CLONAKILTY can put themselves on the verge of a place in the semi-finals of the Cork ETB Rebel Óg U18 Premier 1 FC with victory away to Na Piarsaigh on Wednesday night.

BY JOHNNY CAROLAN

An excellent display secured a 1-14 to 0-8 win in their opener at home to league winners Douglas last week. Manager Neil Deasy was naturally delighted with that result and the immediate possibilities that it brings – however, he also has an eye on the bigger picture.

It’s a first year back at the top tier for this group, who won the Premier 2 title two years ago at U16, following on from success in the third-tier Division 1 the year prior to that.

Deasy is keen that exposure to high-level football at under-age will help prime players moving forward to the adult grades.

‘It has been gradual,’ he said.

‘This is the culmination of all the lads' hard work, in fairness, year on year.

‘This team, at U13 they were Premier 1 but it was a big ask and they were regraded again.

‘It’s what the club wants. It’s not about winning but it’s about developing fellas for adult. Not all of them will play senior football but they might play junior football and that’s what we have to be aiming for.’

Douglas had won their seven regular league games before seeing off Carrigaline in the final. However, an early goal from Matthew Lyons helped Clon to hit the front and they benefited from the marksmanship of Tom Whooley, Daniel Donovan and Jack Byerley in attack while Ewan Knowles excelled in midfield and captain Ben Coffey set the tone from centre-back.

A 1-8 to 0-6 half-time lead was extended with three points on the restart to ensure that Clon remained in control.

‘I suppose all we were focusing on was the performance,’ Deasy said.

‘We had an okay league, we were missing a lot of fellas, it was very disjointed with all of that.

‘We had a couple of weeks to try to get the show on the road. We had a few lads back from Cork and injuries and Leaving Cert and the whole lot.

‘Irrespective of the result, we were delighted with the performance.

‘Our three inside forwards, on any given day, they’re electric and that's it. We just try and play nice, quick football, get it into them as fast as we can.

‘There’s no rocket science to it; let the ball do the work as much as possible.’

To that end, getting two points on the board early is a huge boost for Clonakilty, especially against a team such as Douglas.

Next up is a visit to Na Piarsaigh on Wednesday week, while Glanmire are in what is sure to be a keenly-contested group – they impressed in beating the city side in their first game.

For Deasy and his backroom team, there is pride in having got off the mark, giving them something to build on.

‘Absolutely, a big boost,’ he said.

‘Look, we know they're a good side, we played them early in the league and they gave us a fair old lesson that night.

‘As I said, delighted with the performance – we worked on a few things in training, they worked out. Now we’ll look to push on.’