DERRYGONNELLY Harps delivered their ‘drive for five’ with a fifth Fermanagh championship on-the-trot thanks to a 0-10 to 1-3 victory over Roslea on Sunday.
But the bar is always being set higher at the club and, with five titles now in the bag, the Harps will focus on a run in Ulster which begins against the Antrim champions, either Cargin (confirmed finalists) or the winner of the Portglenone versus Lamh Dhearg semi-final replay.
Conall Jones scored 1-5 in Derrygonnelly’s last Ulster Club Championship win, which came against Armagh Harps back in 2017. Taking confidence from that victory (the county’s first in Ulster since 2013), the Fermanagh champions came within a whisker of making the provincial final but bowed out in a semi-final replay against Cavan Gaels that finished 5-7 to 2-15 in favour of the Breffnimen.
Jones has been involved in all five county titles and said Sunday’s win was testament to the players who had come in and steadied the Harps’ ship earlier in the season.
“I’m delighted to get it,” he said.
“We worked so hard and we had boys away at the start of the year like Leigh Jones and Gary McKenna and we had boys injured too and this is about the boys who came in and stood up and drove it on for us. That performance was for everyone.”
Jones scored the first two Derrygonnelly points on Sunday and brother Garvan chipped in with four more before skipper Ryan Jones (the third brother in the team) lifted the championship trophy in triumph.
“We knew Roslea would play quite defensive so we just had to be patient – we knew the game wasn’t going to be won in the first 10 minutes,” said Fermanagh full-forward Conall.
“We started slowly but by the end of the second half we were starting to dominate them and the goal was against the run of play. It was six scores to two (0-6 to 1-1) at half-time and we were happy enough because we were creating the chances. I thought all we needed was a wee bit more composure in the final third and we were on to a winner.
“This one is so special for the club, it’s history-making for the club.
“We know it won’t last forever so we want to make it last as long as we can.”
While the Jones brothers provided 60 per cent of the scores, Tiarnan Daly kept tabs on Roslea’s main scoring threat Sean Quigley. The Fermanagh forward flicked in a goal in the first half but that was his only score from play.
“It was always going to be tough,” said a delighted Daly afterwards.
“Over the last few years it has always been us and them contesting it and you add the conditions in and that’s another layer especially the way they play with the long ball. When it’s slippery you just don’t know what way it’s going to go and that one that came in (the goal) ricocheted off a few hands on the way in (to the net) but thankfully I was able to deal with the high ball a bit better in the second half.”
Daly missed the 2016 title win with a cruciate injury but he was an integral part of the last three championship wins. He says Derrygonnelly “have the calibre” to make progress at provincial level this year.
“Ulster was always in the back of my mind coming into this season,” he said.
“We know we have the calibre to progress but the last four years it hasn’t really gone our way
“Hopefully we can push on this year. We’re that bit more mature, we have played outside the county and we know what the calibre is out there. It’s anyone’s game when you go out in Ulster but we’ll enjoy this win and then push on from there.”
