Castlehaven's Fantastic Four

It’s ten years since Castlehaven won their last county senior football title and, a decade on, heroes of 2013 are spearheading the club’s current charge to glory

MARK Collins is Castlehaven’s Mr Dependable. Since his club last won the county senior football title in 2013, he hasn’t missed a championship game in ten seasons (2014-23) as they battle to regain top spot.

It’s 44 consecutive championship matches, and that remarkable record stretches back further, too.

Haven’s man-of-the-match in the 2012 county final win against Duhallow, Collins is a leader in the current group that is striving to match the heights of back-to-back glories in ’12 and ’13.

It helps when you have four county-winning heroes of 2013 still leading the charge ten years on. Men who have been there and done that.

Collins (33), Brian Hurley (32) and Damien Cahalane (31) were all central to those triumphs in ’12 and ’13, with Michael Hurley (27) bursting on the scene in ’13 in his first year at senior level. All four featured in the county final win against Nemo Rangers in ’13 – and all four were leading characters (they all scored, combining for 0-9) in the recent Cork Premier SFC quarter-final win against Ballincollig.

So, what’s the secret to their longevity and consistency?

‘There is no special ingredient. They are good footballers, they look after themselves, they are dedicated and they love playing for Castlehaven. They enjoy it too, and that’s very important,’ says Seanie Cahalane.

Seanie was captain of the Haven teams that ruled the county in ’12 and ’13, so he soldiered alongside all four, and he is now a selector in James McCarthy’s current management set-up.

‘I think Brian and Damien made their debuts when they were only 16 so they were playing a good few years before 2012 and ’13. Mark was playing senior football since he was 17 years old. They look after themselves fierce well and they are very dedicated to it too, and that's why they are still at the top level.’

In those 44 championship games since 2013, ever-present Collins has played in every one, Michael Hurley wasn’t available for just two, Cahalane has missed only three, and Brian Hurley sat out nine (mostly owing to his hamstring woes of 2016 and ’17). The consistent availability of their main men is one of the reasons that the Haven have been so consistent for over a decade; they have qualified for the county quarter-finals in 11 of the last 13 years and are in the fourth semi-final in a row, as their showdown with St Finbarr’s in Páirc Uí Chaoimh looms on Sunday, 4pm throw-in, live on Rebels Online).

(Castlehaven’s current panel does feature four more players who were involved in those last two county title wins, with Shane Nolan, Tomás O’Leary, Roland Whelton and Shane Hurley available having played with the club’s junior team this season; they lost their recent Carbery JAFC quarter-final against Barryroe)

If Castlehaven are to beat the Barrs, then their formidable four will need to be at their best, and the recent form suggests the Haven are moving in the right direction.

‘The pace and precision of Castlehaven’s football in that opening half was the best they have produced this year,’ Star columnist Micheál O’Sullivan wrote after their quarter-final win against Ballincollig. It was a gut-check they passed. From that opening draw against Carbery Rangers, there’s a sense Haven are improving with each test.

But beyond this season, the influence of having experienced campaigners like Collins, Cahalane and the Hurley brothers – serious question: how is Michael only 27 years old? – sets high standards for the younger players on the panel. All four have played at the highest level, and Hurling All-Star nominee Cahalane and Cork football captain Brian Hurley still are. Brian has consistently been the top forward in Cork for the past decade – and his stats back that up, from being top scorer in 2013 to being joint top scorer last season.

‘It’s great for our younger fellas coming through to have players like this to look up to,’ Seanie Cahalane says.

The influx of youth at Castlehaven is important to note, too. Jack Calahane, Thomas O’Mahony, Jack O’Neill, Robbie Minihane, Sean Browne, Jamie O’Driscoll and Michael Maguire are all under 21 years of age and all have played senior football this season. Add to that list, Joseph Bohane, Shane O’Connell, Fiachra Collins, Cian O’Sullivan  Oisin Daly and Tiernan Collins who all played junior this year and are also on the senior panel.

For context, Thomas O’Mahony, Robbie Minihane, Jack O’Neill, Sean Browne, Jamie O’Driscoll, Fiachra Collins, Joseph Bohane and Shane O’Connell all started on the Skibbereen Community School team that won the 2022 Simcox Cup final and now they’re training – and, in some cases, playing – at senior level.

These young players are being exposed to the standards set by Collins, the Hurleys, the Cahalanes (Damien and Conor), All-Star football nominee Rory Maguire – and this is a learning experience for these young guns.

Castlehaven’s coaching structure is bearing fruit and while that might not translate into senior success this season, it suggests they will be around for a while yet.

‘The future's looking good for us as a club; we have good numbers,’ Haven boss James McCarthy said recently. ‘We’ve seven lads that have played championship this year that are U21. Now, Jack Cahalane is included in that, even though he seems to have been around forever. We’re delighted with that.’

Those youngsters will be exposed to life at the top level on Sunday against St Finbarr’s as the clubs clash for the fourth Premier SFC semi-final in a row. The Barrs have won the most recent two meetings, including the 2022 semi-final by 2-17 to 1-16. The general feeling is that the Haven will be up against it, but in their leading lights they have players who have been there and done that – and they’ll need them at their best if the club is to add to its haul of county senior football titles.