Millerick: Fr O'Neill's club is buzzing as dream season rolls into the New Year

MUNSTER Intermediate club champions Fr O’Neill’s were tested to the limit by Ballysaggart all through the final in the Fraher Field in Dungarvan and the defence were magnificent.

Especially corner-back Mike Millerick who stood head and shoulders above the rest in my opinion.

Delighted to add a Munster medal to his Cork County Premier Intermediate medal he said: “It’s hard to believe it really at the start of the year we started training and our focus was to win the county championship and anything after the County was seen as a bonus so to win this now.

“We are over the moon and hopefully we can drive it on now until after Christmas for the All-Ireland club series and get ready for that. For everyone in the club and in our area it’s a great buzz for us all and after the year we have had we are out hurling for the winter.

“That is brilliant and looking back at the Munster Club Championship especially looking at the game against Blackrock from Limerick in Kilfinane it was very similar to today.

“It was a great test for us and Ballysaggart had a lot of supporters here today and we were delighted to see plenty up from our club too.

“We dug in for the second half and played well under pressure and I think that we dealt with it well and we knew what to do there at the end of the game and thankfully we won it in the end and the celebrations now can begin.”

Ballysaggart played their two previous matches against Causeway and Seán Treacy’s at the Fraher Field, so Millerick was aware that this was an advantage to Ballysaggart.

“They were good and there is no denying that, but there is no doubt about it playing in Dungarvan for the third time was a huge advantage for them and the last five minutes of the match were very tough and they had Shane, Kyle and Stephen Bennett who were very strong in air in attack.

“We had make sure we kept our discipline and didn’t give away anything, but there is no doubt the match in Kilfinane stood to us at the end of this game it really did. We knew if we could just keep it together we could get over the line and win it and thankfully that’s the way it went today.”

Incredibly the Fr O’Neill’s story continues in what has been an historic move up through the ranks of Cork hurling now O’Neill’s have an All-Ireland club championship semi-final to look forward to.

“We will take a week off now and then get back to it and then we will prepare for that game.

“We are a young side really and we will enjoy the break until the new year, but we will enjoy the week and then get back to it and see what happens.”