THE second of December 2023 will live long in the history of Setanta Hurling Club, but the East Donegal side won’t want that to be the highlight of their ‘golden generation’.
After winning the Ulster Junior title just 12 months previous, the side went into the Ulster Intermediate Championship in search of their first ever win at that level and claimed some scalps as they defied the odds to win the whole thing.
The side, led by player-managers Kevin Campbell and Niall Cleary, went into their quarter-final against Ballinascreen, their semi-final against Middletown Na Fianna and the decider against Eire Óg Carrickmore as underdogs, but every time, they brought the fight and came out on top.
“It was brilliant for Setanta,” Setanta full-forward Gerard Gilmore said.
“At the start of the year nobody would have thought we’d have been there and to go on and win it was just incredible.
“I went to the Derry final and Ballinascreen were playing Coleraine and they put them away in the first ten minutes and we were thinking ‘what are we in for’.
“There were doubts going into that game but credit Niall and Kevin and the backroom team who installed the belief in us.
“They had the tactics spot on.
“Thinking back on the final day it was emotional because it was a great achievement for the whole club but we’d put the work in and Niall and Kevin again and all the backroom team had us ready for the game.
“There was an hour delay because of the fog so they had to make sure we were up for the game and there was a big concern it wouldn’t even go ahead but the lads kept us focused and when the whistle went we were ready to go.
“The longer you go without the ball being thrown in then the more you start thinking about the game and more nerves do creep in and it can go through your head a lot but we just had music on in the changing room and chilled out, kept warm and kept stretching and everyone was focussed and it took our minds off it.
“We had a very good first half and I don’t think Carrickmore expected us to come with that intensity and they got a bit of a wake-up call at half-time.
“They came out and the first 15 minutes they fired everything at us and they got the goal with the penalty which brought them right back into the game but we didn’t panic and it was point for point until we got our goal.”
Gilmore top-scored in Ulster with a total of 1-26 over the three games, but his 11 points in the 1-16 to 2-11 win in the final was key to Setanta’s triumph, earning him the December Donegal News Sports Personality of the Month award, in conjunction with Brian McCormick Sports & Leisure.
But the Strabane native was modest on his contribution, with eight frees that came from the help of his teammates.
“Again, that comes down to the work rate of the boys because I was the free taker at the end of the day.
“Even there in the final itself, Ruairi Campbell got a lot of ball and didn’t score but he gave me four or five frees from the 21m line and that in itself is so beneficial and I’d credit them scores to him for doing the hard work.”
Gilmore grew up in Strabane and played with Strabane Shamrocks, as well as the Tyrone senior team.
But once his local side folded, he turned to Donegal and has had success at club and county level in his adopted county.
“The hurling pitch was behind my house and my parents were heavily involved as coaches.
“You didn’t have the phones and Xboxs back then so you had to do something and we were out every day after school with the hurls and that’s how I got into it.
“My father would have been chairman for a long time and it was embedded into us. I’m the only one still playing now out of the siblings but I just loved it and I still love doing it every day, I don’t think I’ll ever get sick of it.
“I have big family connections in Donegal in Raphoe so once I got the call to come over it was a no-brainer.
“Setanta is a small club and the only hurling club in Donegal so everyone has the same interest and are pulling in the one direction so it makes it that bit easier.
“You can see the work going on itself with the new clubhouse getting up and running and we have a training pitch being developed which should be ready in the summer I believe.
“But everyone is pulling their weight and it’s great to see and hopefully the development keeps going.”
Gerry Gilmore in action in the Ulster Final.
2024 will be another big year for hurling in Donegal and Gilmore is hopeful that the club side can have a similar year of success as they could move into Ulster Senior Hurling, should they win the Donegal title for a third year in-a-row.
But county commitments are up first and the Nickey Rickard is a priority, while there are plenty of incentives to do well in the league this year.
“It would be nice to say you played senior hurling in Ulster with your club but again, you’ve to get out of your county first.
“I think this year will be one of the hardest years too because Burt are coming with a young team, St Eunan’s are coming with a young team too, everyone is becoming stronger to be fair but I feel those two are the strongest ones and as you see over the past few years, anyone can win on any given day. “So we’ll have to get that mentality nailed down and try go for another county championship before we think about Ulster.
“But Donegal is the main priority now for the first half of the season, one of the aims this year is to finish in the top three (of the league) because you’re automatically promoted to another league next year.
“It would be great for Donegal and it would be a big test to see where you’re really at but again you learn more from them times. “We mightn’t be that competitive if we got up but the more you play them games, the more you learn and will be competitive in future years.
“As a hurler you want to be playing at the top level and it’s a very young team so the standard will improve and we’ll get prepared for next year.
“But that hurt is there from losing to Wicklow in the Nickey Rackard final and I think that’s driving on the boys at the minute and everyone is flying. Numbers are big and commitment is big, even for places in the team and that’s a massive thing and we’ll be hoping to go one more further and lift the Nickey Rackard Cup.
“Confidence is still high and that’s coming from Mickey (McCann) putting trust in me and hopefully I can carry it out through the whole season, you don’t want to be known as a one-hit wonder! But pressure comes from that and you have to take it in your stride and thrive off it, but I’m working hard and hopefully it all pays off.”
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