BY RYAN FERRY

DANNY FERRY says the Dunfanaghy Youths club are ‘buzzing’ as they prepare to take the next step of ‘natural progression’ and field an adult team in the Donegal Junior League this season.

Dunfanaghy Youths have been excelling at underage level in recent years with high participation numbers, while they opened their excellent facilities at Callum Friel Park at Horn Head two years ago.

They are putting in a huge amount of effort in developing young players and want that pathway to continue to adult football.

It’s not easy to mobilise a senior side and there might be some short-term pain initially but it’s an exciting project for Dunfanaghy Youths.

“We’re looking forward to it,” said club stalwart Ferry, who will take charge of the adult team.

“It’s great to be in this position.

“It’s an important day for the club as going into the adult league means that the children coming up through the ranks will be able to continue their football in the area. It’s a natural progression.

“I have been speaking to a lot of men and women from all over the county and they were saying that we needed to get the senior team up-and-running again.

“For the last few years we were just trying to make sure that the underage teams were settling into their new home at Callum Friel Park.

“We have been doing a lot of work. We have added girls football to the club, and the Football for All programme, and we had to get those consolidated first and then adult football is the next step so we’re buzzing with it all.”

Dunfanaghy Youths found themselves without a home in 2018 and had to depend on the good will of other clubs to play their fixtures.

However, they now have a base of their own which is named after their former underage player Callum Friel, who sadly passed away five years ago.

Ferry says the development of their own pitch has helped the club massively.

“There’s no question about it that the pitch has been a welcome addition to the community.

“I don’t think it’s too much to say that it was a necessity because of the amount of children that were in the locality between Creeslough and Dunfanaghy and the outskirts of Falcarragh that all avail of the facilities that we have now.

“There’s still a bit of work to be done at Callum Friel Park. There are strides being made all the time to enhance our facilities.

“One of the things we said when we were developing the pitch was that we wanted it to be there to be utilised.

“I have to say that since it has been opened, it has seen a lot of traffic and we are delighted with how it has gone.

“There was always an appetite over the years, and there have been senior teams in the area before, and players from the locality have gone on to play at a fairly decent level.

“It would be nice to think that the next generation coming up could carry the mantle for the area.”

Ferry says the plan was always to enter the Donegal Junior League at some stage and the local governing body have been very supportive in helping Dunfanaghy achieve that goal.

“We would like to thank the Donegal Junior League for all their help.

“There are a few people there – and they know who they are – that would have spoken to the club over the last few years and extended the hand of friendship.

“I think it was a matter of when not if.

“That was pleasing over the last number of years that even though we weren’t in the league, we were being thought about and the door was open.

“I have to also mention two men who are sadly no longer with us – Dessie Kelly and Terry Leyden – they had spoken about Dunfanaghy coming back as well.

“It’s been a work in progress, and for any team to survive nowadays you need to have an awful lot of good people behind it.

“We have a very strong and robust committee in Dunfanaghy and they were more than open to the idea of going into the league this season and they have pulled out all the stops to get us that far.

“So we’re very thankful to the Donegal Junior League and the club committee.”

Following Lagan Harps’ withdrawal from the Sunday League, there will be nine teams in the Premier Division this season with just one team automatically relegated while second from bottom with have to take part in a play-off with the third place side in Division One.

There will be ten teams in the First Division as usual, while Dunfanaghy’s inclusions means there will be 11 sides in the Donegal Physiotherapy & Performance Centre Division Two this term.

“We’re going into the Sunday League and obviously as a new club we will be starting in Division Two.

“We’re the new kids on block but we have been working to put a squad together.

“We have some young players and we have some older men that have played before that are coming to put their shoulder to the wheel.

“We have a nice mix and they all seem to be getting on well.

“We have had a few sessions together and there is a nice atmosphere about the place.

“The boys realise that it is a big undertaking. We’re not that silly that we don’t know we’re going in against very good opposition, particularly in the Sunday League.

“But that’s where we wanted to go and we will do our best.”

Dunfanaghy’s first match will be in the Brian McCormick Cup Gweedore Area Shield this Sunday.

Gweedore Celtic will be their opponents with the match taking place at An Screaban at 1pm.

“It sure will be tough.

“We’re going to be meeting good teams week in, week out.

“We knew that when we signed up.

“They’re obviously a team from a higher division that have been together for many years.

“We have had a few friendlies but we are still trying to find our feet.

“The Cup game comes at a good time as well and gives us that added edge as opposed to a friendly.

“We do know irrespective of what happens on Sunday, we have an awful lot of work to do in the coming weeks to get ready for the season ahead.”