Na Piarsaigh's football decline... why it has been so dramatic

WHEN Na Piarsaigh were relegated from the Premier Senior Hurling Championship two years ago, it was a shock to everyone.

65 years in the top flight – swiftly ended by Charleville in a crushing performance. It was a cruel end to the northsiders participation at the pinnacle of Cork hurling.

But their misery doesn’t end there.

Something that hasn’t garnered much attention, is the even sharper decline they have suffered in football. The Wazzies finished runner-up in the 2014 Premier Intermediate Football Championship, and yet now, they’re winless in championship fixtures since September 25, 2021.

It’s an ugly record for a team that prides itself on being an unrelenting competitor, no matter the opponent.

For manager Colin O’Sullivan, the team are still far from where they want to be – and it’s not something he’s afraid to admit.

“I’m under no illusions there, Buttevant were well drilled and a well capable football team,” O’Sullivan begins. “I think we're still in rebuilding mode. We had a very good win on Tuesday night against Glenville, and we’re trying to build on that.

Again, we had a number of injuries on Tuesday night and we have a number of injuries across the club.

“I’m not trying to make excuses, but at this time of the year for us, it's just about trying to build ourselves towards the championship. We're looking to have a good league campaign [and] improve on where we were last year.

“We know we have a bit of a rebuild to do. The lads are a great bunch of lads, they want to improve and they will improve,” he says. “It's just that Buttevant tonight were far slicker, had a lot more done. You can see they will be favourites for the Premier Junior, and rightly so, they’re a good side.” 

Last year, Na Piarsaigh suffered a double relegation, playing 13 competitive games – and losing all 13.

Nine league games and three championship games, followed by the relegation playoff. All ended in defeat.

In 2022, the team finished the league with five defeats in nine, and were winless in the PIFC, but avoided the relegation playoff.

And yet, despite the poor record, O’Sullivan’s side have continued to push on to try and turn things around, but there are several reasons as to why Na Piarsaigh’s football team have struggled so much in recent years.

HOUSING

“A few years back, there was not a lot of new housing going in around the area. The demographics meant that we didn't get the right flow of players through.

“This means we had 30-year-olds, and the next below that were 21-year-olds, so we had nothing in the middle.

“We're now starting to see that pick up, because there's massive work going on into our underage section,” Colin explains. “We're starting to get the right flow back again, but it's going to take a little bit of time.

“We were in the U21 final this year against St Nick’s, and that’s progress for us. We have an U16 team below who won a Premier county last year at U15. Some very, very talented footballers on that team.

“We have people who are willing to do it, and willing to drive it on. We just need to keep focus and just try and learn as we go along. We know we were down a lot of guys tonight, and even on our senior hurling team at the moment, we’ve 12 injuries, and that affects the football as well.” 

We all know of the historical significance the northsiders play in Cork hurling, and there’s no doubt a return to the PSHC is imperative – so has that need to improve impacted their football team?

“It has, there's no doubt about that,” Colin admits. “We are predominantly a hurling club, but we’re also a club who loves football. We are trying to find the balance, because it is very, very hard for a dual club.

“If you look at Buttevant tonight, they’re constantly footballing, whereas our lads, we haven't put a whole lot of time into it yet this year.

“As I said, we just want to win, get a couple of league games behind us.

But I do think we're in a much better position this year than we were last year, even though that game didn't show it.

“We have good football people around here, we have good hurling people around here. The [football] lads will develop and the lads will get better, I have no doubt about that.

“Come championship and come later on in the league, once we get injured players back, we'll be lot stronger.”