Logue looking forward to renewing rivalry at Leckview

BY RYAN FERRY

LETTERKENNY Rovers against Fanad United is always a match that stands out on the fixture list and they will meet once again this Sunday at Leckview Park.

Both clubs would be considered heavyweights of the local football scene, and have had many big battles over the last fifty years.

For many of those seasons, they competed for the Ulster Senior League but now it’s the Donegal Junior League Premier Division crown that’s up for grabs.

Fanad won two titles on the trot before Letterkenny Rovers surged to glory last season.

Both are currently trailing league leaders Bonagee United but will fancy their chances of victory this week according to Fanad midfielder Eoin Logue.

“When you speak to Arthur (Lynch) or Paul (Nash) or Darran (Nash) about the Ulster Senior League, they always talk about Fanad and Letterkenny games and how good they were.

“That rivalry has always been there for God knows how long.

“Letterkenny are full of quality. They won the league last year and the table never lies.

“This year they got beat by Bonagee and drew with Keadue but they went to Kildrum then and got a result.

“They are coming into this match with loads of momentum but so are we.

“We have a bit of quality too. I think we are evenly matched, and after Sunday, the teams will probably see where they are at.”

Logue was an analyst with Finn Harps in the season just past so he’s well up to date with the latest trends in the game.

Fanad is his sole focus at the moment and the team are putting in the hard yards.

It’s not common place for junior football teams in Donegal to be doing gym sessions on top of their pitch work but Logue says the top clubs are finding the time to do so, and there’s been good buy-in from the Fanad group since the start of the season.

“We’re training down at Traigh-a-Loch.

“There’s a lot of sessions on our training pitch throughout the year but it’s in good nick.

“Our main pitch is good as well and that stands to us.

“We train Tuesdays and Thursdays and this year we’re doing a gym session on a Wednesday in Milford as well. We’re doing it at DSC with Jack Friel. He’s taking the sessions and they are very, very good.

“I think a lot of other clubs have added in gym sessions now too and you don’t want to be left behind.

“That’s the way it’s going. A lot of clubs have players that play gaelic as well and they are all good athletes who are doing the gym work.

“It’s definitely a help for injury prevention as well. The fittest team usually wins the league and you need to keep boys on the pitch.”

Given the quality in the Premier Division and the number of ex-League of Ireland stars involved, Logue feels the extra strength work is a must to compete.

“You can see that anyone who has stepped down from senior football has that robustness and physicality because they have played at that level.

“So when you are playing against boys that have played senior football, you definitely have to be able to hack the physicality so that gym work is definitely a plus for us.”

There wasn’t much change to the Fanad set-up over the close season but Paddy McGinley has moved away to Australia.

“Paddy going is definitely a big miss. He’s a big leader and a great character around the dressing room and a fantastic footballer on top of that.

“Even with the way he sets standards in training and things like that, he is a big loss for us.

“But we do have a settled group. Most of the squad have been there since Fanad won the First Division in 2022.

“Big Ronan Gallagher has come in and he played against Glenea last week and he’s going to be a massive asset for us. He’s played at a good level at underage with Finn Harps.

“Oisin McHugh didn’t play much last year due to a problem with his hip so he’s more or less like a new singing as well.

“So we have men that can step in for ‘Pud’ (McGinley). We’re happy with the squad that we have.”

Fanad failed to win any of their first three league games but the outlook is brighter now after wins over Glenea United and St Catherine’s.

“We didn’t start the season particularly well in terms of results.

“The performances were definitely there. If you took the scoreline away from the first three games and just looked at performances, Fanad would probably have had anything from seven to nine points.

“In a lot of the games we created loads of chances and didn’t give up many at the other end but on the flip side we didn’t take the chances and conceded some poor goals.

“Since the Glenea game we have hit a bit of form and have two wins in-a-row now which brings some momentum.

“We would like to have more points on the board obviously but the results have definitely been there. We just need to be more clinical and make sure we keep clean sheets.”

Bonagee look to be the team to beat in the league at the moment but there could be twists along the way and it’s hard to predict who will be relegated as well so it has the making of a very interesting Premier Division this season.

“You’ve probably heard it from a lot of people already but I think the league is definitely in its best place since God knows how long.

“I think that’s down to the fact that there is no more Intermediate football in Donegal and there are a lot of very good footballers playing junior football.

“Donegal Town have come up and I would know some of their players. By all accounts they have been very, very good.

“Bonagee and Letterkenny have strengthened again.

“The league has improved and I think it will continue to do so.”