Kilmurry return to big stage on a mission after landing two counties already this decade

Kilmurry manager Brian Harte praised the maturity and consistency of his side after they produced what he described as a long-awaited 60-minute performance to defeat Boherbue 1-19 to 2-7 and secure their place in the McCarthy Insurance Group IAFC final.

The Muskerry men will now meet Buttevant in the decider after turning in an impressive display at Mourneabbey on Friday night, one that Harte felt was built on a superb opening half against the elements.

Kilmurry led by nine points at the interval and never relinquished control despite a brief Boherbue rally after the restart.

"The first half was massive," Harte says.

"Before the game there was a strong wind and we actually wanted to play against it in the first half. As it turned out, we lost the toss and Boherbue elected to play against it as well.

"But to be fair to our lads, the first half exceeded anything I expected. We scored 14 points and to go in nine points up at half-time was a great foundation.

"We knew Boherbue would come at us. We probably wanted a better start to the second half, but the first-half performance put us in a really strong position."

Boherbue did threaten to make a contest of it in the early stages of the second period, reducing the deficit before Kilmurry steadied themselves and pushed on again.

Harte pointed to a crucial sequence where Kilmurry missed a goal opportunity before Boherbue went straight down the field and found the net themselves.

"We had a very good goal chance early in the second half and if that went in it could have killed the game," he said.

"It didn't and then they went straight down the field and scored a goal, so it's a six-point swing in a way.

"At that stage our lads could have been rattled, but to be fair to them they weren't. They settled themselves again, drove on and I thought they were excellent for the rest of the game."

One of Harte's biggest satisfactions was seeing his players produce the type of sustained display he had demanded in the lead-up to the semi-final.

While Kilmurry impressed throughout the group stage with three wins from three games, he felt there had been occasions where performances came in patches rather than over the full hour.

"We challenged them during the week to produce a 60-minute performance," Harte states. 

"We've probably been playing in fits and starts at times this year. 

We might start slowly and finish strongly, but if you want to win county finals you have to put together a complete performance.

"I think they did that against Boherbue. Across the board the lads were excellent."

The lengthy gap since Kilmurry's final group game had been another concern for the manager heading into Friday night's encounter.

While Boherbue had built momentum with a quarter-final win over Dromtarriffe, Kilmurry were left waiting four weeks for championship action.

On a roll

"It was definitely a worry," Harte admitted. 

"The lads' last championship game was four weeks ago and Boherbue had momentum. They had come through tough games and were match sharp.

Sometimes that can be a disadvantage when you're waiting around, but credit to our players because they were ready from the start."

Reaching the county final represents another significant milestone for a club which endured some difficult years prior to winning the County JAFC in 2022. They followed it up by claiming the Premier JFC crown in 2024.

Harte paid tribute to the work being done throughout the club and believes the underage structures continue to provide the foundations for the current success.

"It's 31 years since Kilmurry were in an Intermediate county final and we've had some lean times in between," he says.

"But there's exceptional work being done right through the club. Our numbers aren't huge, but we're consistently producing good footballers and that's down to the work being done at underage level.

"That's what every club wants, that steady flow of players coming through."