Salthill U-21s face a tough challenge in county decider

Date Published: {J}

Dara Bradley

NORTH Board kingpins Corofin will defend their U21 A crown when they face West Board champions Salthill/Knocknacarra in Saturday’s county final at Tuam Stadium (2pm).

Corofin captured the U21 title in May of last year beating Oughterard in the decider and it’s hard to fathom – notwithstanding the fact that the county U21 side won the All-Ireland this year and the senior county club championship was severely disrupted and delayed – how this year’s U21 showpiece is taking place in December.

Manager Brian Silke, in his third year at the helm, and his backroom team of Jimmy Sice, Seán Kelly, Brian O’Donovan, Fintan Forde and Justin Burke have a full squad to pick from although one of last year’s stars, Eoin Higgins is in Australia.

Corofin beat Mountbellew/Moylough and Kilkerrin/Clonberne back in March and April but had a gap of several months before their next tie, when they hammered Claregalway in the North Board final in mid-November, 4-17 to 0-3.

Many of the Corofin teenagers were pushing for a place on Silke’s senior starting xv for the Connacht club championship, which may explain the professional and ruthless manner in which they put Claregalway to the sword.

Several of Corofin’s U21 team were involved in the senior panel, including Mike Farragher, Michael Lundy, Colm O’Donovan, Daithi Burke, Ronan Burke, Ronan Steede, and Aeneas Lawless, and the defeat to St Brigids in the Connacht club final a fortnight ago is still raw for them.

Indeed, the ongoing fall-out from that controversial match, in which finicky referee Liam Devenney made some bizarre decisions against Corofin resulting in him needing to be shielded from irate fans leaving the park, has proved to be an unwelcome distraction.

“We have a full squad to pick from but we have been distracted by the Connacht club final. We know Salthill are a young dynamic team, who have done well to get to the final and who have had a number of challenge matches recently. They will be determined and I know they’ll be up for it, and hopefully we’ll be up for it, too,” said Silk.

For more, read this week’s Galway City Tribune.