Augher club buzzing after much needed win- Kavanagh

JUNIOR CHAMPIONSHIP QUARTER-FINAL

PROLONGED Championship runs have been thin on the ground for Augher in recent seasons so you could understand Darragh Kavanagh’s relief after their Junior first round victory over neighbours Eskra a few weeks ago.

The St Macartan’s will be rank outsiders against league champions Cookstown in the quarter-final this Friday night in Omagh but they won’t lack for self-belief on the basis of their excellent 3-9 to 0-13 win over the Emmets last time out.

Talented attacker Kavanagh chipped in with 1-4 that afternoon, dispatching a vital penalty goal in the second half. He felt that the long overdue victory was a weight off everyone’s shoulders after a series of disappointing early Championship exits in recent years.

“It was a massive win. It has been a difficult season for us. We have just been plagued with injuries throughout the year. The Eskra match was the first time we had a full complement of players. We really went out there and died with our boots on which is what you want in the Championship.

“We showed what we are capable of. If you go by league form nobody was giving us a chance at all but we produced the goods when it mattered. It means a lot to the club because there are so many putting in a lot of hard work from youth level right up.”

The current batch of Augher players will be well versed in the rich history that the club has built up down the years in the Championship and Kavanagh appreciates that it has been tough therefore to endure such lean times of late.

“Everyone knows about Augher’s history in the Championship and the teams that went before us. We were really disappointed with the way we went out last year (vs Brackaville in the preliminary round). Nobody really produced what they were capable of. We were determined to die with our boots on against Eskra whatever the result.

“ The win creates a real buzz about the club and is something we need because we have a relegation playoff to play as well and we don’t want to find ourselves in 3B of the league. We don’t think we are a team that should be down there and the Eskra match showed that we shouldn’t be down at that level. We want to push to get the most out of our season.”

Speaking ahead of the draw which tossed them in against Cookstown, the Championship favourites, Darragh was bullish about Augher’s prospects whoever the opposition.

“The league was really tough because we were picking up injuries throughout it. But when we have everyone to pick from we have that self-belief and know we have been there before.

“We all know the quality of Tyrone league football, clubs are strong across the board. Whenever it was split into the two eights it was really unforgiving. We played in 15 and 20 minute spells at times but you do need a full deck to be honest. If you don’t play for sixty minutes you are going to get beaten. The Eskra match was the first time we really went at it for sixty minutes and managed to get over the line in really tough conditions.”