Connacht Gold Leitrim SFC Finals' experience won't do Ballinamore any harm but it will still come down to players on the day

Mark Henry cut a calm, calculating figure on the sideline as Ballinamore Sean O'Heslins found a way to shut out the attacking threat of Fenagh St Caillins to reach the  Connacht Gold  Leitrim Senior Championship final for the second year in a row. 

“Fenagh, that was in the third quarter of the last day; they hit three or four two-pointers that really rocked us. We felt that on balance, if we tweaked a few things, we'd maybe get over the line today, and thankfully it proved to be the case,” said Henry after the replay.

Changing tactics, stepping up defensively and cutting off the opportunities for Fenagh’s two-point shooters were key to success for Ballinamore on Sunday. Dealing with that threat was “very much a focus” heading into the game, given how they were punished the week before; however, as Henry points out, the calm conditions suited them, and meant that it wasn't as easy to kick the ball over the bar from 55 metres the way it was happening last week.

“That benefited us in that we didn't have to come out as far, so it allowed us to be compact and keep disciplined in our defending.”

Goal chances that were created late in the first meeting of the teams cost Ballinamore victory against. On Sunday, however, they took the chances that came as goals from Paul Honeyman and Michael McKiernan at vital times kept Fenagh out of reach.

FINAL IS NOTHING TO GET OVER-EXCITED ABOUT - LEITRIM GAELS MAL GUCKIAN

That job out of the way, their attention will turn to Leitrim Gaels for next week's decider, and with only one week to turn around and get themselves is a massive test according to Henry.

“We know it's going to be a massive challenge. They have been hugely impressive. Their dismantling of Mohill in the semi-final was a real statement.”

Leitrim Gaels have had three weeks to prepare for the final, though they only now know who their dance partners will be in that game: “We need to get bodies recovered. We need to get our minds moving forward and thinking about that challenge. We, as a management team, need to get our heads around the various threats that Leitrim Gales have and try and find some way of trying to combat them.”

Henry says Ballinamore would ideally like another week to prepare for the match, after playing two hard games in two weeks: “Whilst we finished up winning that game reasonably comfortably today for 45 or 50 minutes, it was a serious contest. A lot has been taken out of our players over the last two weeks.”

“I would have loved an extra week. We don't have it. We have to make the best of the time we have available to us. I suppose we'll not know until this time next week what impact those two tough games have had and only the week's recovery.”

A trip to the Leitrim county final is a historic moment for Leitrim Gaels but something more of a regular occurrence for this Ballinamore team who have been there , in victory and defeat, in recent years. 

For Henry, that experience can’t hurt them, but it will not be a defining force in the match: “So it won't do us any harm, but ultimately it will come down to the 20 players that Leitrim Gales use on the day and the 20 that Ballinamore use on the day. And the best 15 or 20 will win the game.

Ballinamore Sean O'Heslins manager Mark Henry (third from left) pictured with his management team of Conor Harte, Conor Doherty, Patsy Connaughton, Daryl McFarland and Brian Cafferty after their semi-final replay win Picture: Willie Donnellan

“We were actually just talking earlier on today, the last three All-Ireland Club champions were all out of their individual county championships before the final stage. So all the experience they had in winning finals and county finals, provincial finals and All-Ireland finals didn't do them any good in their championships this year.

Despite recent final appearances, the club has not tasted success since 2021, and the hunger is there, says Henry, with older players looking for another moment of glory and a number of key players in their current panel who are yet to win a county title.

“We have a number of lads who wouldn't have been part of the 21 panel, and look, they have added a lot to the team over the last couple of years, certainly since I've been in Ballinamore and you know, they've got good experience. They've played in a lot of championship matches now. So again, we again hope that that experience is bringing them on and that they won't be fazed by the big day that a county final is here next week”