A first ever meeting of Errigal Ciaran and St Eunan’s, Letterkenny launches the 2024 Ulster Club SFC with a novel pairing at O’Neills Healy Park on Saturday evening.
This one could be a slow burner between two sides that will take some time to figure out their opponents’ strategy and respond accordingly.
But it’s an opportunity for two teams with undoubted quality to throw off the shackles and express themselves, having progressed beyond their own claustrophobic county championships.
This preliminary round tie comes hot on the heels of Errigal’s second Tyrone success in three years, a postponement forced by Storm Ashley leaving them with just a week to recover, re-set, and prepare to face a Letterkenny side coming off a three-week break since their record 16th Donegal title triumph.
That freshness could be a key element in favour of St Eunan’s as they square up to a home side seeking a balance between momentum and fatigue, while trying to get a few minor knocks cleared up from last weekend’s narrow win over Trillick.
A key objective for respective managers Enda McGinley and Barry Meehan will be to get the match-ups right, and for the latter, finding a way to limit the damage that can be inflicted by Errigal’s Canavan brothers, Darragh and Ruairi, will be crucial.
Equally, Niall O’Donnell, Conor O’Donnell jnr, and Shane O’Donnell are potential match-winners, as they demonstrated in the Donegal decider against Dungloe, with a late volley of scores that gave them a 1-13 o 1-10 victory.
The battleground of the central third could swing th game in either direction, and offers an area where Errigal Ciaran may gain an edge through Ben McDonnell, Joe Oguz and Peter Harte over Ciaran Moore, James Kelly and Eoin Dowling.
A quarter-final meeting with Antrim champions Cargin awaits the winner of a tie that sees St Eunan’s come up against Tyrone opposition for only the second time – a decade ago they lost an Ulster semi-final to Omagh at Celtic Park.
Their manager Barry Meehan believes a tough Donegal series will have his side well prepared for a real battle at Healy Park.
“We’re definitely battle-hardened. We got a good start but then we got our wings clipped against Gaoth Dobhair, but luckily we got through the group stages and into the knock-out stages, and ended up having to play in a preliminary quarter-final there, which we would have planned for.
“But it probably set us up fairly well for the test against Naomh Conaill then in the quarter-final, for that was a huge game for us.
“We went behind, but the players showed massive character, and that came through in the final as well against Dungloe, when we conceded a late penalty but hit three unanswered scores at the end.”
He accepts that he faces a huge task in finding a way to tame an Errigal side with 11 players who have featured at senior inter-county level.
“How could you not be impressed by them, with the two boys inside, Darragh and Ruairi. They’re just fantastic footballers, and they have a fine midfield with Joe Oguz and Ben McDonnell.
“They have great players all over the pitch, and it’s going to be a massive, massive test for us.”
Letterkenny have their own strong contingent of county men in Shaun Patton, Shane O’Donnell, Niall O’Donnell, Ciaran Moore, and Caolan Ward, and Errigal coach Paul Horisk has been assessing their strengths.
“Anybody that has watched Ulster football and especially Donegal, they produce a great class of football, real pacey, strong and physical, great to watch,” he said.
“St Eunan’s are a tried and tested team, they have been there a long time. For the last four or five years, they’ve been there or thereabouts, so they’re a good strong team coming out of Donegal, and Donegal always produce strong teams.
“We had had a serious battle at the weekend, tested again and more than happy to get over it, and this weekend brings another battle.”
Horisk admits it has been a challenge in dealing with the quick turnaround, while factoring in the obligatory celebrations following the club’s ninth county success.
“It is a tight turnaround, but we had a few days of sitting back and taking in what the boys had done.
“They’re a serious group of lads and they have put in a serious effort this last number of weeks, and they needed a break.
“So the next focus turns very quickly, and we’re happy to be there.”
