TONY Collins is hoping to help Teemore Shamrocks end their 20 year wait to get their hands on the New York Cup but they’ll face an old foe and rival in this weekend’s Senior Championship opener.
Teemore head into the Championship campaign as one of the favourites for the title, coming off the back of a strong league, with a crop of young Shamrocks stars keen to write their own history.
First up in their New York Cup title bid is Kinawley and despite the Boru’s suffering relegation to Division Two after a dismal league campaign, Collins insists he isn’t taking the side for granted.
“Kinawley are not finished yet. They’ll be eyeing up this game,” the Teemore boss said.
“Last year they came up to us [to Shamrock Park, Teemore] and we were well up at half time and they beat us out the gate in the second half and their personnel hasn’t changed too much since.
“I’m sure they’ve drawn a line under the league and they’ll be looking to give the championship a rattle. We’re under no illusions of what’s coming to Teemore on Saturday,” added Collins.
Teemore were impressive in the Division One league, finishing one point behind the top two.
The Shamrocks possess one of the best forwards and dead ball kicker in the county in Eoin McManus and the centre half-forward has been in imperious form for Teemore this season.
They also have a strong core of young and talented players including the three McNally brothers, Colm, Seán and Aaron, along with Ronan McCaffrey and Aaron Lee, who have all impressed.
There also is plenty of experience in the Shamrocks ranks with Damien Lee, Niall Clarke, Ruairi Maguire and Jason McCaffrey all seasoned campaigners, who have played for many years.
County panelist Oisin Murphy will miss the championship, however, having ruptured his ACL [Anterior Cruciate Ligament] in a league game against Enniskillen Gaels, which required surgery.
“The blend of the youth and the older boys is important and they’re playing well. They are key to pass on to the younger boys and we have a good crop of county boys there too,” said Collins.
“It’s unfortunate to lose one of our talisman in Oisin [Murphy]. That was annoying but Oisin has got his operation done and everything is going well at the minute and that’s the most important.”
While his focus is firmly on Saturday’s championship opener against Kinawley, Collins is hopeful that his side will be able to make their mark and prove they’re capable of taking the next step.
“There has been a bit of consistency this year in performances rather than last year and the thing is improving and the boys are getting more mature and more experienced,” he added.