BY MATTHEW WILSON
DUNFANAGHY Youths forward Andrew Kelly is enjoying being back on the pitch this term as the side prepare for a meeting with Letterbarrow Celtic this Sunday.
After a number of years’ absence from the Donegal Junior League, Dunfanaghy Youths marked their return this year courtesy of trojan work from the committee at the club.
The side are competing in the Donegal Physiotherapy Division 2, a league where competition is fierce amongst all of the teams.
The club rejoining the league has been a welcome return for the local community, who have been rallying behind the team with their support to date and Kelly expressed that it’s been an enjoyable campaign to date.
“Look, we’re just starting off. I’m sure everyone knows the story, there’s a lot of boys there but they all probably haven’t played in the last few years so they’re just getting back into the swing of things.
“It’s enjoyable and there’s a great bond down there so it’s good fun. There’s no stress and no pressure on us.”
Since their return, the Callum Friel Park residents have enjoyed a couple of positive results by beating Dunkineely Celtic and sharing the spoils with Curragh Athletic in back-to-back games.
The away win against the Darney Park outfit recorded the side’s first points this season and to follow that up with a late comeback to seal a point against Curragh will have provided them with a confidence boost.
The Dunfanaghy Youths striker has praised the management team that are displaying huge commitment and dedication to the cause as well as the players who are showing up to training in their numbers on a weekly basis.
“It surely does. There’s new players coming in all of the time which makes us a little bit stronger. It’s hard to get a set team but winning in Dunkineely was great. It was a great day for everybody.
“There’s a lot of boys behind it putting in a lot of hard work. There’s four boys there every Wednesday and Friday then you have a game on Sunday.
“You’ve Danny (Ferry), Speedy, Eddie Ferry and Peter Toner, they’re putting in great work. You’ve over 20 boys at training every night, for a team just starting out again it’s great numbers. There’s a lot of young and a lot of old, it’s a great mix.
Some results haven’t gone the way that the Dunfangahy outfit would have hoped this season although with a new group that are getting used to each other, this can be expected.
They’ve shown so far that they can produce great results and performances and Kelly discussed that side are going to continue to strive towards that.
“It’s just hard to get a set team and you don’t know who you’re starting with. There could be more results like that, hopefully not, but we’re not going to get down on ourselves and we’re not going to give up.
“We know that we can get results, it’s just about getting things right.”
Kelly has been leading the line for much of the campaign to date for Danny Ferry’s outfit and has contributed with a couple of goals for the side.
He bagged a late brace to earn them a share of the spoils with Curragh Athletic before finding the net against Drumoghill in the next outing.
The Dunfanaghy Youths forward is enjoying being back on the pitch and is hoping to continue to find the target on a regular basis.
“I didn’t play at all last year so I’m just happy to be back playing. It took me a while, I’m a bit on the older side now I suppose.
“Even getting that first goal, sometimes you feel like you can’t score but getting that first one gives you confidence and things fall your way then, that’s just the way it goes. Hopefully I’ll keep it going now.”
As Kelly discussed, there’s a mix of experience and youth in the Dunfanaghy Youths setup and the 35-year-old is pleased to be able to help the younger players in the group along the way.
“It’s nice to be able to give a bit of confidence to the younger boys. There are younger boys with some unbelievable talent. Like Ollie Ferry there, he’d be alongside me sometimes and he’s an unbelievable talent. It’s nice to be able to help him along the way.”
Danny Ferry’s men are back in action this Sunday when they host Letterbarrow Celtic at Callum Friel Park.
They’ll be aiming to pick up a couple of points as we approach the Christmas break and Kelly expressed that there are positive feelings amongst the squad.
“We’re positive, we’ll be training now tomorrow night and we’ll run through it. We’d be hoping to get a result hopefully.”
