Belcoo manager Peter Clarke feels that the second half in Celtic Park showed where the O’Rahillys need to get to if they are to make an impact in next season’s senior football championship.
Belcoo matched their Derry opponents in the first half to go in with a one point lead at half time but Newbridge controlled things right from the outset in the second half to run out comfortable winners in the finish.
“I felt that we showed our potential in the first half when we went toe to toe with them. We were dynamic and robust and always able to answer their scores in the first period and we were able to get ourselves in front,” said Clarke.
“At that stage it was a very competitive championship affair but you then have to back that up in the second half and we didn’t do that,” he added.
Instead, with the wind at their backs Newbridge rattled over a string of unanswered scores at the start of the second half to open up a commanding advantage.
“We had talked about the importance of the first ten minutes of the second half and about staying in the game if they got on top but in truth we just didn’t show for the second half and in the end it was a chastening defeat. When they got a head of steam up after half time we had no response and really the second half story tells its own tale.
“We did our best we could but it just wasn’t good enough on the day,” he said.
Belcoo will play in the senior championship next year and Clarke feels that there are lessons to be learnt from Saturday night’s game in moving forward.
“It shows where Belcoo have to get to in terms of fitness levels moving into the senior championship next year,”he said.
However, Clarke stresses that having won the Fermanagh Intermediate Championship it has been a successful 2017 for Belcoo ORahillys.
“When you look back at it, we won the Fermanagh championship and it is very fitting and notable achievement in the club’s centenary year to have done that. We can also look to the positives of the first half performance on Saturday against Newbridge and then hopefully learn from the second half when we just didn’t show up,” he stated.