Errigal Ciaran’s youngsters are learning fast on the job as they adapt to the foibles of Ulster Club football, according to coach Stephen Quinn.
Established forces that return year after year – the likes of Kilcoo and Scotstown – are seasoned operators on the provincial scene, armed with all the guile and experience they have built up over time.
Tyrone teams are denied that level of familiarity due to the competitiveness of a domestic championship that produces a different winner every season, but the current representatives have built momentum with two victories in the space of a week.
“We were coming into the Ulster Club and a number of the boys hadn’t a lot of experience in it, they hadn’t won a game in it,” said Quinn.
“First of all it was about getting a win against St Eunan’s, and a hard-fought win it was too.
“And going into the Cargin game, the boys had that wee bit of confidence that a win gives you, and got off to a good start and managed the game well.
“Coming up the road from Ballygawley, the objective was to be in a semi-final, and that’s where we find ourselves, so we’re delighted with that.”
Errigal are currently enjoying a welcome two-week break ahead of Sunday’s semi-final against Clann Eireann, following a hectic schedule that had them in action on three successive weekends.
“It’s easy to keep the lads playing when they know they’ve got a game coming up at the weekend.
“The last couple of weeks has basically been about managing the boys through during the week, getting any wee niggles and knocks sorted out and making sure that they ready to go on Sundays.
“It was a tight three weeks, taking in the Trillick game, St Eunan’s and then Cargin, but we’re delighted that they’re all still standing and still fit.”
The challenge of adapting to different styles of football coming from Donegal, Antrim and now the Armagh champions, has demanded a fluid but intensive approach, particularly from the management team tasked with the job of assessing unknown quantities and preparing accordingly to take on opponents with whom they are unfamiliar.
“To be fair to the boys, they worked through a lot of video to make sure we knew everybody.”
Ahead of the most recent game, manager Enda McGinley held a useful bank of information, however.
As a former Antrim manager, with Quinn in his backroom team, he had worked with several members of the Cargin team.
“We have worked with a lot of these boys at county level with Antrim, Pat Shivers, Jamie Gribbin, James Laverty, Justin Crozier, the boys that you have to look out for as well as Tomas and Mick McCann.
“Having that insight was good, but likewise, Ronan (Devlin), with Cargin, he knows Tyrone football inside out, so we would have had a fair insight into us as well.”
Errigal Ciaran are blessed with the most exciting attacking unit in this year’s Ulster Club Championship, thanks to the presence of the Canavan brothers, Darragh and Ruairi, in their front line.
The pair have unsurprisingly been accorded extra attention by opposing defences, but Quinn is pleased with the manner in which others have shared the load, evidenced by a score-sheet that featured ten different players in the quarter-final win over Cargin.
“That’s what we have been stressing all year. If we’re relying on Ruairi and Darragh to get us over the line every day, that’s not going to work.
“Obviously having them is fantastic, and they’re great players, but everybody has to chip in with scores, and they did, and there were some great scores.”