When Micheal Glynn rattled the Ederney net within 10 minutes of last Sunday’s championship final I felt that Derrygonnelly were on their way to a sixth consecutive Senior Championship.

Ederney had started the better but they had failed to register a score, with captain Declan McCusker failing to convert when bearing down on goal just one example.

But this Ederney team did not falter. They regrouped, stayed focussed and hungry and they took Derrygonnelly on at their own game and dominated.

For the last five years Derrygonnelly’s success has been built on a foundation of a watertight defence and midfield domination which eventually beat their opponents into submission.

In Brewster Park it was Ederney who gave no inch to their opponents.

The Maguire twins stifled Gary McKenna and Micheal Glynn for much of the match while Stephen McElrone held firm on the edge of the square.

Further out Finbar Gillen and Declan McCusker were full of energy and intent.

The match ups that Derrygonnelly usually got spot on were being won by Ederney.

Declan McCusker put Conall Jones on the backfoot constantly, his brother Paul took Eamon McHugh all over Brewster Park in a trademark display of energy. Sean Cassidy and Ryan Morris gave their men plenty to think about.

But the one area where the pure hunger and desire of Ederney was epitomised was at midfield.

Ryan Jones has been the best club footballer in the county for the last number of years. So influential to all the Harps do well.

On Sunday Conor McGee did an excellent job in reducing him to a peripheral figure in the game.

Beside McGee, the elder statesman of the Ederney side Marty McGrath, although the shape he is in you wouldn’t think it, was in fine form and stamped his authority over Stephen McGullion from early on.

McGee and McGrath fought for everything, broke ball, which were most of the time picked up by a white jersey, and they set up scores and in McGrath’s case hit a monster point .

It was all of this which led to Ederney ending that 52 year wait for another Championship, the hunger to never give up, chase every ball, throw themselves into each and every challenge and in the end overcome Derrygonnelly.