Numbers not only driver behind northern rising

12 months on, Coolera/Strandhill and St Molaise Gaels return to Markievicz Park this weekend to contest the senior football championship final in Sligo for the second year running.

It’s the first time since 2009/2010 this has happened, when Tourlestrane and Eastern Harps went head to head in consecutive seasons.

Times, though, are changing – Harps are at Markievicz on Sunday too, but in the intermediate decider against Owenmore Gaels.

Another mark of the changing tides in Sligo club football is that Tourlestrane, having dominated with seven titles in-a-row up until 2022, were involved in this year’s relegation play-offs.

Last year, this column considered the prospect of North Sligo becoming the stronghold when it comes to the senior crown in the years ahead and this year’s championship has done little to challenge that theory.

St Molaise Gaels are back in the decider, contesting just their second-ever final (in their current incarnation), while Coolera/Strandhill will attempt to defend the title for the first time and clinch just a fourth-ever senior championship.

St Mary’s were another of the semi-finalists while Drumcliffe/Rosses Point have also emerged as a force over the last decade or so. Owenmore Gaels are participating in a first intermediate final in 37 years on Sunday, too.

It should be little surprise that the northern clubs are starting to take control, given the population they have access to in that part of the county.

Sligo town, as the major centre, attracts people and the satellite towns on the outskirts are starting to see the benefit of that now with St Molaise Gaels (Grange and Cliffoney), Drumcliffe/Rosses Point (Rosses Point and Rathcormac) and Owenmore Gaels (Ballisodare and Collooney) all having healthy numbers coming through at most age groups.

It would be unfair, however, to lay the sole reason for the success of these clubs at just a numbers game; they have also put their shoulder to the wheel in a coaching sense and have produced a lot of players for underage county squads over the last decade.

South Sligo, long considered the heartland of football in the county, has started to see a dip in performance levels.

Tourlestrane’s incredible run of success has been one of the most remarkable stories club football in the county has seen, particularly given the sparse population in their parish. But they now seem to be on the wane, though they were negatively affected by the absence of some key players during this championship. Should they return from their travels in the years ahead, Tourlestrane’s chance of remaining at the top table will be enhanced.

Aside from that, Curry have been in relegation trouble in recent seasons and have already dropped to intermediate once in the last decade. Tubbercurry were relegated to Division Two in the league, but produced a relatively good championship off the back of that.

The shifting plates will continue over the next few years but more immediately, Sunday’s final gives St Molaise Gaels a shot at redemption and a chance to claim a historic first senior title. They often say you need to lose one to win one, and that may well prove to be the case this weekend, but beware of the wily competitor that is Coolera/Strandhill.

The defending champions have gone about their business quietly this year and had a fairly uneventful league campaign, with a mid-table finish hardly raising too many eyebrows. But, they are a team transformed when Niall Murphy is available. A talisman for Sligo for many years, his performances in black and white this year earned him a deserved Tailteann Cup All Star a fortnight ago.

At club level, though, his influence is even greater. He contributed seven points to the win over St Mary’s in the semi-final, but his work-rate and ability to win turnovers is as important to Coolera/Strandhill’s chances.

They’ve got a very experienced team. Ross O’Carroll – brother of ex-Dublin star Rory – is a fine player in his own right and brings a lot of physicality at centre-half-back, as do the midfield pairing of Kevin Banks and Peter Laffey. Keelan Cawley has been an ever-present for club and county for 15 years while Luke Bree, an All-Ireland winner with St Vincent’s in the past, is back playing as well as ever for his home club.

St Molaise Gaels, on the other hand, face a different challenge in attempting to move into championship winning territory for the first time.

Alan McLoughlin was in sparkling form in the semi-final defeat of Shamrock Gaels, while Ger Brady got the all-important goal. He has suffered massively with injury and one wonders if Brady had a cleaner run at things, he might be capable of making a similar impact as McLoughlin at county level.

Luke Casserly is developing into a top defender and benefited from his experience with Sligo at senior level this year, while Luke Towey has bundles of talent.

It’s all set up to be a very cagey final which is incredibly hard to call. You’d have to imagine that, having contested the final for the first time last year, St Molaise Gaels are better positioned this time to land the honours. But Coolera/Strandhill will be hungry and eager to back up last year’s success. Crucially, they’ve got the title-winning know-how.

It’ll be a fascinating battle – and it might be one that requires another day out.