Aghadrumsee they will lose again.

On that occasion in the Junior Championship semi-final, Chapman saw his side lose to what he saw as the “hungrier team”.

“We got what we deserved on the night. The hungrier team won and that was the thing that was most disappointing for me,” he said.

“We performed way below the levels that we expect from ourselves and on the basis that we didn’t perform Aghadrumsee really stuck it to us.

“So they got exactly what they deserved last time and we had to come through the backdoor against Brookeborough as a result.”

Against Brookeborough in the second semi-final, Chapman’s side were more like themselves, and with a strong start they comfortably booked their place in the Junior decider.

And he knows no less than that type of performance will be enough this weekend: “I was really pleased with the first 15 minutes of the Brookeborough game, we really went about our business and set the tempo of the game.

“We are going to have bring that level of intensity that we brought in the first 15 minutes for the entire hour against Aghadrumsee because that is what it’s going to take to have any chance of being successful.”

Chapman knows well the threat the Magpies bring to the table in the likes of Eddie Courtney, John-joe Strain, Eoin Mccabe and Damien Mccarville but his focus is on what his side have to do.

“They have got dangerous forwards and whenever you are preparing for these games you have to take that into consideration with your tactical set-up.

“But we’ve got dangerous players too and our primary focus is making sure that when the ball is thrown in on

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We are going to have bring that level of intensity that we brought in the first 15 minutes for the entire hour against Aghadrumsee because that is what its going to take

Sunday is that the Newtown that I know is the one that shows up.

“Aghadrumsee are a decent outfit. The challenge for them is replicating what they did the first day against us and the big challenge for us is replicating the first 15 min from our Brookeborough performances and they day we played Belcoo, Irvinestown and Tempo [in the league] that’s the kind of level and if we can get up to that kind of performance level then we have a good chance. If we don’t we are in trouble.”

To get that performance Newtown have been boosted by the return of Jarlath Jackman and Gaby Jones from injury. And Chapman has seen a good hunger and enthusiasm in training since the Brookeborough game.

And he reiterated just what he sees as the requirements needed to lift the Junior title when the sides meet again: “I just think they were hungrier. It was purely down to hunger and intensity and they out trumped us in both of those and that is the reason why we lost.

“Our performance levels, our intensity, our appetite, our enthusiasm and our energy were way below anything that we have seen this year and that was disappointing.

“I can’t pinpoint the reason why that was but we need to bring a much higher level of performance, level of energy, level of hunger and enthusiasm to the table on Sunday to have any chance of beating Aghadrumsee.”