Michael Murphy is congratulated by Anthony Molloy after the All-Ireland final. They will be in opposition camps tomorrow.
ARDARA Assistant Manager Anthony Molloy says his team must regroup quickly from their championship exit, as they have a crucial league meeting with Glenswilly tomorrow.
The Pearse Memorial Park outfit were a kick of the ball away from making it through to the quarter-finals, but Tomas Boyle’s late penalty was saved, and Dungloe advanced to the last eight at their expense.
It was a tough defeat to stomach for Ardara, but Mollloy says they must move on quickly if they are to try and retain their Division 1 status.
Ardara are currently joint-bottom with Glenswilly in the top tier, with Termon just one point ahead.
It looks like two of those three teams will be relegated, so Sunday’s clash between Glenswilly and Ardara at Pairc Naomh Columba is massive.
“It was a major disappointment not to win last Sunday,” said Molloy.
“We played as well as we have all year in the first half and were nine points up at half-time.
“They came back at us and we were given a lifeline at the end when we got a penalty but unfortunately things didn’t work out.
“The lads are down there’s no doubt about it, but they have to get their heads right for a massive four-pointer on Sunday.”
While Ardara suffered heartache last weekend, Glenswilly’s emotions were entirely different.
They were ecstatic after beating Bundoran and reaching quarter-finals, and were delighted to have their All Stars Michael Murphy and Neil Gallagher back on the field.
The 1992 All-Ireland winning captain is well aware of the confidence the Glen men will have received from that victory, but they are gunning for an upset.
“Glenswilly are coming into the game on the back of two big championship wins and they topped their group.
“Michael Murphy and big Neil (Gallagher) are back and they would make a difference to any team in Ireland.
“We’ll definitely be up against it and we’ll be complete underdogs, but we’ll go to Glenswilly looking to win the game.
While Ardara are in a relegation dogfight and have been eliminated from the championship, there’s no doubt that their performances have improved since August, and Molloy hopes they can get the rub of the green soon.
“It’s funny when your down at the bottom, sometimes it’s very hard to get the breaks.
“But our lads have trained very hard and they are very committed.
“Johnny Herron is based in England and is coming home every weekend, and we have lads in Dublin, Louth and Kilkenny.
“One of our big disappointments was that the County Board fixed one of our games for midweek.
“I’d say we have more away from the county than any other team and it wasn’t possible to play the match, so we lost two points to St Michael’s.
“The team have worked very hard and hopefully our luck will turn this week.”
“Look as far as I’m concerned, it’s still a bit in our own hands. If we win in Sunday, we are in with a good chance.
“It will be like another championship game. We need to win and they need to win.
“We’ll regroup again before the weekend and give it everything we have. It should be an exciting game.”
Receive quality journalism wherever you are, on any device. Keep up to date from the comfort of your own home with a digital subscription.
Any time | Any place | Anywhere
SUBSCRIBE TO CURRENT EDITION TODAY
and get access to our archive editions dating back to 2007(CLICK ON THE TITLE BELOW TO SUBSCRIBE)