THERE is no place like home. Just ask Maurice Shanley.

The Cork footballer is back in familiar surroundings as the club season bursts into life. And he’s loving it.

‘Coming back to the club after inter-county is something I relish,’ Shanley told The Southern Star.

‘I enjoy playing club football. You are playing with lads you have grown up with. With football, it’s more about enjoyment.

‘Being 26 years old like I am, you’re at a funny age. You’re definitely not young anymore and you’re not old. Yes, you are more experienced but you are just trying to enjoy your football and see where that takes you.’

Inter-county commitments meant Shanley missed Clon's entire county league campaign, but there's plenty of quality in this squad. Captain Mark White, Sean White and Thomas Clancy all have Cork experience, while David Lowney, Conor Daly, Ross Mannix, Seán McEvoy, Ben Ridgeway and Dan Peet add further know-how.

‘Those players are super. A lot of them have inter-county experience as well. During the league, they were around to lead it and that was a massive help,’ Shanley noted.

‘We have a very experienced team, having been on the road a while. Everyone is a leader in this team in their own way. We try to spread that out. We have to drive on the promise that we do have.’

While wise heads are key, a team also needs a dash of youthful exuberance.

The Clonakilty U21s, managed by senior player Thomas Clancy, recently beat O’Donovan Rossa in their Carbery U21A quarter-final, and a few of their star performers also shone in the county league.

‘This year in the league, Des Kenneally and Dylan Harrington have really shown up big time. That has added depth to our panel. Those young players have shown what they can do,’ Shanley said.

‘That win was good for the U21s. Hopefully that sets the tone for us as well. (Darragh) Gough is still U21 but it seems like he’s been around for the last five or six years with the seniors. He may be considered experienced in our team as well. It’s great they got off to a winning start. That momentum can feed into our team.’

Clon have a great mix in the panel but they know they have to start producing performances in the championship. They exited at the group stage last year, needing to beat Carbery Rangers in the final group game to avoid being dragged into the relegation play-off conversation after losses to the Barrs and Carrigaline. This team has the potential to produce better. Shanley agrees.

‘We have belief in ourselves. In the last few years, we haven’t been able to get over the line – losing to Nemo in the two quarter-finals are prime example. Losing to Carrigaline last year, too, was very disappointing. We need to believe in ourselves, dust ourselves down and go again this year,’ he explained.

‘On our day, we are one of the best teams in the championship but we can be off it too. We have to be consistent this year. Once we get that consistency, we know we are a match for anyone.’

Most view Clon’s county premier senior football group with Knocknagree, Castlehaven and Ballincollig as the ‘Group of Death.’

After their first game against Knocknagree this Saturday (7pm) in Carrigadrohid, Martin O’Brien’s side face local rivals Castlehaven on August 16th in Rosscarbery.

Facing both Division 1 county league finalists back to back is a difficult proposition but Shanley and Co are raring to go.

‘You’re always looking forward to summer football, always excited to get stuck into it,’ he said.

‘Having Knocknagree first up is tough. They’ve gone well over the last few years, going up the grades fairly quickly. Castlehaven have won two counties in the last three years so are a top team. Ballincollig are there or thereabouts at the semi-final every year.

‘We’re going to take it game by game and see where it takes us. We’re not looking past Knocknagree. We know how good they are. They beat us in the league earlier this year so we know the challenge that is ahead of us.’

Reflecting on Cork’s inter-county campaign, Shanley is pleased with his first half of 2026. Achieving promotion back to Division 1 is a big plus, and on an individual level, he played every game for Cork and almost every minute too.

‘I’m happy with the year. Getting promoted was a big bonus. We were disappointed with the Mayo game (All-Ireland quarter-final) but we just have to dust ourselves down and reflect on the year,’ he said.

‘Everyone has gone back to focus on their club. We’ll hope to go back, put in the work and give good performances. We’ll see what comes out of that.

‘Since the new county championship format came in, it’s definitely getting more competitive as the years go on. Each game is hard. There are no easy games this year. The way the championship is, that’s a positive for Cork football,’ Shanley added.

His focus now lies with Clonakilty and an improved run in the county championship. It starts this Saturday.