TIARNAN O’Driscoll didn’t hesitate when St Mary’s came calling again.

After stepping away last season because of family commitments, he’s back in the manager’s role convinced the club has a squad capable of challenging for the Carbery junior A football title.

Last season the Saints reached their second Carbery JAFC final in five years as they chased a first divisional title since 2014. Kilmacabea, who went on to conquer the county, proved a step too far in the final.

But Mary’s are no strangers to the business of this competition. They’ve lost the final in 2021 and 2025, and were semi-finalists in 2022 and 2024. They’re not too far away.

‘If you look at the last six or seven years, between football and hurling, a lot of those players have got to finals and semi-finals nearly every year. They’ve been there before and they know what it’s about, but it’s just getting over the line, really,’ O’Driscoll says.

‘It is open this year. Kilmacabea are gone, but there’s only one team that can win it. Fifteen teams are going to be disappointed or scratching their heads wondering what went wrong.

‘There are some teams that were always there or thereabouts, even when Kilmacabea were winning it. You’d expect the likes of Carbery Rangers and Barryroe to be in the mix. It’s open, but that doesn’t make it any easier.’

O’Driscoll was on the outside looking in last season as Daniel Cronin, then manager, helped guide St Mary’s back into the football final. Their semi-final comeback against Tadhg MacCarthaigh was one of the games of the championship – the Saints rallied from ten points down at half time to eventually prevail, 2-17 to 0-21. It reignited belief around the club.

‘I was in Castlehaven that day as a supporter. To come back from ten points down and bring it to extra time to get to the final, that was an inspiration for all the young and old who were watching it,’ O’Driscoll says.

‘It sparked a renewed interest in the area and in the community. It was a brilliant moment last year. It really did bring a buzz, and getting to a West Cork final is always going to create excitement around the place.

‘Obviously, the final didn’t go according to plan, but the lads asserted themselves and did themselves justice.’

‘Win or lose, the pride is there and that’s part of the community spirit. Obviously, the lads themselves were disappointed they didn’t go all the way, and hopefully that renewed motivation will help them this year.’

St Mary's Cillian McGillicuddy rises to win the ball against Kilmacabea's Diarmuid O'Callaghan during the 2025 Carbery JAFC final. (Photo: Paddy Feen)

When the opportunity arose to return this year, O’Driscoll couldn’t say no to his home club.

‘I had been involved for a couple of years in different capacities, leading up to last year. But last year I stepped away because I didn’t feel I had the time to give the job the attention it needed,’ he explained.

This year, coach Colm Sheehy has moved on. Daniel Cronin has switched from manager to coach, and that opened the door for O’Driscoll to sit in the hot-seat.

‘When they asked me, I didn’t really hesitate,’ he says.

‘Look, I’m delighted to be involved with this group of players. I played with a lot of them myself and, even when I was playing with them, they were inspirational in their attitude, their mentality and their ability.

‘I obviously believe we can go a long way in this championship. I wouldn’t have taken over the position if I didn’t think that.

‘But it’s one step at a time, and the first step is the Newcestown game.’

Drawn in a challenging Roinn 1 alongside Newcestown, Castlehaven and Argideen Rangers, St Mary’s play Newcestown in their opener in Rossmore on Saturday evening (7pm).

In any round-robin format, winning the first game is key – it instantly dictates the narrative for what’s to follow. Win your opener and suddenly the pressure eases. Lose it and every game becomes a must-win.

‘That first game is crucial, but you don’t want to be putting any extra pressure on yourselves either,’ the Mary’s boss says.

‘If it works out, it’s great. You’ve started with a bit of momentum. I think last year they drew with Goleen with a last-minute two-pointer, so a draw wasn’t a bad result either.

‘But if you’re losing that first game, then you’re up against Castlehaven, who don’t have the hurling to distract them. They’re a one-code club, which just makes things more difficult.

‘We're focusing on that first game and that alone. We’ll take it one step at a time, but that’s our goal. Our goal over the last couple of weeks and through to the end of July has been to win that first game.’

There’s obvious talent in this St Mary’s squad, including former Cork U20 forward Olan Corcoran who is part of the Carbery senior squad that recently won the divisions/colleges final. He missed last year’s final against Kilmacabea through injury. Niall Kelleher, Brian McCarthy and Darren O’Donovan were among their top scorers in last season’s championship. The absence of Dylan Scannell through injury is a big blow. Stephen Keohane is another out injured. Aaron O’Driscoll, who featured in last year’s final, is now in Australia.

‘We’ve two or three fellas coming through underage who are trying to establish a spot in the starting 15, so there’s good competition,’ O’Driscoll says.

‘We’ve had great numbers at training since February, which has been very heartening. It wasn’t always the way with us, but I think that’s off the back of the relative success last year, which is great to see.

‘You see 25 or 30 fellas at training, sometimes even more, so that can only benefit us.’

Juggling dual commitments with football and hurling is a situation St Mary’s know well. But that doesn’t make it any easier. Perhaps it gives one-code clubs an advantage in a condensed club championship calendar, but if Mary’s can build momentum, they know how powerful that is too.

‘We’ve got a good relationship with the hurling management and it’s worked well so far. Hopefully, it continues to do so.’

Right now, it’s all eyes on Newcestown, as Mary’s plot their way back to the business end, taking it one game at a time.