Aran’s footballing heroes head for the high seas once again!

The footballers of Oileain Árainn are used to long journeys – in cars, ferries and aeroplanes – just to get to training sessions and matches.

But next week’s trip across the Irish Sea to Birmingham is probably their longest yet.

It’s certainly their most historic and significant.

On Saturday week, Oileain Árainn will compete for the first time in the All-Ireland junior football quarter-final at 2pm against Liverpool-based John Mitchels.

They go to England as Connacht champions. They earned that right after defeating Achill Island comprehensively in last Sunday’s Connacht junior football final at Tuam Stadium.

“The best thing that happened to us is Pearse Stadium was closed,” laughs selector, Mairtín Ó Coisteala, from Báile an tSéipeil, Inis Óirr.

“We can’t seem to lose in Tuam Stadium – that’s three finals we’ve won there now; we couldn’t seem to win in Pearse Stadium!”

It was a massive achievement for the club and follows on from their county final success at the same venue against Annaghdown a few weeks previous, as well as their West Board win.

Oileain Árainn has now won two major titles on the trot – not bad going for an outfit whose recent history in finals has been littered with hard luck stories and runners-up medals.

The travel plans were finalised Tuesday after a serious co-ordination and juggling effort. The players still living on the islands – about seven or eight who started the last day plus a few substitutes – will take the ferry to Ros a Mhíl and travel by bus to Dublin Airport, picking up lads along the way in Galway city.

Other lads, who live in Limerick and Waterford and Dublin, will make their own way to the airport before flying out Friday evening to Birmingham where they will stay in a hotel overnight.

A supporters’ bus, which has sold out, will leave Ros a Mhíl at the same time as the squad but the 50 or so fans will travel over to England by ferry.

Scores more islanders are expected to make their own way to Birmingham; including many emigrants now living in England.

The total cost of the team’s trip will be in the region of €13,000 for the squad and management of around 30. The GAA will fork out €10,000 of that but the cost to the club is still significant, especially in these straightened times.

The logistics headache of getting the squad to Birmingham is nothing new for Oilean Árainn’s management. They’re well used to juggling training times according the weather.

See the full story in this week’s Connacht Tribune – and read the full report on the Connacht Junior Football Final in Tribune Sport.