Carrickmore’s Loughran seeking to recapture lost glories

FRIDAY night under the floodlights at Healy Park is the fine setting that will provide the backdrop for an intriguing clash that will see Carrickmore hope to confirm their Senior Championship credentials with an important first round win.

Nobody around Pairc Naomh Colmcille needs any forewarning about what’s required from them against Dromore. Both teams are among the main contenders for the O’Neill Cup in 2024, and the outcome of this encounter is likely to remain very much undecided until the final moments.

It is now 19 years since Carmen last reigned supreme in Tyrone. That’s the longest ever gap between titles for this proud club from the time of their inaugural triumph in 1940. Past history, though, counts for little and it’s the present which matters for the current and talented generation of their players.

“This is one of those games where it’s really going to be a 50-50 toss-up. The two teams have been going well in the league and we know each other well this last few years. We played them in the league semi-final last year and again in the league this year when the two teams had a few players missing,” said Carrickmore’s Sean Loughran.

“We are very much familiar with each other. I have just very fleeting memories of the men winning the titles in the early 2000s. It’s a big gap for a club like Carrickmore who have been used to winning the O’Neill Cup. But it’s important that we just go out and not look past Dromore. We’ll be taking each step as it.

“This team wants to bring back the glory days back to Carrickmore. It all starts now and the fact that we got into the top four in the league is massive.”

Under the new management of Noel Slane and Ciaran McBride, Carrickmore are hoping that a new momentum and style of play will stand to them.

Their league form certainly indicates a team with talent and the ability to make their mark as the race for the O’Neill Cup gathers pace. Needless to say, though, that Dromore and any number of other teams are thinking exactly the same way.

“Our management team have come in with their own ideas. They’re taking what Archie Beattie and Stephen O’Neill gave us last year and taking things on again. One big thing is that they are all Carrickmore men and very passionate about the jersey. They want to win as much as the players do.

“Maybe the Carrickmore tradition was lost in certain games last year, the passion wasn’t there. We went out with a bit of a whimper (against Edendork).”

Carrickmore ran out winners over Dromore in the league. However, they’ll know that a determined display is needed to progress to the last eight come Friday night.