Block out the noise says manager Gabriel Keoghan as Aughavas look to perform on the big day

It is a simple thing to ask players to block out the noise and excitement that surrounds a County Final but for Aughavas manager Gabriel Keoghan, blocking out the noise that comes with next Sunday’s Fresh Today Junior A Championship Final in Ballinamore is essential if Aughavas want to perform at their best.

Asked about the build-up to Sunday’s clash with Drumreilly (3.00 throw-in), Gabriel says “It's a lift for the club to be in the final, there is a bit of excitement and banter going on and it’s good to be there but it's all about on the day, isn't it? They have to try and block out all the outside noise around the place during the week and that’s difficult for young lads. 

“If they perform on the day, they have a good chance but they have to concentrate for that hour on the pitch. I suppose in the early part of the week when the flags start going up, we might get a little overexcited but hopefully on the day they'll be well tuned in.”

Gabriel’s caution may be part of a manager’s psyche but the Aughavas boss knows Drumreilly pose a significant obstacle to Drumreilly’s ambitions: “Drumreilly will be a tough nut now to crack, we’re under no illusions. Peter Prior, Gaffney, the McNiff fella playing inside, Archie O'Connor, there’s loads of talent there so we know we have to be at it. 

“The message would be to calm down, concentrate on the game - all the other trimmings can come after, you have to get across the lane. I’d say enjoy the build-up, they’ve got there and they've worked extremely hard to get here. We were doing gym sessions with them way back last November, it was a great buy-in, they are great young lads, they really want to do well. They have a big day next Sunday and they have to just try and concentrate on the game as it gets closer.”

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The Lacken Celtic clubman also doesn’t see either team as favourites for Sunday, believing both teams are evenly matched: “I wouldn't see it as us being favourites or them being favourites at all. I’ve seen a bit of Drumreilly this year and they would be evenly matched teams. 

“Aughavas did great to get to Division 1 alright but when you have seven or eight teams in a division, you're really fighting to stay in that division. We won four games in the division and it was enough to get us up now by the skin of our teeth. Drumreilly and ourselves will be very evenly matched, Drumreilly have good players in every line, as far as I can see.

“We’re probably a touch younger than they are. I’ve been with Aughavas this year and last and I know the year I came in, they lost a few fairly good players to emigration. They would have been worried about numbers but smaller clubs are all worried about numbers. My own club in Cavan would be decimated with emigration as well.

“To be fair to Aughavas, they have a good enough underage structure now with Carrigallen, they don't have them in big numbers but what's coming through is good.”

Gabriel admits he has a young squad but he has full belief in their ability: “They're all very young and I suppose, they're probably a bit too young to play. Last year, Eanna McNamara and a lot of younger lads were playing League football but he is only 19, not turned 20 yet. Darren Shortt is 20, those lads are young, but they're good.

“We're delighted to have them. They're playing well enough and we'd be confident enough in them, the skill levels and stuff like that. But then when you get late in the year, you'd wonder whether their physicality, because they're so young, would stand up to it. But so far, they've answered all the questions.”

Looking back on the campaign, the Aughavas boss was pleased with the resilience his team showed in the first round clash against Aughnasheelin, a game he believes they were lucky to win: “We were good in the semi-final against Aughnasheelin. The first game, you are feeling your way in. I didn't know much about Aughnasheelin, they were a good side, a strong physical side and they had a couple of very good players. 

“Really and truly, in that first game, being honest about the thing, Aughnasheelin probably should have beat us that day in half. There were the missed chances that they really should have gone on and probably should have pipped us at the post. But we were resilient on the day. 

“We didn't give up and kept battling. We've been like that all year. Even a couple of league games we did lose in Division 2, we were a battling team, we kept going and kept going. We've shown that all through the team. We have probably improved a bit. Eanna didn’t play many League matches, he was carrying an injury after County. 

“Niall McCabe was carrying an injury all year, he was a big player for us last year when we got promoted from 3-2. He is only kinda coming back now. Adrian Shortt picked up two fairly big injuries during the year, Darren Shortt, he was with the Leitrim U20s and picked up an injury with them. 

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“All those guys were a while to come back and they were only just back at that stage of it. They’ve all come through now and their injuries are clearing up.”

With coaching career spanning 20 years and stints with Arva and a few titles along the way, Gabriel is well placed to compare the standards between his native county and Leitrim and he sees very little difference at the top level: “People would tell you going into it that it's a lower standard in Leitrim but in every competition, even in Cavan, you are going to have clubs that are struggling.

“But generally when you get to a semi-final or final, you have a good quality of teams with four, five or six top players in every club. I wouldn’t see the standard as being that low, it is probably on a par with Cavan. Cavan’s Intermediate Championship this year was very strong but Aughavas and Drumreilly would have players that would grace any team.”