By 
ULSTER SENIOR CLUB CHAMPIONSHIP
LIVE television coverage of a Loughmacrory match across the nation on Saturday night- these are indeed unprecedented times for St Teresa’s.
With the RTE outside broadcast vans and trucks rolling up to Healy Park to cover the Ulster Senior Club Championship opener between the newly crowned Tyrone kingpins and perennial provincial heavyweights Kilcoo in the first round, the Lough have well and truly arrived on the big stage.
One man who deserves to be a central cast figure in the drama (though a shoulder injury may deprive him of that opportunity) is St Teresa’s midfielder Cathal Donaghy.
One of five brothers in their historic O’Neill Cup winning squad, the 28 year old was superb again in the milestone victory over Trillick in the County Final a fortnight ago, crowning an all-action showing with five brilliant scores from open play.
It’s understandable that subsequent to that memorable triumph, the Lough boys partied long and hard among their delirious supporters, celebrating their first ever Tyrone SFC title.
Donaghy though insists that come Saturday night they will be fully primed to give it their all against the mighty Mourne Magpies.
“ We are a competitive club, we always want to try and push on and better ourselves. We enjoy the celebrations obviously but that game is the next target. We want to go and give an honest account of ourselves against a side who know all about the Ulster Championship.
“ We will knuckle down and prepare for that. It’s the kind of fixture Loughmacrory could only have dreamed about featuring in at one stage.”
Both Donaghy and his younger sibling Aodhan were part of the Tyrone senior set up this past summer but Cathal agrees that their now burgeoning playing careers started out as something of a slow burner.
“ Neither or our parents are big football people. It has been tough on the way up. None of us have really played much at underage at inter-county level with Tyrone. We weren’t the best underage players. But we just stuck at it and kept believing in each other.”
While all successful sports teams can point to a close bond within the unit as a vital ingredient in helping them to attain their goals, Donaghy felt that was especially the case within the current Loughmacrory squad, as he reflected on last Sunday’s scenes.
“ It was unbelievable. It was a day we dreamed of. It’s been a long tough journey.
“There has been heartbreaking defeats and heartbreaking injuries. There has been loads of ups and downs but we are such a tight group.
“ That togetherness has helped to get us across the line this year. We are literally living in each other’s pockets. Every Saturday night, every Sunday night, we are in each other’s houses. I think that close bond led us to the County title at the end up.
“ The match was like a blur. I just try to do what is best for the team at all times. I have been on the end of enough defeats in Tyrone Championship football to learn and pick up small things. You are always going to have doubts and question when this team will ever get over the line but I honestly can’t describe the effort that all the boys put in.
“ Everyone is 100 per cent committed and this shows the success you can have when everyone goes all in together and gives everything they have.”
Cathal felt that it was extra special beating a team of Trillick’s calibre in the final, explaining that as a club they represented everything which he admired.
“ When I was growing up it was the Mattie Donnelly and the Lee and Rory Brennans that I looked up to. You went to watch them perform in big Championship matches and asked yourself could it happen to me some day.
“ I know it would have been bitter for them to lose but it’s testament to their attitude and determination that they are back at this stage year on year.
“I know we at Loughmacrory have huge respect for the Trillick lads and what they have achieved, and what they represent as individuals and footballers. It was an honour to share the pitch with them in the County Final.”
However this Saturday’s match pans out against Kilcoo, Donaghy insists that the breakthrough campaign of 2025 can’t be a one-off for Loughmacrory, and he feels the youthful make-up of the squad suggests that further glory still lay around the corner.
“ I am probably the second or third oldest player in the team. It shows how young we are. If we keep our feet on the ground and stay humble, which we always preach at our club, then who knows what else can be achieved.
“Hopefully there is better days ahead.”
