Cookstown set their focus for the long haul

A SEVENTH successive win may have been achieved by Cookstown at the weekend but the Fr Rocks realise there is plenty of water to flow under the bridge yet in Division Three.

Friday’s 2-13 to 1-8 success away at Eskra made it seven from seven so far as the Fr Rocks share joint top spot in the table with Fintona. There are still nine games to go, though, so the Cookstown camp are thinking about what is up ahead rather than dwelling too much of what has already gone before this season.

Conleth Donnelly has taken over the management reins in Cookstown together with Des Treacy and the Kildress duo are enjoying the experience, as Donnelly explains:

” This is my first experience of coaching junior football and it’s a fresh challenge in a keenly contested division. Junior football in Tyrone is stronger than in most counties and a look at the current table underlines that.

” It is important to make a good start but several teams have done likewise. We came in around Christmas time and the Fr Rocks club have given great support in helping us reset priorities following relegation in 2022.

” We see this job as a longer term project, although football has to be taken on a year by year basis. You want to help the team do the best that it can and stay in the mix for trophies but putting structures in place for the longer term is part of our focus as well.

” The two of us met with all the players individually around the turn of the year and got to know a bit more about them away from football too. Coaches can help players develop their on-field skills but it’s important to be aware of their off-field situations too and make the connection a bit more personable’’, highlighted the Kildress man.

Games flow regularly at this time of the year and Cookstown prepare to meet another unbeaten team in the shape of Drumragh this weekend. This one promises to be quite a tussle as the Sarsfields travel to Cookstown with six wins from their six outings thus far. Conleth Donnelly and the Fr Rocks camp are expecting a testing challenge.

” I would know some of the Drumragh lads through coaching at inter-county minor and general youth level. The team is going well and the club also has great facilities. A lot of productive work is going on throughout the club and it should be a good game between the two teams.

” We faced a tough one too away to Eskra in round seven. The closeness of the division and the weekly games means that you must be on the ball every time. We had some missing on Friday but the lads responded strongly to conceding an early goal and saw the game through to a winning conclusion.

” There are a lot of games still to play and you cannot look too far in front. Any dip in concentration can be punished on any given day, so we must approach every fixture in the same frame of mind’’, added Donnelly.