Close final in store but Knocks fancied

JFC final preview

Before a ball was kicked in this championship, Knockbride were installed as prohibitive favourites to win it out and, with respect to the other pretenders to the throne, that was with very good reason.

They have been close for quite a few years now. In 2019, they were beaten by a last-minute 35-metre goal from a free by Emmett Fitzsimons of Killinkere, who went on to lead his team to the title.

In 2022, they lost the semi-final to Arva; the year before that, they were beaten at the same stage by the eventual Ulster champions Denn, in a replay.

In 2020, there was a two-point loss in the semi to would-be champions Templeport and then, last year, a final defeat to the All-Ireland champions in waiting, Arva.

All in all, it’s a significant body of work and they have excelled in league football in the same period, winning the Division 2 title last year and unlucky to be relegated this year from the top flight, having beaten Kingscourt and Castlerahan (twice, as it turned out) on the way.

Aidan McCabe’s men are 2/7 favourites to finally get their hands on championship silverware – but Belturbet will have something to say about that.

The Rorys were seen as the gate-keepers in the intermediate grade for quite a few years. From 2017 to 2020 inclusive, they were beaten by the eventual winners or finalists – one of those losses was in the 2019 final while they exited in replays against Mullahoran, who went on to the Ulster final, in 2018 and Ballyhaise in 2017.

Knockbride manager McCabe made a good point when asked about how the experience of playing in the Junior Championship final last year might stand to his players; the Rorys, too, have played on the big day in the relatively recent past and at a higher grade, too.

The likes of captain Cian Vaughan, Enda Henry, Cormac Donohoe, Shane Fitzpatrick, Kevin McConnell, Damien O’Reilly, John Cahill, Mark Lawlor Jr, Fionan O’Reilly, Sean Óg Lawlor and Donal McDonald will all either start or probably come on in Saturday’s final if fit and all featured in that Intermediate showpiece five years ago.

Into the side have come younger players like strapping full-back Liam Mulligan, man-marker Killian Murray and stylish attacker Callum McGreevy so there is a nice balance there, and that’s not to mention two of their best players in pacey defender Stuart Dunne and Shane Fitzpatrick, who has been arguably the most consistent player on the team.

Stories leaked out of the Belturbet camp of tortuous running sessions in the depths of winter; if that seems old school, well, maybe that’s not a bad thing either. Belturbet are fit and conditioned to go through the pain barrier and those are vital attributes when facing a young, mobile, fast and skilful side like Knockbride.

There are many ways in which the Knocks can hurt opponents. Lorcan Reilly has emerged as the scorer-in-chief which is a welcome development – it’s always important for a team to know who it’s main attacker is – but the supporting cast is strong too.

Niall McCabe and Ciaran Smith are prolific ball-winners and scorers on their day; Liam Fay, back to fitness, could play on any team in the county and earned solid reviews in a short stint with the Cavan senior team prior to the National League earlier this year.

At the back, Cavan U20 players Micheál Smith and Kyle McCabe look like terrific prospects and have settled in comfortably in the last two seasons.

Captain Paddy Rogers, Paddy Smith, Mark Magee and Daniel McGuinness have ample experience and smarts too as well as physical presence as does Roy Donohoe, who is also good for a score or two and formerly lined out up front.

Where Knockbride could have the advantage is in their panel depth. Philip Rogers, a stand-out on the Cavan minor side who lost an All-Ireland semi-final to David Clifford’s Kerry in 2017, is back in the fold after a spell in Australia and came on in the semi-final, as did Fergal Smith, who lined out at midfield for Cavan in the 2022 Ulster U20 final, and the experienced defender Declan Nulty.

Another to come on in that win over Redhills was Ben Mulvey, who formerly was a starter at midfield and showed his prowess as a target man when he scored four goals in the group stage clash with Swanlinbar.

There will be nothing easy against Belturbet, however. A seasoned group, they have mixed in good company over the years and defeated Denn in a relegation play-off to retain their Division 2 league status earlier this year.

The Cavan Junior Championship has been exceptionally strong in the last five years or so, with the Breffni champions among the most formidable in Ulster in each of those years.

For our money, Knockbride probably would have won it before now but for the decision to beef up the grade some years back but the fact remains that they haven’t done it and until they do, there will be question marks - and, again, that is as it should be.

Belturbet are robust and will be well up for the challenge – and they have classy ball-players too – but the feeling is that Knockbride’s time has come. They were expected to cruise through to this stage, given they had positive results against Division 1 teams already this year and have been so close in recent years.

That they didn’t – a draw with Drung, sticky games against Munterconnaught and Redhills – shows they can be got at but, on the other hand, it should guard against any complacency and McCabe and his selectors will have learned more from those close matches than from any potential turkey shoot.

The feeling is that Belturbet will keep Knockbride honest and push it close but the Canningstown men’s time has come.