Irvinestown native, Nigel Seaney, will be looking to guide Trillick to a win over Derrygonnelly in the Ulster Club this weekend when the two sides clash at Brewster park in the quarter final.

The Harps saw off Cargin in the preliminary round to set up this tie while Trillick came through the shark infested waters of the Tyrone championship to claim their place in the provincial championship.

“I think to be honest we are in bonus territory now. The Tyrone championship was always our target this year and now we are in Ulster everything is a bonus. Obviously we will be going all out to get the win but we were not thinking of Ulster while we were in the Tyrone Championship;” Seaney explained.

The former Fermanagh defender knows plenty about the Harps with Derrygonnelly and Trillick playing each other at least twice a year in friendlies over the past number of seasons.

“There is a great relationship there between the two clubs and a lot of respect. Even at underage level we play each other and then at senior level we play each other in pre-season and then again in the summer.”

And Seaney has been very impressed with what he has seen in Derrygonnelly:

“They are an excellent side. They have won five senior championships in a row and this is their fifth year in Ulster. They know all about it and what they are doing. They have a lot of very good players and they know exactly how they want to play the game,” he said.

Seaney was an interested spectator when Derrygonnelly beat Cargin in the Preliminary round of Ulster. It was the Harps second win in five trips to Ulster and they were good value for their win:

“I watched that game and they were really, really controlled. From start to finish they controlled that game and they never looked in danger at all,” the Trillick boss explained.

Seaney’s side beat Errigal Ciaran in the final to win their eighth Tyrone senior championship and their second in four years. Seaney was also at the helm in 2015 and this year has the likes of Liam Donnelly to call upon in his back-room team.

Donnelly is a former All Ireland minor winning manager and is the father of Richard and Mattie Donnelly who are two of the star players on this Trillick side. They were both instrumental in the win over Errigal in the final while Trillick can also call on the Brennan brothers, Lee and Rory, in their quest for a run in Ulster.

The Donnellys and Brennans will no doubt be on the radar of the Derrygonnelly management and Seaney is expecting a very close encounter when the two teams take to Brewster Park on Sunday.

“I think the two teams are very evenly matched. I have always thought that, and I don’t expect there to be too much between the sides.

“From our perspective this is the first game in Ulster, the first round of a new competition and first round games are always tricky, so we are going to have to play the game the way we see it,” he said before adding:

“I think both teams obviously have the big names that everyone knows but there is more to both teams than just those players.

“We know that and Derrygonnelly know that too and I think it could be a really exciting game.”

The winners of this tie will play the winners of Kilcoo and Magherafelt in the Ulster Club semi-final.