Loughran praises Carmen’s young guns

SENIOR CHAMPIONSHIP FIRST ROUND

A CARRICKMORE vs Moortown clash in the Senior Championship is a fixture that traditionalists will certainly appreciate even though nostalgia is the last thing on the mind of the current generation of players in each fold.

The sides have had many iconic battles down through the decades, including the clash in the ‘Christmas Final’ of 1995 when Carmen took the spoils 1-8 to 0-5.

Thirty years down the line there is no gleaming trophy heading the winners way after this latest confrontation in O’Neill Park this Sunday afternoon, though Carrickmore’s Sean Loughran understands the historic rivalry.

“If you talk to any of the older generation who played back in the 90s it was always Errigal and Moortown were mentioned. Those three teams always had that Championship pedigree and it really is no different now.

“When we played Moortown earlier on in the league it came down to the last kick of the game. They got a few late frees to pip us by a couple of points. No doubt it will be the exact same come Championship time.”

A litany of absentees has meant Carrickmore’s league campaign was badly disrupted this year as they ended up in 11th spot, with five victories to their name from fifteen matches. The likes of Mattie McNally, Rory Donnelly, Niall Alison and Lorcan McGarrity have had to carry the burden for much of the season, a task they have stuck to admirably.

Sean Loughran, himself a long-term absentee with injury, acknowledges that it hasn’t been plain sailing.

“For the majority of the league we would have been missing ten of the team who lined out against Dromore in the first round of the Championship last year, between long term injuries, and lads deciding to go travelling and playing football in America. So there was various factors contributed to it.

“It all adds up and you are depending on a lot of younger lads to step up. They came in and did remarkably well for what they had to contend with given their lack of experience. They were just thrown in at the deep end.”

Sean felt that the side didn’t always get the results that their displays may have warranted, especially against the more established forces.

“We had some very good performances and were unlucky in a few games where we were pipped at the post. We pushed Dungannon close and then staged a very good comeback against Trillick in the second half but had left ourselves with too much to do.

“So on another day we could have had six more points which would have moved us up the table near the top four.

“I know looking at the table it looks like we had a patchy league but there was also some really encouraging performances within that. Four or five young lads have staked a claim and have eight or nine competitive league games under their belt and that can only be a good thing. We do have plenty of positives to build on going into the Championship.

It’s now twenty years since Carrickmore lifted the last of their fifteen Senior titles (2005) and Loughran accepts they are desperate to bridge that long gap, joking that some of the older generation will frown upon them until they make the breakthrough.

“There are lads in our team who have never witnessed Carrickmore ever lift a trophy. When you say it like that it is a scary thought. If you don’t win a Championship around Carrickmore you are not really considered much of a footballer so that pressure is always there.

“But I’m sure if you ask any of the lads it is a pressure they relish. You always have those great teams of the past, in the 70s and 90s, to look up to and try and emulate.”