Managers View – Terence ‘Sambo’ McNaughton, Naomh Éanna
Naomh Éanna added the Intermediate hurling crown to the football title they won in 2018. The good times are settling in on the Hightown Road and Sambo’s at the wheel. The Cushendall native guided the Glengormley side to the title on his home patch and he was a relieved man at the final whistle: “Very nervy. We lost our shape and started to make mistakes and overcarry the ball. Things we haven’t been doing but that’s just one of them things. When the pressure goes on these things can happen but credit to Carey. They’re a good honest team and always were. They’re always going to put it up to us and we weren’t going to come here and get it easy.
“I think Naomh Éanna deserved the year they’ve had. Overall, putting everything into context, they deserved to win Division Two and deserved to win the Championship and winning the championship will help with next year. To have that behind you, that you got promoted with a championship win will definitely help.
“It’s great for Naomh Éanna, the history they have and everyone’s well aware of it, to be here now as league champions and county champions.
“It was hugely important to win here today. To go up as county champions will help with confidence, doing the clean sweep.”
Seven points up with eight minutes remaining, it should have been plain sailing from there for Sambo’s side but Carey pushed them to the pin of their collar in those closing stage: “A wee bit of inexperience of not knowing how to close the game out and a wee bit of boys looking their name in lights was going on a bit but you learn from that. Everyday you go out you learn from something and Naomh Éanna have a bit to go yet but they’re probably the one club who can become a force in Antrim hurling. This is one step on that road, that’s all it is.
“They’ll enjoy it tonight but we’ll get back to it on Tuesday night and think on Ulster.”
Naomh Éanna had big performers on the day. Philly Curran with two majors in the second half, Eddie O’Connor and Ruairi Donaghy but Sambo reserved special praise for two players. Firstly John McGoldrick before speaking about Mark Donaghy: “He’s a good striker of a ball. He’s probably the best striker of a ball that I’ve ever coached and that’s saying something. He’s a lovely striker.
“Mark Donaghy to me, and I’m going to say this and people will think I’m biased, but he’s been some asset to Nomah Éanna this year. Mark Donaghy just oozes leadership and to be fair he has that wee bit of experience. He’s been in and around championship winning teams and knows how to behave and what to do.
“Mark would have been more used to today than some of the other lads.”
Naomh Éanna’s thoughts now turn to Ulster as they look to emulate their achievements with the big ball 12 months ago and while Sambo will be keen for a tilt at the provincial title, he says Naomh Éanna have the tools for bigger and better things: “Antrim’s over and we’ll go into Ulster. What happens there, it’s going to be tough. I know Derry will be strong. I’m not sure who we play but it’s a great step in Naomh Éanna’s growth and for Antrim hurling.
“We talk about the Big Three, maybe this is the first step in Naomh Éanna making that challenge. This club are capable of it. They have the facilities, they have the numbers and if they get the right people in place, they can do it.
“Put it like this, if they can’t do it, there’s no hope for the rest of us. Naomh Éanna have something a lot of other places don’t, numbers. Look at Glenrgormley, a big suburban town. They have and I’m not 100% sure on this but I think they’ve the biggest numbers of membership for any club in Ulster. They have to grow for the good of Antrim hurling. Antrim need more teams at the top table.”
Managers View – Aidan Delargy, Carey Faughs
Seven down with eight minutes remaining, it looked like Carey’s game was up. The men from Ballyvoy thought different. A stirring comeback but time wasn’t the friend of the Faughs. A valiant effort where they threw everything at Naomh Éanna, including the kitchen sink but they came up short.
Saturday was the sixth final Carey have been beaten in and none probably harder to take. Team manager Aidan Delargy cast a frustrated figure when we spoke with him: “Gutted in the result but hugely proud in how they fought to the bitter end. I only ask they give 100%, that’s all I ask. On another day it could have been different.”
Two of the three Naomh Éanna goals couldn’t have come at a better time for the Hightown Road side. During the second half, the Faughs threatened to reel in their opponents and Philly Curran found the net. Pivotal moments, especially the third which gave Naomh Éanna an unassailable lead: “They got the goals at the right times for them but I always said that if they concede to make sure and get the next score and we done that. We fought back every time.”
The introduction of Martin Hunter and Daniel Martin gave Carey more threat in attack and it left Carey wondering what if. What if they had made those changes earlier but it’s a conundrum for any manager at any grade, make the change or give those selected the chance to come good. Delargy was happy with the impact his changes made but less so with the referee on Saturday in relation to a big penalty call in the second half: “They reacted well and the boys came on and done well. They trained hard but everyone trained hard so I can’t complain about that.
“We’re a bit disappointed in the referee, I felt we should have had a penalty. That was a big call and I thought they got their frees a bit easier than we did. There was a couple of times our boys were being held he played on and didn’t bring it back and then he was blowing everything for them but that’s for another day.
It was a superb comeback full of desire and heart but ultimately the Faughs fell short. Cushendall native Delargy was proud of his players when he concluded: “We wanted to just concentrate on ourselves no matter what they scored. They’re a great bunch of lads and someday they’ll win this.
“It takes hard work, you’re not gave it. You have to earn it.”