BY DÁIRE BONNAR
TERMON ladies return to Ulster action this weekend and stalwart Róisín McCafferty is hopeful of getting back to winning ways in the provincial championship.
The last two years for Termon have spelled disappointment in their venture into Ulster, with first round losses in their previous two seasons.
Twelve months ago, defeat came against Errigal Ciarán by 3-11 to 2-4 with Maria Canavan hitting 3-8 for the victors, which was a big hurt for the club.
But McCafferty feels they are well prepared to take a first win in the provincial championship since their semi-final victory in 2019, although she knows what it takes from experience.
“We were so disappointed on our own performance that day and even the year before we played Lurgan from Cavan at the Burn Road and the same thing, we just didn’t play well at all, nothing went right.
“But I think we’re in a better place this year and if you get beat by a better team that’s completely different, but I think there’s so much more in us and we have more work done this year.
“I was away in 2019 (the last Ulster final) and it just felt like you were almost going to get to the final every year.
“But now it’s completely different and we know the work that has to go into it, we learned that after 2010 the first time we came through Ulster, it was 2014 before we won it again.
“Getting back into the Ulster championship and winning Donegal was our main aim so we’ll put our best foot forward.”
Termon won the last two Donegal deciders against old foes Glenfin, but last month impressed with a huge 7-13 to 1-8 win over Moville, a ninth county title for McCafferty.
And the buzz around the club has only grown since then with success in multiple levels.
“We would have been very happy with our first 15 minutes, Moville are great opposition but we had a lot of work done and a lot of belief.
“I have eight (county titles) now, I missed the one in 2019, the rest of the older girls have nine.
“It has just been a great time for the club with the ladies in the final then the thirds were in the semi-final, then the two men’s teams winning and even the minors playing last weekend.
“It was nice for me because I was involved with the men’s team as physio so it was great to be involved in both sides, there’s a great buzz, there still is and that momentum carries us through, we have that sort of one club model where the ladies are seen as equal to the men and everyone is buzzing for you.
“The good thing in Donegal now is that everyone can get a run and you can use unlimited subs. That’s massive for us because we have 20-25 girls at training every night and they’re pushing as hard as the next person. Then the likes of Kate McCafferty and Kayla (McHugh) who are very young but they’re a massive push on, then the two captains Aoibhe (McDaid) and Ciara (McGarvey), then Jodie McFadden, Jenny (McGettigan) and Orla Corry.
“They’re the girls who are driving those standards.”
Termon’s last Ulster victory coincidentally came against this Sunday’s opponents as Tyrone opposition St Macartan’s travel to the Burn Road.
They will be wary of the threat of the side, who retained their championship while defeating Errigal Ciaran along the way.
It was a 1-9 to 2-5 victory that day in the Burn Road in 2019 and McCafferty will be hoping history repeats itself, although she was missing that day.
“I was in a hostel in Vietnam that day! But I think it was a very tight affair.
“We watched them in their final and they’re a good all-round young team.
“They’re fit and they were missing some players on top of that so we expect them to come with everything because they have been there or thereabouts in Ulster over the last couple of years so they’re not coming to make up numbers and they’ll have aspirations of trying to win Ulster as well.”
“It’ll be great, I coach the Under-8’s and we’re hoping they’ll be playing at half-time and the energy they bring is great and for them to have someone to look up to, as I say with that one club model, everyone gets behind you.
“There’s nowhere better playing than your own pitch, we haven’t lost too many games there over the years and it has been a bit of a fortress for us, it gets a wee bit more special as you get older and I’ve probably enjoyed the last couple of years than the previous ten when you know there’s not as long left.”
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