Michael Hynes

Early life and joining the club:

“I first started playing Gaelic when I was in Mayo, we moved down to Mayo in 2000 when I was 7 or 8 years of age. I played for Breaffy for a couple of sessions [Aidan O’Shea’s club]. I went to school in St Johns in Breaffy but lived in the parish of Balla which is in Manulla – just outside Breaffy. I must have been showing a wee bit of talent and people got a bit of wind of this and I had to change over to Balla. That really when I started playing”.

“We moved back to Belfast and I went to St Joseph’s primary school in Crumlin and naturally fell into Aldergrove- even though we only lived about two minutes from Lámh Dhearg- because I went to school in Crumlin I played for Aldergrove. I played with them at U-10 and U-12 and then I wanted to focus on soccer”.

“I was big into my soccer and was playing for the County Antrim development Milk Cup squad just before U-14/15. I was a fifth  year in St. Mary’s and Gerardy McKeown was in my tech class – he was playing for the club and I was missing the game at that stage. Nugget [Marc McGarry] and Jordie [Marc Jordan] were in my Aldergrove team in U-10 and U-12 so I knew them as well as  Matt Lappin and Decky Straney- it was nice having them on the team made it a bit easier, rather than knowing nobody. He [Gerard]told me to come up to Lámh Dhearg and I met Terry [McCrudden] and Russ [Frank Fitzsimons jnr]. That’s really how I became involved with Lámh Dhearg”.

First impressions and treble win:

“My first impressions- I didn’t know too much about the club at the time- but I knew a few people who were affiliated and played for the club, the likes of Ryan Murray, John Quinn [Jodie’s dad] and I knew Jamie, Conor and Christopher. I was in and out of their house because my granny lived around the corner from them near St Agnes’ Youth Club and they were always ranting and raving about Lámh Dhearg and trying to get me up while I was still at Aldergrove. I wouldn’t really have known why everyone was so passionate and everyone that played for Lámh Dhearg talked about it. It was only when I came up that I realised what a great club it was and the people were brilliant”.

“I think it was about 2008 when I first came up, we were halfway through the season and I was made welcome and was able to train with the team and became part of it. It was a bit frustrating because I wanted to play but I was happy to be around the team. We were in the quarters or semi-finals of the Championship and the first game I went to watch was against Rossa. Then we played Gort na Mona in the South Antrim final at Casement”.

“We were unbeaten in the league all year and won it – Gort were a good side as well- they’d won everything from U-12 right up and we beat them. The all-county final was against Cargin and it was a great experience. Even though I couldn’t play- to be part of it and it was my first time at Casement as part of a team. It was a great experience and for the club and the support- the atmosphere was brilliant and to win the treble”.

“I was ineligible for Ulster and the Paul McGirr tournament, I think we got beat by Omagh but they were a good side at that stage. They won the Paul McGirr and then went onto win the minor Ulster”.

Momentum to carry into U-16:

“I couldn’t wait to actually play; it was nice training and the positive atmosphere in the camp and it motivated me for the next year. I had 3 years at U-16 – the year previous and I had another two left and 2009 was the year that I first really started playing for the club. I was playing minor as well as U-16. We got beat by Gort in the minor semi-final but won the league. It was a tight pitch at O’Ds and I think we hit 18 wides. Russ, Terry, Tonto [Marty McCague] and Jim [Moran] were involved and it was nice to be involved with the minors”.

“It was my first year playing in the general and it was an amazing experience- everything about it. The training, the professionalism of the whole set-up, the drills and we were well looked after. The year we won the u-16 Treble, we were engrossed in it all – we were winning but it was the leadership of the management really who were driving the whole team forward. We were there just to play football and winning was a nice part of it but we didn’t really understand what it was about – we just all wanted to play football and they had a bigger idea, driving us forward”.

“The management [Russ, Terry, Tonto and Jim] were taking both teams and were putting a lot of time into the club- I think that’s what made it special for us too- the amount of time that they were putting into the club and spending away from their families and they were putting money in from their own pocket. The club were doing the bit as well in anything they asked for but they didn’t mind putting their hands in their pocket because they really enjoyed it all and wanted to see us do well”.

“We won the league and were unbeaten the whole year and won the South-Antrim final against St Johns and won the all-county again. The previous year I was on the pitch warming up but I wasn’t playing so it was nice to be a part of it. I had my own stamp on it and was able to contribute to the team”.

2010 – Minor success:

“2010 was the year that defined the squad, I was still playing U-16 but the minor team was phenomenal. Everyone on the team was all-star class and even know we were unbeaten in U-16 the year before- minor is your bigger year and there is a big focus on minor. Everyone is looking to see who is coming through and who’s going to make it into the senior team and what the senior’s would look out for in the minor team”.

“Because there was so many good players and we were building on the previous years and in pre-season we were a couple of years ahead of the rest and started introducing core, stability and strength exercises. Diesiel [Damian McGarry] and Decky Bunting had come on board at that stage and just build on the quality work of Russ, Tel and co – Decky was taking the coaching sessions and warm ups and they were professional, well organised and enjoyable. . When you look at the results that year – we went through the league unbeaten and beat Creggan 3-14-2-11 in the league play-off. We beat Ballymena 8-17-2-11 and then went onto play Sarsfields but they were unable to field. We went into the semi-finals with the four top teams and we drew St Johns- but they were unable to field and we ended up playing Ardoyne in the final. We beat them 4-11-1-10 and it just showed how much we were ahead of other teams and was instrumental to Russ and Terry , Declan and Diesel and how well they had the trainings set-up. There wasn’t anything forgotten about from start to finish- there was water there, the warm-ups were done right and there was discipline and craic and banter about. Everything was serious but obviously you have to have that we bit of craic about and make it enjoyable and I think everyone just bought into it”.

Antrim Championship:

“In the Championship that year we started out by playing Rossa and we beat them 3-16-0-06 and we beat Glenravel in the quarter-final, we beat Dunloy in the semi-final by five or six to set up a final at Casement against St Johns. We were the two stand-out teams in the county and going to school- everyone knew each other. It was a big rivalry and you’d have had Paddy McBride and the Johnston’s [Conor and Ciaran] and Fitzy [Matt Fitzpatrick],  Danny Best and Kylan Alsopp – they had a good team”.

“At that stage it was all about the games at Casement – you liked the winning- but to have your moment in Casement and playing with the crowd and especially our support. All of Lámh Dhearg were down watching and you thought you were superstars. Everyone was buzzing and it was amazing to be playing at Casement. You’re going there and watching county teams and senior club championships and now it was our turn on the stage”.

“The first game the floodlights didn’t work and everyone was all set-up to go out, we were in changing room and all went quiet, the team was about to get named, it was a great atmosphere and then it just went silent when Russ and Terry were naming the team. We’d such a good team and you were waiting for your name to be called out but mine wasn’t- 15 players were named out and I wasn’t on the team. I was shocked and couldn’t believe it, obviously we had a great team and in the semi-final, I was playing half-back and scored 1-02. Now they were naming the team and I wasn’t in the starting line-up and I was gutted”.

“But I took it on the chin- obviously it’s all about the team winning and I wanted to play my part and I knew I would come on at some stage and play my part in it. A couple of minutes later there was a knock on the door and they passed a message that the floodlights weren’t coming on and they were trying to work at it. They never came on and I think it was postponed for another week. I was happy in a way- gutted that the Championship final was called off but it gave me an opportunity to win my place back in training and that’s exactly what happened – I was always putting it in but that wee bit extra helped me win the shirt back”.

“I’d got the shirt back but I’d a wee bit of a point to prove, I think it 0-05-0-01 at half-time and we ended up winning 0-11-0-03. To keep St Johns to 0-03 points in a minor Championship final just showed the class that we had and how well we were set-up. We were looking forward to getting back up to the clubrooms and to bring the minor Championship back. We knew everybody would be waiting and it was a great couple of days. We’d won the minor Championship and the whole club was buzzing, it was a great lift for the club. It was great seeing faces like Felix Mulligan, Gerard Mulligan and Jim Agnew. It was great to see the smiles on their faces and they were buzzing. They followed the team and the likes of Shanty [Pat McCague] followed our team and never missed a league game. The standard we were playing was great to watch and they enjoyed every minute of it and seeing the club winning again”.

Focus on Ulster:

“Then once the celebrations were over it was time to start thinking about Ulster. Russ and Terry began to get us focused again on Ulster- I can’t remember whether the draw came first but we came up to the clubrooms again and had a training session to keep us ticking over. All the training was done up in the club and I remember there was a foot of snow on the pitch at one stage and we trained and then went back to the club and Russ and Terry had got pizza’s and food for after training and then we rewatched the minor final against St Johns on the big screen. They were great memories- we played the final and were reliving it again. You were able to see everyone contributing on screen and everyone was having a bit of craic”.

“The positivity about the squad was great and everyone was cheering the likes of Aaron McAufield- he scored from 45’ out after a big solo run and everyone was having a bit of craic but congratulating them. You saw the progress and the part that you played, you saw tackles you made and everyone was turning round looking at the players and it psyched you up a wee bit because you were getting recognition. You had the draw down at the City Hall- I think Decky Straney, Russ and Terry went to it. They were drawing the games and we were drawn against Omagh in the prelim round”.

“We were from Antrim and nobody knew anything about us and Lámh Dhearg at that stage and everyone was writing us off – I think someone from Omagh said ‘it’s great to get an extra-game under our belt’. it maddened us but you just turn it into motivation and we’d had a hard couple of weeks in training up in the club and it would lift us. We were training as a professional outfit as it was, the U-16 and minors were unbeaten and at this stage we were lifting it another bar. We were doing 1v1 and 2v2 attacking grids, man marking games were you could only tackle your man and there was no place to hide. If somebody wasn’t putting it in it was easily seen. The conditions were starting to get cold and there must have been a foot of snow and it made it more memorable for the craic. We had a few snow-ball fights before the warm-up before the mindset was switched on and you were starting to get down to focus. You never really did that again; it was Ulster football and you wouldn’t be playing unless you were at University level and playing McKenna Cup and Sigerson. Unless you’re doing really well and get through into the Ulster stages- for us we knew nothing about it and it was great”.

Start of Ulster journey:

“We beat Omagh in the prelim and everyone had wrote us off and I think that inspired us more. Every point that they hit- we’d come back with a point or two and even a goal. By that stage everyone was starting to believe how good we were because they’d won the competition the year before. That led us onto Aughadrumsee- they were the Fermanagh Champions. That was probably the handiest game but at that time we didn’t know anything about them. We just continued to play our game and everyone was contributing. I think it’s hard to label out players, usually two or three guys would star and drive the team forward but everyone had a jump to do- even the subs coming on would have a big impact and were fighting for their positions”.

“Aughadrumsee were a good side but we just continued with the mentality that we wanted win the competition and we weren’t there to be put out. We overcame them and met Kilcar in the semi-final. At some stage of the tournament there was a delay and I was playing for St. Mary’s CBGS in the McLarnon Cup. I picked up a bad ankle injury right before Ulster was due to begin and I remember the moment and I was gutted. Everything was being geared towards the Ulster and as soon as it happened- the first thought was in my head, lying on the ground – am I going to miss Ulster? It just showed how much it meant to everyone. It was a new atmosphere and it was motivating, uplifting and drove you forward to bring the best out in you to win it”.

“We played Kilcar- the Donegal Champions in the semi-final and they had a couple of big names. The McHugh’s and big Paddy McBrearty- he was very, very good. I was county minor captain later in the year and we played Donegal in Ballybofey and he played the minor game and was coming on and making his senior debut for Donegal against Antrim. It shows you the calibre of players that were in the competition. The Kilcar game was a tight game, I think we were 0-05-0-04 down at half-time but playing against a gale force wind. We came out and got an early goal and from there we picked up again and drove forward and came out winners at the other end to set up the final against Rossa, Magherafelt”.

“it was great to be in the Ulster final but everything stayed the same, training intensity was still high, everyone was flying fit and I don’t think there was any injuries at that stage and any wee niggles were being managed. Brendan, Micko and Conor [Herron] were putting on physio sessions throughout to keep the team going and they were giving up their time- it was just brilliant and it was a whole club effort to get to this stage”.

“Magherafelt were a good side and had scored goals left, right and centre all throughout the competition. It was a great game of football and the most competitive game that I’ve played in. We scored and they scored and everything was answered back- it was just a matter of who wanted it more. It was point for point and we kept pulling each other back. There was a couple of great saves at the start- I think Gerard pulled off a great save- there was one that looked like it was going in the top corner and he made a wonder save. You were fighting for every ball and every kick-out and breaking ball. The feeling in your stomach because you didn’t want to lose the next ball and you were on your toes waiting for it to come out”.

“There was a stage in the game that I didn’t think I was going to carry-on, someone hit a loopy ball and it was going over my head- I was looking back up towards the sky and big Cheeko [Philip McCusker] he wasn’t a great player but he was about 18 stone and 6 ft 3. I was going for the ball and he drove straight through me with a high knee and I just remember hitting the ground and I couldn’t breathe for literally 30 seconds. I looked up at Aaron McAufield and thinking I can’t’ breathe and was panicking. Conor Herron came over and it must have took a couple of minutes to sit there and gather myself together. I was in pain but eventually I did get up and I didn’t want to go off because it neck and neck. The last 10-15 minutes was when it really got tight and the crowd were getting really riled up throughout the game. It was coming down to the wire and nobody knew who was going to come out on top. There was stage were the game was level and they had the chance to go ahead with a free but they missed it and then the fog started to come down. It was looking like extra-time and conditions were starting to become unplayable. It was hard to see who  was who. We won the kick-out and ball broke to Slaner [Gerard Slane] and he drove forward and handed it off to Carl [Maxwell] in front of goal and he just popped it over so handy”.

“At that stage there was maybe four- or five-minutes left, it was on the blow but there was a bit of added time and trying to hold on for the win was scary. It was such a tight game and you didn’t know what way it was going to go and it was a fight for every ball. People were getting tired and both teams were starting to break through- it was end to end and you were trying to lower your mistakes and keep possession and not give away any sloppy balls. The ball was just breaking everywhere and there were a couple of moments that people had to step up to 50-50 balls and we came out on top. The last minutes were unbarring and we just wanted the game to over. The whole season and couple of years before it came down to the last few minutes. Obviously to come out on top was emotional because everyone had gave everything from management, the team, supporters – everyone had just everything they possibly could”.

“Everyone just came together and you were being hugged by the closest Lámh Dhearg supporter, supporters were on the pitch and the young ones had their faces painted and people were congratulating you.- It was euphoric. It was great to see Russ and Terry hugging each other and not that we couldn’t believe it- but we did it and it meant to much to everyone. We’d been through it all and done what we had to do and what we were told basically by Russ and Terry”.

“Looking back it was special- I’ve been involved in a lot of sports in soccer and Gaelic the whole way through and big competitions and big teams – but nothing stands out like the Ulster minor tournament. The emotion that it brought and the friends that you made and how close you were at Lámh Dhearg with that team and the managers and other club members. It was unbelievable”.

Aftermath and celebrations:

“we just couldn’t wait to get back up to the club, initially St Pauls had a dinner. The St Pauls competition was amazing- it was very well run and there was no gaps in it, the communication through it, the whole set-up, volunteers, the way it was run, the media coverage by Jerome Quinn – it was brilliant so professional. We’d a dinner in St Pauls and both teams were there. Barney Herron was chairman at the time and I remember him giving a speech- you could just tell he was so proud of the club and was proud to be making the speech on behalf of the club. We’d just won the Ulster minor and obviously he was congratulating Magherafelt and their progress and thanking them- but it was about Lámh Dhearg and the speech was great. It made it all worthwhile to be there as the winning team and for Barney to be singing your praises”.

“After that we went up to the club and everyone was waiting- it was like a guard of honour on the way in. We were the first team in the club to win an Ulster Championship and it was top class. I was new to the club and didn’t know too much about the history – I’m still learning the history of the club and getting to know the people in the club and the families involved and names of the past, people have fell away from the club and who they were and what they done. It was great to have made history for the club and being the first team to win an Ulster Championship at minor football”.

Memories of car journeys :

“Training was always hard but enjoyable – I remember ACDC and Guns and Roses playing one summers evening from Russ’s car parked behind the top net *you didn’t get it anywhere else. You’d have great banter on car journeys, you were treated equal and spoke to like you were an adult. Nugget and Jordy would have got a lift home with Russ and his car would have stunk. Nugget always got the blame but Jordy wasn’t a saint”.

Ryan Murray – ‘the worm’:

“Ryan was just a character and he came out with random bursts of humour or something. He’d been doing it on and off throughout the season but it must have just came into his head in the moment and he got down and starting doing it. Everyone just turned round and there he was – Jerome [Quinn] was obviously filming at the time and then it just became his celebration after every game throughout the competition”.

Jerome Quinn and professional coverage:

“We were analysing Jerome’s recording and editing and also his interviews – it was great to break it down and great to have a bit of craic. There was people slagging each other watching back the interviews, the likes of Ryan Murray and Declan Straney were giving interviews and everyone was having a bit of craic and a bit of slagging”.

“His material was unprecedented; you’d never seen anything like it before and I think that’s what highlighted the win so much too. We were the first club in Antrim to win the St Pauls tournament since 86 and the start. Jerome’s coverage highlighted it and it made it special because everyone was there to see it and it was on-line and publicised the whole thing. We were the team in the middle of it all driving it forward and it focused on us”.

“We have a recording of the minor final and I’m not sure whether he had seen something from that and knew we were a good side. I think it was a close focus on us – obviously he was covering every team but we seemed to have more coverage in terms of clips and our games were being more publicised. He’s a top, top man – I remember him from BBC sports coverage and then he left and was able to turn his hand at videoing the games. it gave him an outlet and you look at him now, the level that he’s covering in the GAA is unbelievable”.

“But I think that’s where he started out in the Ulster minor tournament and he progressed on from there. He was so professional in the interviews, editing and the commentary on the games was top class. The Ulster tournament was memorable but other games you forgot and scores you forgot. But the footage is there and its helps you remember it more and Jerome documenting it all makes it a living memory and you can always look back on it”.

Well looked after:

“We’d become regulars at Goodfellas- Russ and Terry were looking after us bringing us to Goodfellas about 5 or 6 times over the three years. After the Ulster games we’d pizza and food and were watching the games and re-evaluating. They were big into analysis and everything was being put down- there was no shouting as such- it was highlighting were we were going wrong, were we needed to pick up on, the drills were being adapted to work on different things. We were well looked after and the gear that we were given- Russ and Terry were putting their hand in their pocket and the obviously the club were helping out as much as they could”.

“Even too see how much they were giving up; they were taking U-16 and minor at that stage – even though we were in the Ulster minor; we had won the U-16 Championship as well against St Johns. it was a great experience for some of the others like: Ryan Murray, Jordie [Marc Jordan], Nugget [Marc McGarry] and myself- we’d the best of both with U-16 but were also with the minor. We were involved in two different competitions- you look at the time that Russ, Terry, Diesel, and Decky Bunting put in. You look back now at how precious time is – being locked in- it’s nice to have that time with your families, but they were giving it up maybe going to work and coming straight to Lámh Dhearg and putting all the hours in taking U-16s, minors and putting their hands in their pocket. It’s amazing and shows how much they loved the club, how much they were willing to do, how far they were willing to go to help us try and win. They put their past experience into it and I’m sure that drove of them on as well, their own memories of playing minor and senior football and the joy that it gave to the club. They just wanted to put it back and relive it again”.

Floodlights to Fog programme:

“Giving this interview has been instrumental in bringing it all back, it helps you relive it. I’m not sure if anyone that reads the  colourful commemorative programme produced by Bukey needs to get their hands on it. it gives you comprehensively every detail and it isn’t just a Lámh Dhearg perspective – it gives you the Andersonstown News paper account, Bukey, Terry and Russ, Barney Herron and different perspectives from start to finish”. Great souvenir to keep and share with family in the future

“They’d key moments and every player was mentioned in it and every club man. There was bits from the crowd – there was the likes of Seamus McGarry who asked Eamon McGarry was he going for a pint after we won the Ulster final? There was wee reflective bits that we didn’t see on the pitch. We might have seen the joy but we didn’t hear what had happened or the banter going on in the crowd and what it meant to them”.

“We had a bit of launch night going on- it’s hard to remember them all from the success that we had. Going on into senior we had dinner dances and things like that. We also won an Aisling Award and looking back at that, it shows you how special it was. The other Antrim clubs were pushing you on to- to a certain stage they have their own loyalty to their own club but they saw what the team and the club done. It brought Antrim football back, obviously you’d St Galls at senior level. They were dominating Antrim football and had done well at Ulster /All Ireland.  Our minor breakthrough success helped instil confidence into Antrim teams, enhance the reputation of the county and more Importantly a huge boost to the clubs senior team.

County minor:

“I’d come onto the team and county to me was new- it was great to be a part of the panel. It was all about your club but to represent your county was nice and to be the captain. Russ and Danny O’Neill took the team- Danny had a wee bit more say but there was a lot of Lámh Dhearg players – Marc Jordan, Ryan Murray, Marc McGarry, Conor McIlvenny and Kevy Quinn. It was nice but again being from Antrim we weren’t counted. 2011 was the year it went downhill for me in terms of underachieving. We beat Donegal with the likes of the McHugh’s, McBrearty and O’Malley’s – they were all the big players that played in the senior team for Donegal. We got Cavan in the next round in Pairc Esler and they were a big physical side and we just left ourselves too much to do. We were five or six down in the first half and we got on top and won the second half but just left ourselves too much to do. They ended up winning the Ulster Championship- which was gutting as we showed in the second half we had the ability but just left ourselves too much to do. It was nice to represent your county and especially being from Lámh Dhearg – you were representing your club as the county captain”.

2011 and move into senior:

“In 2011 I’d still another year of minor left and there was another good U-16 team coming through that were unbeaten the previous year. I won the McLarnon Cup and in the semi-final it tied back to Ulster because we met St Puis’ and there was loads of Magherafelt players and some of the others boys were playing for St. Mary’s Magherafelt in the MacRory. Half the team were playing for St Puis’ and it was a tough game, again it was like the Ulster minor final and seeing the faces about brought back the memories. It was neck and neck again and in the last 10 minutes they were dominating and I think we were two points down with a couple of minutes to go and Bradso dropped a 45 on top of the keeper and lobbed him and that brought us through to the final”.

“We’d a load of players from the club in the team- Carl Maxwell, Marc Jordan, Marc McGarry, Kevy Quinn, Matthew Murray, Shane Jordan and Matthew Lappin. We’d Decky Bunting helping Donagh Finnegan out and the momentum was coming on from Ulster. You still couldn’t believe the Ulster win but we went on and won McLarnon and then that led onto minor and my first year of senior as well under a strong and experienced  management team of  Jim Herron Fitzy, Sean McKenna Russ and Bukey ”.

“It was good year and a bad year; it was great in momentum and we won the league again but got beat by St Johns in the Championship final. We   had beaten them in the league but on the night it didn’t happen for us. It was a big year for me personally because I’d won the McLarnon Cup, was in the minor final, we got the U-21 final at Casement against Creggan and we were beaten in that, we got to the senior final – it was my first year playing senior – I was in the starting team. We got beat by St Galls by 3-points and we’d just left ourselves too much to do”.

“Coming into the senior team was different, it was like that underdog feeling again- you’d something to prove that you were good enough to be there. Some people were sick of hearing about Ulster minor- not obviously within the club- but people were sick of hearing it. I don’t know if it was jealousy or what? But we’d something to prove and we just wanted to continue on. It was great and we’d John Finucane, Micko [Herron] and Paddy Cunningham- he was Antrim captain at the time and starring and had led the 09 team to the Ulster final and was playing National League Division 2. Antrim were relying on Paddy for his frees and he was the captain driving them forward”.

“Those players were delighted to see you; they knew it was an addition to the squad and obviously we’d a lot to learn because senior level is a different story. We’d brought something from different to the table- with Russ and Terry bringing us through and we’d a winning mentality. We’d a great year and a bad year – beaten in the minor, U-21, senior final all within a matter of weeks but getting to that stage – there was no other club that was doing it. I think that comes from the commitment and belief. It made us players and set us up for senior”.

“ The likes of Conor Murray was finding his way as well- he was still young at the time. The first Championship game was at Casement against Cargin. Conor Murray from behind the 45’ just lobbed the ball towards the net and it lobbed the keeper. We were getting on top at the time and it rattled them and we went on it win from a losing position. Those memories are unbelievable- especially as a minor aged 18 at the time. Some clubs never reach senior Championship and at that age people start to figure out your job, where you start to go in live, girls start coming into it and drink. Russ and Terry kept us focused and Jim Herron and co brought us into the senior team to keep the focus on football and sport”.

“Throughout our whole team- everyone was on peoples back and asking why you weren’t at training? What were you doing? Where were you? If people were slacking. They were pushing you on and it was that mix of lads that brought the senior team to where it is now- winning the senior championship a couple of years ago against St Johns and I think it’s just built for there. You’d the young lads at 18 or 19 and the higher end with likes of Finucane in his early 30s and that experience was coming through with Beansy [Brendan Elliott] and players that had been there and done it and had their senior moments. They were giving their experience to us and we were showing what we’d learnt through the Ulster minor”.

“It was a great experience for all of us that had stuck together coming through into the senior team. It was a different atmosphere, a different sense of humour and a different sense of mentality – it was almost old school. I wouldn’t say there wasn’t as much banter but it was senior and you’d Micko and Brendan [Herron], Conor Murray, Cathal [Kelly], Reg [Brendan McComb], John Finucane – all big names and playing their parts. In the talks the minor players would have been looking at each other and loving every moment of it. Yes, we were Ulster champions but it was all about being senior and being part of the senior panel at your club”.

“From my experience – playing at St. Mary’s school and St. Mary’s University, playing for Glenavon – there was no other environment like it. There was different motivations and people around the club – you’d the likes of Joe Finnegan, Big Fitzy, the McGarry’s, the McCruddens, the Fitzsimons, the Herrons, the Cunninghams and the likes of Shanty [Pat McCague]. It’s what made it exciting and their input and excitement brought it through to us and we just loved every moment of being able to play senior football and try and achieve and bring happiness to the club. It was great seeing the club happy and celebrating and all the clubs members would have been buzzing at the time – it was a great period”.

2012 senior league win but frustration:

“We won the league in 2012 and the next year just rolled into one- I felt we were underachieving. We were getting to finals but we weren’t cutting it and a wee bit of inexperience like not taking points or keeping possession cost us and it didn’t make it as memorable as Ulster. One year always rolled into the next and we always seemed to have Cargin and they were a spear in our side. They were a great team but just didn’t quite make it past them – which was frustrating because we definitely had more talent in team. It was just trying to get it to gel”.

“Everyone in the club were waiting on it but it was just more frustration because we knew we’d the ability to do it – but just weren’t doing it. Even the U-21 final at Sarsfields against Portglenone. We were 12-points up at half-time and being beat was bizarre and we couldn’t believe it. It got away from us and we felt we had the mentality that we should have been going on through and winning the Ulster U-21 competition up in Creggan”.

University and suffering injury:

“I was making my decision what to do in terms of University – being part of the club has made me where I am today. I’d applied for Jordanstown, I got three distinctions and three As and guys in the class were getting into sports science and sports studies at UUJ. I had elite athletes status because I was county captain- that got me extra UCAS points and I ended up with 400 UCAS points. But I didn’t get a place in Jordanstown because of my personal statement- I was trying to cater towards all the different subjects and it apparently it looked as though I didn’t know what I wanted to do and that’s why they didn’t offer me a position”.

“Paddy Cunningham in St. Mary’s at the time and he advised me to make an application to Ranch. I had set my mind going to Jordanstown but I was playing in teams with Niall Morgan, Peter Harte, Conor Clarke, Aidan Forker, Sean O’Neill and all top county players and I was now in a team with them”.

“You were just a wee young fella from Antrim but I think the Ulster minor success held its weight. It kind of reminded them that you weren’t just a wee boy from Antrim. You maybe had one or two special players coming through out of Antrim. Obviously lads from St Galls like Sean Kelly and Kevin Niblock and Paddy Cunningham. It was very rare that you heard of special Antrim players- it was all about Tyrone, Down or Armagh -It was a nice setting”.

“You were playing Ryan Cup and players and standards were so high that you were on the fringes of the team. In the second year I went to Spain and that curtailed my playing time and came back for third year- that was my final year. I was really going for it and was fit; we were going well in the senior team at that stage in 2013/14. Then it was the McKenna Cup, we beat Queens and were playing Fermanagh and the injury happened. We had a quick kick-out and I went up to break the ball and came down and my knee hyper-extended and I did my cruciate”.

“Talking about getting injured for St. Mary’s ahead of Ulster and I thought I was going to miss that- at this stage I had just been offered a scholarship to go to America to New Hampshire.  It was around October or November time and when I did my cruciate I remember just thinking at that moment- I’m not going to be able to go on my scholarship now. But I came back from it and fair play to St. Mary’s, they really, really looked after me. I’d done my cruciate and Paddy [Tally] knew that I’d had the scholarship offer. Something had happened with the GAA insurance- someone had made a bit of a mistake and hadn’t done the procedure right and therefore the insurance didn’t cover my knee operation. Out of St. Mary’s own pocket- they paid for my knee operation and rehab”.

“I came back after that and the scholarship didn’t work out at that time but again I went down to the trials and got another scholarship to go to Atlanta Georgia to do a master’s in business. It was a great experience, I supposed to be there for two years – I was playing well enough but I think it was hard at the time. America is just so big and you’d need a car to get around. Maybe some of the boys I was living with weren’t the right mentality- they were smoking stuff and I was there to play sports and winning. I think it was the mentality that was brought through from the minor team- I wanted to succeed”.

“I’d been there and finished the soccer season and I don’t know whether I was getting a bit homesick at that stage. I was following the senior team from afar and I think we were in the Championship final against Cargin in 2015. I was following it on the internet and wanted to see the lads do well and was disappointed I wasn’t part of it – because the senior Championship was building up and was overdue. My mum and dad came over for a bit of a holiday and I was telling them how I was feeling. The housing wasn’t great but the University was brilliant- it was more a way of cutting the cost from the scholarship guys with living arrangements. I decided to come back and Russ was managing the county seniors at this stage. he asked me to come up and play and I was doing well and starting to pick up and get my game back again. I picked up a knock- the knee was great and the rehab had worked and I was back to full fitness- I picked up a foot injury in one of the training sessions and my health went down a wee bit. I’d no injury and just fell off the senior team and that’s where it really left off”.

“I’d tried to get back to Lámh Dhearg and Bukey has me tortured to come back. I’d say I could get another 10-years if I get back, which hopefully I will do at some stage. I think in Frankie Wilson’s piece he talks about being away from the club and it’s not through bad terms it’s just through life and family. It’s been hard for me- I’ve just got a new job, had a new child and built a new house- all around the same time. My health hasn’t been great and I was a bit tired- I’m feeling a lot better now. That’s why I haven’t been around”.

Delight at 2017 success:

“I was happy for the lads- you’re a club man and obviously everyone wants to be a part of it and if you’ve played in the team you want to play your part. I was there as a clubman and it was special and a bit of a relief. We beat St Galls in the quarter final and beat the Johnnies in the final. St Galls for the first time in Chmpionship. There had been a big rivalry between St Galls and Lámh Dhearg – our rivalry was St Johns from the minor. But the likes of Cathal [Kelly] and Reg [Brendan McComb] – St Galls were their rivals like St Johns were ours. You always wanted to beat them because they were the team to beat”.

“It was nice to see the club win the senior Championship and for the older members to see it finally come around again. From reading about 92 when we were awarded it by default and a lot of the lads were disappointed because they weren’t able to do themselves justice. They’re just remembered by the team winning by default- even though they were the righteous winners of it and a quality side ”.

Fundamentals:

“Having the wee one has brought me up to Fundamentals and that has inspired me to go back at it and become part of the club again. It just shows you how much goes on in the club and how much is put in behind the scenes by the likes of Bukey and Stevie Bunting. You’ve senior players like Reg, Mackers [Mark McIlvenny], Conor Murray and Jamie Quinn are up with their kids and are helping out with drills”.

“My missus is a St Galls woman, she’s related to the McGreevy’s [Jackson, Kurtis and Gregory] and there’s a bit of a fight going on to where Jude was going to go to. But from my experience of Russ, Terry and all the management – Jim Herron, Martin Lynch, Kevin Murray and others who’ve been involved in such a great experience. What makes the club special was all the people behind the scenes- the likes of Tonto [Marty McCague] and Jim Moran would have done anything you needed and anything you asked. They didn’t say no and they’d have done something at the drop of a hat, they were committed to helping the club out”.

“Decky Bunting, Diesel [Damien McGarry] and Stefan Long- he was part of it as I was coming in, he was coming out. They are the kind of people that have helped bring the club on from U-14 right through to minor Championship. It all started at underage and you can see why Buke and Stevie are so engrossed in it all. They’ve put so much time into underage and the crowds that are on the pitch sometimes from 5 and 6 right up through. You can see why they’re putting the time in because that’s where it all starts”.