Three out of three ain't bad

Our senior teams in both codes have now notched up three wins out of three, and obviously you can't get better than 4 points from 4 (football) and 2 from 2 (hurling). With our hurlers taking on Kildare this coming weekend they will in all likelihood have matched the footballers opening two results by the time Sunday rolls around. Then we will face into a much tougher task when Fermanagh footballers come to Casement on 6th March.

Last weekend the victory over Carlow was much more narrow than this blog predicted. Apart from the opening salvo there was no stage where the Saffrons pulled away or looked anything like a comfortable side. To be fair there were mitigating factors, including the weather and the tenacity and determination of the Carlow side, and they had some decent hurlers too.

Antrim have taken on the mantle this season of the team that traditionally 'weaker' hurling counties such as Carlow, Kildare, Kerry will want to beat; we are their benchmark. Expect no different attitude from the Lillywhites on Sunday, by the same measure we should expect the same outcome as last weekend, another Saffron victory. There are harder days ahead, but getting through the hundrum fixtures is crucial too.

St Galls carry the hopes of the county too on Saturday evening, lets hope they get past Corofin and stamp St Patrick's Day as one to note for Saffron followers.

Return of the prodigal coach

Anyone who thought up to now that Dinny Cahill's committment to coaching Antrim could be measured in road miles (171 miles round trip from home to Belfast) can now think on, when Dinny arrives home, his right hand man and physical coaching Bobby Thornhill has an additional 70 odd miles to go. Hopefully our hurlers will take inspiration from that level of committment.

Tomorrow the national hurling league Division 2 campaign begins at home to Carlow. If we want to measure where exactly we stand, Carlow offer a good yardstick. In 2006 we brushed them aside in the Christy Ring Final, in 2009 fortunes had reversed far enough that they beat us in the league. Tomorrow they travel to Antrim HQ with confidence bolstered by a Walsh Cup Shield win over the Saffrons last weekend. In the NHL last year our opening home game against Wexford provided the highlight of the Casement action for the year (remember all of our football champsionship games were away from home) when our hurlers recovered from an appalling start to run out winners after the mother and father of all comebacks. The hurlers were cheered off the pitch that day, and to be honest, that was as good as 2009 got.

The current squad is an interesting one. We will be missing the St Galls hurlers for at least this opening game and the Dunloy contingent are not due back until next weekend at the earliest. We are likely to see the return of Johnny McIntosh and Liam Watson at some stage and between them and Eddie McCLoskey we will gets scores.

Carlow have improved, no doubt. Will Antrim? We should begin to learn the answer to that questino tomorrow.

A Saffron win - by 4 or 5 points.

Its a long way to Breffini Park

Two seasons ago Tipperary footballers pipped Antrim to promotion out of Division 4 of the National Football League. Last year they followed that up with promotion to the second tier of Gaelic Football's secondary competition. At the moment Antrim footballers sit atop Divison 3 with 2 wins out of 2, and while everybody wants to be the man at the top, we have to be cautious about 'doing a Tipperary' just yet.

On Saturday night I set out on the road to Breffini Park. My travelling companion was 9 years old, and his brother aged 8. Its a long way. Very long. And it was cold. Very cold. Freezing cold by the time the match ended. And it was worth every second.

Antrim had lots of early possession but some very poor shooting in the first half saw us fall behind early, 2 points to 1. Too many shots fell into the keepers hands. After about a quarter of the game it was 3 points apiece with our scores all coming from the fist or boot of Paddy Cunningham. The first half meandered along until a two goal exchange which left Antrim two points adrift, our goal courtesy of a Thomas McCann snapshot. That deficit was made up by half time with a fine Michael McCann point from long distance effort making the sides level by half time.

The second half began with a 10 minute period of Cavan dominance which proved to be their last and which yielded only 1 point. After that Brendan Herron and Michael McCann took over the midfield and won the lion's share of possession in that sector. Antrim dominated the final third of the game and some of our points in that period were sublime. When Thomas McCann and James Loughrey started their pacy runs the Cavan defence simply had no answer. Loughrey was putting in an effort in the final minutes which would been suited to a knife edge, in the balance contest.

This was no knife edge affair and when Michael Magill scored Antrim's second goal the game was effectively won. The Saffrons saw out the game in comfort, retaining possession and taking scores seemingly at ease. Best for Antrim were the midfield, Loughrey, T McCann, Cunningham, Crozier, Scullion and O'Hagan. But in truth this was massive team / squad triumph.

So, its 2 wins out of 2, a 100% league record so far. Next up for Antrim footballers is Fermanagh, on the 6th March in Casement. Come and support them - they deserve it.

Did I mention how cold it was?

Cavan V Antrim

Lights, action!

Tomorrow night, Saturday, at 7.30pm Cavan host Antrim in Breffini Park.

It is an important game for both sides, each of whom are coming off opening weekend wins in Division 3 of the NFL. Cavan posted an impressive 2-20 away to Roscommon while the Saffrons battled impressively to hold on to a single point win at home to last year's Division 4 champions, Sligo.

Antrim have a respectable record over Cavan in recent years. On top of last year's glorious Ulster semi final win, we have also beaten them in the McKenna Cup and drawn a league game in Breffini three seasons ago. Of course they accounted for our Championship hopes in 2008.

Still missing the St Gall's contingent, Antrim will be looking to Michael McCann, Crozier, Loughrey, Scullion, Magill (if fit) and Cunningham to lead the way. Kevin Brady and Ciaran Close can also play an important role under the Breffini spotlights.

Can we win? Well, its hard to say how good Cavan were last week, or how poor the Rossies performance must have been. Tomorrow night will tell a tale and give a firm indication whether or not promotion is a genuine hope.

It will be a difficult encounter. I can see us leaving there having not been beaten, and even a share of the spoils would be a welcome addition to our early points tally.

Here's hoping.

What can you learn in 20 minutes?

For reasons best consigned to history I only made it to Casement for the last 20 (+4) minutes of yesterday's win over Sligo. It was the result Antrim fans were hoping for and represents a very solid start to the campaign to get out of Division 3.

There were other eye catching results in our Division which will help us gauge the extent of the job in hand - Fermanagh lost in Tullamore, complete with two St Galls players on board; Cavan notched 2 - 20 in their win over Roscommon and Louth beat Wexford. It is hard to see one team racing clear of all the others although next Saturady evening in Breffini Park will tell us a lot about the Saffron's chances of promotion.

Antway, returning to the questin I set myself at the head of this blog. What can you learn in 20 minutes?

That Antrim's determination to hold on for the win was commendable
That Paddy Cunningham's confidence continues to increase and his final point of the day was exlempary
That Justin Crozier and Tony Scullion commanded the half back line admirably under big pressure towards the end of the game
That the referee was simply wrong in a number of the decisions he gave in Sligo's favour
That Thomas McCann remains a dangerous ball carrier
That Antrim are attracting bigger and more vocal crowds than before
That Michael McCann is one of the best players in Ulster

That list will do for now. Imagine if I'd gotten there any earlier??

Home front opens on Sunday

The National League is upon us and Antrim footballers begin life in Division 3 this coming Sunday at Casement Park at 2pm. It is a tough start, remember that Sligo came out of Division 4 last year, beat us in the divisional final and enjoyed a strong qualifier outing against Kerry before losing narrowly in the end. Sounds familiar doesn't it?

Sligo's one league defeat in Div 4 last year was in Casement Park, when the Saffrons beat them comfortably by 5 points. With only three home games this season and four on the road, a good start is essential if Antrim are genuinely to push for promotion again.

The Antrim panel is short the St Gall's contingent and that is a drawback, but the McKenna cup panel will be boosted by the return of university / college players Thomas McCann, Justin Crozier and Deaglain O'Hagan. McCann featured prominently for UUJ in their one point win over QUB yesterday and looks to be in good form.

If we manage to avoid the type of slow start we had in all three McKenna Cup games, the Saffrons can push on and win this one.

In reality the season starts here, see you all on Sunday.