Cormac Leonard Armagh Senior Football Championship final: Clann Eireann v Clan na Gael (Saturday, 6pm, Box-IT Athletic Grounds)
Fate whispers to the warrior: ‘You cannot withstand the storm’.
The warrior whispers back: ‘I am the storm’.
STORM Ashley wreaked havoc at the Athletic Grounds last Sunday, who will bring it when the talented footballers of Clan na Gael and Clann Eireann lock horns in this delayed decider on Saturday night?
Kick a ball in the air and there’s a good chance it’ll land on a Sam Maguire winner as Lurgan’s top two meet in the Orchard County showpiece for the first time since 1968.
Clan na Gael caused an upset back then and, like their neighbours, they have the firepower to win a game that might well develop into a shootout but should start out as a cagey, safety-first duel.
Possession will be precious and the team that keeps the ball best and adds that end-product to their patient attacks will take control of the game but, in all likelihood, it will boil down to the final quarter.
Clans’ manager Ronan McMahon will have put a lot of thought into how he uses trump card. Stefan Campbell can do a job anywhere but he could start close to the goals and stretch the Clann Eireann defence, creating space for youngsters like Callum O’Neill – who scored four points in the quarter-final win against Killeavy - to break into.
Campbell got two goals in that game. He beat three defenders and the goalkeeper to conjure the first out of nothing and the second was a stylish finish after a second half break. He will also drop out into the middle third where he can use that burst of pace to get past his marker(s) and kick long-range points off either boot.
He was the man who turned last year’s championship semi-final between these sides on its head. After a cagey first half, Clann Eireann led by six midway through the second half but the loss of Rioghan Meehan to a needless red card let the Clans and Campbell back in. He finished with 10 points on an unforgettable night for the blue quarter of Lurgan.
His protégé, Shane McPartlan, is a quality performer around midfield who is also full of scores and Niall Henderson, who is expected to overcome an ankle injury, is always a scoring option in the half-forward line.
The Clans are unbeaten in the championship. They conceded a couple of sloppy goals in their opener against Crossmaglen but they dominated possession and deservedly wrapped up a morale-boosting win against their rivals from South Armagh who beat them in last year’s decider.
Killeavy pushed them at the quarter-final stage and Madden rallied in the semi-final but left themselves too much to do.
As for Clann Eireann, the quality of the 2021 champions is beyond doubt and they have star men in Sam Maguire winners Conor Turbitt, Barry McCambridge and Tiernan Kelly.
Turbitt was sent off and Kelly didn’t play in their one championship defeat this year against Maghery. Since then Ruairi Lavery’s side has settled and, as their county stars bedded in, improved with every outing.
Their best performance of a season that has already delivered the Division One title came in the semi-final against three in-a-row chasing Crossmaglen. It was Adam Kelly who got the crucial goal in that game but his brother Tiernan was superb in midfield alongside skipper Conor McConville.
Footballer of the Year nominee McCambridge is a tower of strength in defence and, as he did for Armagh last summer, he will also push forward for scores while the Clans rearguard will have their work cut out shackling ‘Turbo’ and the consistent Ruairi McDonald.
Given their strength-in-depth and inter-county class, Clann Eireann have to start favourites on paper. But Clan na Gael have an undeniable ‘X Factor’. I’ve had a feeling about them all season and they get a tentative nod to shade an engrossing derby.
