Ballinora's Daragh Holmes on reaching IAFC final: We always believed we were building something

Daragh Holmes has been part and parcel of the Ballinora football squad since 2014, he has endured his fair share of disappointments in so many ways.

On top of results not going their way, Holmes has also battled against serious injuries and it has got more challenging for the 28-year-old when he relocated to Dublin for work purposes a couple of years ago. 

This Sunday, the Muskerry club face Ilen Rovers in the McCarthy Insurance Group IAFC final at SuperValu Páirc Uí Chaoimh (1.30pm).

“I have been kind of used to it now going up and down the road,” Holmes says.

“I have been doing it for a couple of years. I am living in Dublin. You kind of get used to that after a while and get into a bit of a routine. I come down on a Friday evening, head back up Sunday evening.

“I love it, it’s great. All my friends are playing with Ballinora, so it never came into my head of moving clubs. When you’ve a good team here, it’s a bit easier doing all the travelling when you’re competing. It’s easier when you’re winning and when you can see something building.

“It’s such a young team. I think the team that started the semi-final win over Kilmurry, myself and James Lordan are 28 years of age and then I think Neil Lordan is probably the next oldest at 23.

“It’s a very young team, but those lads will drive you on. There’s a great buzz around the place at the moment as well. Obviously 1997 was the last county win. It has been a long time coming in terms of getting back to the final.

“Even the hurling there, we’ve lost three county semi-finals on the trot. So you’re kind of wondering will this ever happen where you get a crack off a final. I just can’t wait for Sunday.” 

It might be a surprise for many that Ballinora have reached this stage. It's their first ever final at this level. Their graph has been going in the right direction though over the last couple of years.

“Last year, we won two of our three group games, we were just so unlucky we didn’t get out,” the forward said.

“We definitely didn’t feel like we had a bad year. Even the year before, we had narrow losses to Boherbue and Mitchelstown. They’re obviously two of the stronger teams in the competition.

“We always had belief in the group that there was something building and you’re looking at the young lads there winning the Mid-Cork U21 title at A level for the first time last year, which for this club was huge. We were kind of looking at that group and you’re just thinking it’ll have to come right eventually.

“I suppose we actually had that bit of luck in the group stage this year. We had fewer points than last year. Things kind of broke well for us and we got a bit of momentum and that’s the big thing really.

“Everything has been fairly consistent, the management group has been the same. This is their third campaign with us. It has been a bit of a project.” 

Holmes has been a consistent performer for Ballinora for some time. He has most definitely seen more lows than highs though. 

“The football really for the first nine years I was involved was very hard going. We were up Premier Intermediate. 

"Whatever way you look at it when you’re a young player, you kind of want to be competing for something and you don’t want to be playing relegation games every year.

“It was a bit of a slog for a number of years. We did eventually get demoted in 2017. It took us a while to get going at the lower grade. I think the Gabriel Rangers game this year was only the second football quarter-final I’ve ever played and the Kilmurry game was the first semi-final.

“This is new territory for all of us. As much as we’re excited about the game and everything, it’s just another game. We have a plan, we have a way of playing and there’s no point in changing that now at this stage. We know it’s going to be a fierce battle against Ilen Rovers.

“At the end of the day, it’s 60 minutes of football, it’s the same as any other game. You go up a few points, you go down a few points, you just play the game, stick to the plan and whatever will happen will happen.” Holmes ended.