By Matthew Wilson
Letterkenny Gaels captain Darren Hunter was delighted to get his hands on a piece of silverware as they landed the Division 3 title on Saturday afternoon.
The Letterkenny men met Naomh Brid in the competition’s showpiece in Convoy on Saturday and the two sides produced a great contest.
But it was Aidy Glackin’s side that came out on top, recording an eight-point win, and Hunter was very pleased to have clinched the cup.
“It’s always nice to come out on the right side of a final. When the dust settles I think both teams will be happy enough with how the league went.
“Getting promotion is always a goal of ours, the next challenge is staying up and we know what that brings.
“We’re just delighted to have a bit of silverware in July, it’s nice to have something to cheer about and it’s nice for the fans.”
The momentum of this decider shifted on several occasions at the weekend and this two points separated the teams as we entered the final ten minutes at the Convoy venue.
But a fine run of seven scores without reply saw the Pairc na Gael residents take control of proceedings and put themselves into a good position to secure the
win.
Speaking after the match, Hunter was pleased with the way that they dealt with the pressure that Naomh Brid put on them during the encounter.
“Naomh Brid have a tendency to do those sort of things, they can take control of games in periods and they’re good at it.
“We just had to weather the storm, in those phases we were still chipping away at scores. We controlled the game at the end which was important and it took the sting out of it.”
Saturday’s triumph capped off a brilliant league campaign for Letterkenny Gaels and they’ll look forward to playing Division 2 football in 2027.
It will also provide the group with a confidence boost ahead of what will be a very competitive Junior Football Championship in a few weeks.
Having lost in the decider last term, the Letterkenny outfit will be hoping to go one further in the Championship this term and Hunter expressed that the title win will give the side a boost ahead of the start of their campaign.
“It’s always good to have something to show for your efforts. The ultimate goal for us was to get promoted and it sets you up well for the Championship.
“You can bring a bit of confidence with it, knowing that you can get over the line in a final. It’s very positive, I’m happy for the group here and it’s nice for the club to be heading to Division 2 on our 30th anniversary as well.
“It’s nice for the young lads coming behind us and they’ll hopefully be able to carry this on over the next couple of years.”