Conor Cahalane: It's just fairytale stuff

THE celebrations from Castlehaven once referee Pa O’Driscoll blew for full-time in Sunday’s Bon Secours Hospital Premier SFC final said it all.

It wasn’t a game for the purists, but the Haven won’t care as they are the kingpins of Cork football for the sixth time in their proud history, their first title since 2013. It looked like we were all going to be heading back to Páirc Uí Chaoimh for the replay next weekend until the Hurley brothers, Brian and Michael, popped up with points to dethrone Nemo Rangers on a scoreline of 0-11 to 0-9.

A key cog in the Haven machine is Conor Cahalane, and the 26-year-old put in another big performance on Sunday.

“It's just fairytale stuff. You dream of these kind of things growing up,” Conor says.

“It’s incredible for a club like Castlehaven, a small club with limited numbers. We make the most of what we have and thankfully today we got over the line. Ten years of hurt is over. It wasn’t a fantastic game, but finals are always going to be cagey affairs. Credit where credit is due Nemo always show up in finals, so they were always going to be set up very well.

“We didn’t panic, that was so important and something we have preached about all year. No matter what happens in games just stick to the process and it has paid off. The closing stages were very similar to the Ballincollig game in the quarter-final, all square, but we showed composure to come out on the right side.” 

To beat Nemo in a final is certainly hard earned. Prior to Sunday’s encounter the city side lost just four finals in 27 appearances. Cahalane wasn’t concerned about that impressive statistic in the build up to the showdown.

“Everyone was well aware of Nemo’s record in finals, but we didn’t pay attention to it at all. With the greatest respect to Nemo, it’s brilliant to beat them in the final as they are the standard bearers in Cork football. Their record speaks for itself. It was such a tough game of football, physically, so it’s just unbelievable to get over the line. Brilliant to be bringing Andy Scannell back down west.” 

Castlehaven had been knocking on the door for some time, but why did it all come together in 2023?

“Just sticking to the process really. Not much changed from previous seasons,” says Cahalane.

“We started slow this season, we drew with Carbery Rangers, but we knew we would get better and better and since the first group game against Ross, the graph has been going up and up. We knew from the very start of this season that this campaign was going to be a special one for us. There was fierce hunger.” 

All those long trips down west from his home in Togher have paid off for the 26-year-old.

“Win, lose or draw, it’s always worth the journey down. There is a great sense of community down there. This club is bigger than just a football club. You’re always welcome down there. We will certainly enjoy the next few days.”