THERE was no-one prouder than Conor McConville as he watched his club-mates climb the steps of the Hogan Stand on July 28 – and the Clann Eireann captain admits he would love to be part of Armagh’s push to hold onto the Sam Maguire next year.
The 26-year-old, in inspirational form as the Lurgan club claimed the county crown last month, was delighted to see Player of the Year nominee Barry McCambridge, Tiernan Kelly and Conor Turbitt help steer the Orchardmen to All-Ireland glory in the summer.
Sean McCarthy and Danny Magee were also part of Kieran McGeeney’s panel and, having just missed out this year, McConville could have played himself back into the Orchard manager’s plans as thoughts turn to the defence of their title.
“I was there at the start of the year on trial… I was there right until the very last drop, but that Armagh panel is formidable,” he said.
“You look at other counties, and Armagh always seem to get all their best players out. Once boys get into the panel they don’t tend to leave it, so you have to take your hat off to them.
“But if the chance came around again, of course you’d be willing to go for it.”
For now, though, everybody involved with Clann Eireann remains on cloud nine.
Aside from the contribution made to Armagh ending a 22-year wait to lift Sam Maguire, the club’s men and ladies’ sides both swept to championship glory at senior and minor level.
For McConville and co, coming up trumps in the all-Lurgan decider against Clan na Gael was just about as good as it gets. But they are not done yet – far from it, as Sunday sees another foray into the Ulster club arena.
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Having fallen to Derrygonnelly at the semi-final stage three years ago, newly-minted Derry champions Newbridge lie in wait, determined to repeat their Celtic Park heroics in dethroning all-conquering Glen.
“It’s been a year like no other,” said McConville, a maths teacher at St Ronan’s College in Lurgan.
“Obviously working in the school going into the final, you couldn’t really avoid it, because there would be a right mix from both clubs. But we tried to put that to the back of our minds.
“The noise was there, and there is bragging rights that come with it, but we were just chasing the medal. We had one, and we realised that if we wanted to be a great team, we needed to win more than one championship - that was more the focus than the rivalry.
“But we’re fully aware of the challenge that lies ahead with Newbridge. Any team that comes out of Derry, and has beaten the All-Ireland champions, they’re going to be a formidable outfit.
“They’ve been knocking on the door for a few years and got over the line this time. It is maybe a bit of a surprise beating Glen but it’s no surprise where they are as a club.”
Clann Eireann are a bit more ready for a provincial crack this time around too, McConville believes.
Back in 2021, ending a 58-year wait for the Gerry Fagan Cup saw the pressure valve released in some style. It was party time. This one was enjoyed too, but there is a growing sense of an opportunity that must be grasped.
“You have to celebrate these things - we had a couple of days on the drink, now it’s put to bed and hopefully we can push on in Ulster.
“In ‘21 we maybe won it prematurely; we maybe weren’t expected to win it. But then because we won it, we maybe lost the hunger… last year we trained well but it just didn’t happen. We weren’t mentally ready.
“We did a lot of work this year on game management, and a lot of it came to pass. We’ve probably used the league to blood a lot of players the last few years, but you know when it comes to winning championships you need your big players performing, and there’s no better boys than the three All-Ireland winners, and the two other boys involved, Sean and Danny, as well.
“Whenever we’ve needed scores or big moments in matches, it’s generally them boys that have done it; that’s testament to their character and the way they’ve played all year.
“Obviously we’re not looking past Newbridge, but whenever you’re in these competitions, you want to go as far as you can. The club’s on some bounce, every year’s not going to be like this, we’re fully aware, so we’re trying to make hay while the sun shines.”
