Beara Junior A final preview
August 15, 2018
By John Bohane
Garnish will be seeking to capture the Cormac O’Sullivan Cup for the third successive year when they play Urhan in the Beara Junior A football final in Adrigole this Saturday evening at 7pm.
Garnish have defeated Urhan in the last two finals. Star midfielder Brian Terry O’Sullivan is eagerly looking forward to the Beara showpiece event. “I am really looking forward to the game. It will be a big event, there will be a big crowd which will generate a very good atmosphere. It will be a great occasion,” declared the ace midfielder.
Garnish defeated Urhan by four points in last year’s divisional final which moved them onto 17 titles in total. Urhan remain the division kingpins however, they have captured the Beara junior A championship title on 27 occasions. Brian Terry is expecting another tough encounter this Saturday evening. “Urhan gave us a tough game last year in the final. We are expecting the same tight game once again this weekend. We will have to work hard to win and be at our best if we are to retain the title. There is never any more than a kick of a ball between the two sides. It could take a moment of magic from some player to win the title. There is a little bit more expectation around this time as we are chasing the three-in-a-row. We will have to focus on the big game Saturday night and hopefully we will emerge triumphant.”
There has been a great sense of excitement throughout the Beara region this week as the two clubs gear up for the biggest event in the Beara football calendar. The vast majority of the Garnish and Urhan players went to the same secondary school in Castletownbere and they would have played with each other on the various underage and adult Beara football teams. Brian Terry is hoping both he and his Garnish colleagues will get one over on their old school pals this weekend. “There is a good buzz around the place. It is always nice to play in a local derby. All the players know each other well and get on very well. We would have all attended the same secondary school and represented both our school and divisional team down through the years. We would be very good friends, but most definitely rivals during the divisional final.”
Garnish have not reigned supreme on three successive years since the mid 1990’s when they won in 1995, 1996 and 1997. Brian Terry understands the significance of capturing the Beara junior A football championship title. “It would be a huge honour and a great achievement if we were to emulate that great team. However, our only focus is on this Saturday night’s game. Our main objective is to win the final. This is a huge game for us. That is our number one priority.”
Garnish will be forced to line out without two key players in talented Cork underage player Rory O’Driscoll and David Harrington. Brian Terry accepts they are considerable losses to their team. “We have a few lads back who were away during the summer. We are however without Rory and David Harrington. Rory did his cruciate while David has been out injured since the county defeat last year. They are both super players and their losses will be keenly felt. Our numbers are tight, we have a small panel. It is up to the rest of the panel to step up and deliver on the night.”
Brian Terry is anticipating a very tough game against this talented Urhan team. “Urhan have a lot of very good players. They have a lot of very talented young players coming through.”
Both Garnish and Urhan are guaranteed their place in the county stages of the Junior A football championship. Garnish were defeated by Whites Cross last season. Brian is hoping they can make more progress this season. “It has been a long time since a Beara team went on a good run in the county series. We felt we left it behind last season. We lost after extra-time. However our main focus at the moment is winning the divisional championship.”
Urhan secretary Daniel Dwyer is also looking forward with great interest to the Beara divisional final. “It will be a chance to redeem ourselves after last year. We were beaten by the better team last year. It will be a close encounter again, there is normally only a point or two between the sides. Garnish are a very strong team. They work hard for each other. They are especially strong up the middle.”
Urhan last captured the Cormac O’Sullivan Cup since 2015. Daniel is hopeful they can secure championship glory once again. “It would be very important for the club. It would be great for the young lads on the panel to taste championship success.”
Urhan have enjoyed a lot of success at underage level in recent seasons. They have produced a number of promising players for the various Cork development squad teams. Daniel paid tribute to the work going on behind the scenes within the club. “We have a great committee in place and a lot of volunteers doing great coaching work with the young players. We have a lot of good teams coming through. Numbers can be tight, but our U16 and minor team are very promising. We are building for the future.”