Hard work most certainly paid off for Paul Dilworth and Aghabullogue last year

Aghabullogue are now a senior football side, for some in the parish, it’s still surreal.

It wasn’t that long ago when they were struggling at junior level in Muskerry. Their 2004 success was the start of the journey.

The Coachford-based side won the McCarthy Insurance Group PIFC title last year after getting the better of Mid-Cork rivals Uibh Laoire in the final following on from their IAFC triumph in 2023.

One of Aghabullogue’s unsung heroes was sticky defender Paul Dilworth. He was a key player for Ray Keane’s outfit.

It would get better for the club when a few weeks later, the Co-Op SuperStores IAHC was won. A second double in three seasons for Aghabullogue.

“It was absolutely unreal, a massive year for the club,” Dilworth says, who only plays football.

“I missed the start of last season due to an injury picked up in the replay against Kilshannig in the final in 2024. It was a very challenging time having lost and then trying to get back up to the speed of things on a personal level. There was a want there. 

"You obviously want to write the wrongs of the year before and you want to win for the parish. That’s what drove me on when on the sidelines.

“It’s never nice when you are injured, but I kept my head down, did the rehab and thankfully I got back on the pitch. I was lucky enough to have made my way back into the starting team. The season couldn’t have gone much better really.” 

It’s easy when you look back on a memorable campaign to pick the final as the highlight, but for Dilworth, it was well before they landed the title when a victory in a league match would prove so important.

“The one game that stands out for me last year and it wasn’t even a championship game, we played away to Adrigole in the league. We were down a lot of bodies.

“John Buckley, who is our goalkeeper, and myself were the two corner-forwards that day. That will tell you how tight we were and we came out of Adrigole with a win.

“It gave other lads a chance to perform and it was just a massive win for us. We were able to keep the momentum going after that.

“We put a big emphasis on getting promoted out of the Division 4 League in 2025 just to get up the grades and test ourselves against the better teams. Thankfully we were able to do that.

“We wanted to have momentum going into the championship especially after losing the final the year before."

Dilworth feels the loss to Kilshannig in the decider in 2024 certainly helped Aghabullogue in 2025 most notably in the final where they won by a point against Uibh Laoire.

“The hurt of losing to Kilshannig definitely stood to us,” he said.

“We have been lucky where we have played in Páirc Uí Chaoimh a good number of times and when the game was in the melting pot against Uibh Laoire, our big leaders and our big players stood up. There was a never-say-die attitude. Matthew Bradley kicking the winning point was just incredible.” 

Dilworth is looking forward to the McCarthy Insurance Group SAFC later this year when his team face fellow Muskerry side Béal Átha’n Ghaorthaidh, Kanturk and Dohenys in their group.

“To be honest, we haven’t really spoken about the championship. It’s all about pre-season now and making sure that is correct. We are enjoying putting in the hard work at the moment, but when the business side comes around, I am sure we will be ready for it and hopefully we can make an impact at senior level.

“Aghabullogue have never played senior before when it comes to football. It will be something to relish later this year.”