Ibane Gaels' Tomás Ó Buachalla and Paddy Cronin of Bantry Blues on how much it means to play U21 football 

Ibane Gaels will appear in their fifth Clóna Milk Carbery U21 A football championship final on the bounce on Friday evening.

The underage club between Barryroe and Argideen Rangers face Bantry Blues in Dunmanway at 7.45pm.

It’s a great achievement for them to reach the decider for five years on the trot. For Ibane Gaels captain Tomás Ó Buachalla, he will appear in his fourth, having joined the panel for the 2022 campaign, the last time they claimed the trophy.

“On a personal level, I have lost the last two finals, last season was tough,” he says.

“Bantry Blues just blitzed us in the first half and got a few early goals. Hopefully we can set up right, get our matchups correct and hopefully we will be okay.

“The games we have played so far this year, we have started well. It’s important you do that. Hopefully we have matured from last year.

“People think just because we have two clubs to feed from that we have so many numbers and that we should be appearing in finals every year. We don’t have huge numbers, we really don’t. We have had only around 23 lads on the panel for the last few years.

“We don’t have strong depth like other powerhouses of Carbery football. We wouldn’t have this kind of opportunity if my own club Barryroe weren’t able to join up with Argideen Rangers.

“It has been a pleasure to play U21. This is my last year at this grade. You are with lads who you have played with and played against. You put on that Ibane Gaels jersey and you play for the two parishes. It’s special. Hopefully we can get over the line against Bantry Blues and lift silverware.” 

For Bantry Blues captain Paddy Cronin, he has been down this road before in terms of knowing how to win this particular divisional trophy having won it last year.

“We have been training since the very start of the year with the aim of retaining our title,” he said.

“It’s just a very confident and enjoyable group. It would be brilliant for us if we could win it for the second year on the bounce. We all know how tough the Carbery championship is.

“It can add more pressure onto you to go again, but we haven’t felt it. We are a very grounded bunch.” 

Cronin has been a key player in the forward unit for Bantry Blues’ Premier Intermediate football team for the last couple of seasons, but to captain the U21s to success would mean so much to him.

“It’s an honour to captain this team. I was playing last year when Dara McCarthy was captain and he has been in touch with me this season to give me advice.

“He told me it’s important to control the team and keep them on their toes, but at this grade, everyone knows their roles. There’s a strong winning mentality. Everyone fights for each other.

“It would mean a lot for myself and the lads if we could win against Ibane Gaels. It will be tough though. We know a lot about them. They are a fine side.”