FIONAN O’Brien wasn’t born the last time that Devenish got their hands on a championship title.
On Saturday, the 19-year-old will have a leading role to play as the St Mary’s men bid to end their 26-year wait for glory.
Devenish beat Lisnaskea by two points in the 1996 senior final.
“I’ve never seen Devenish win anything, except a league title in 2017,” he recalls.
“I’ve watched the game (1996 final) back with the ‘oul boy [Gerard].”
The O’Brien family is steeped in Devenish GAA history. There are currently eight O’Brien’s on the panel including Fionan’s cousin, Martin, who is the assistant manager, and his father, Gerard, is a team selector.
Playing together with family is very special for the Ulster University Sports Science student.
“Ah, there’s no point in naming them all,” he laughs, “my first cousin, JJ [O’Brien] is full back, Jarlath [O’Brien] is a wing half forward, Ruairi [O’Brien] will be on the bench and Marty is in the management.”
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