Enniskillen coach Welsh: ‘It is going to take a complete performance’

It was a difficult defeat to take but he believes that coming out on top in this Saturday’s derby final would make winning the title all that more sweeter.

“I remember playing in 2007 against Clogher in a Towns’ Cup final in Dungannon and they nicked it by a couple of points, and it is something I will always remember.

“It being a derby makes the losing harder, but would make the winning a lot better too. It definitely adds a bit more spice to it if it even needed it,” he said.

However, while they might be the most ferocious of rivals during the game, there is no shortage of respect and friendship among the two squads, and Welsh says that whatever the outcome they will share a drink together after the game.

“Some of these lads live together and a lot of them went through school together and played rugby in school together, so it is a strange one.

“We don’t hate them that much – only for maybe 80 minutes a couple of times a year!

I’ve played against Stevie [Bothwell] and we started our Senior coaching around the same time, and there would be respect for each other.

“I know Richie Haire, their Manager, very well too and believe it or not, Richie was the first man to buy me a drink after the Towns’ Cup final.

“There will be no quarter given, and we won’t ask for any during the game, but we will share a drink and a handshake after the game one way or another,” said Welsh.

The Skins coach says that there is great excitement around the club ahead of Saturday’s showdown.

“The phone hasn’t stopped at the minute, which is good because it means that people care. Everybody is looking forward to it and we are trying to get buses sorted and as many people up the road as we can and be a part of it,” he explained.

It is Clogher who will enter the game with the favourites tag as they are the holders of the cup and battling for the league title.

Underdogs

Welsh acknowledges that his side are underdogs but insists that doesn’t mean that there is less pressure on them.

“They are favourites, they are champions and are near the top of the league and you don’t do that by fluke – they are obviously a quality team.

“We will be going in as underdogs but it doesn’t mean there will be any less pressure, because the boys expect a lot of themselves. The boys will put their own pressure on themselves regardless of an underdog tag,” he added.

While Clogher have been tearing it up in the league, Skins have been hit and miss but they have saved their best for the run to the final.

“We have been pretty inconsistent in the league but over the years, we have always seemed to lift it in the cup and hopefully it continues.

“We have had tough games in this competition and the semi-final win over Monkstown was probably one of the best performances that this Skins side have ever put in,” said Welsh.

The sides were actually meant to meet in the league last Saturday at The Cran, but the game was postponed due to an unplayable pitch.

Welsh says that Skins were keen to play the game but the flip side is that they have no injuries to deal with ahead of the final.

“We were ready to play and would have played, but I suppose now everyone is fresh.

“The chances are that if the game had been played at the weekend, one of the boys, whether from their team or our team, would get an injury and miss out, so it is nice that we are going in with a relatively clean bill of health. No-one is going to miss out through injury.”

Under Welsh’s guidance Skins have claimed the Towns’ Cup and the Ulster Junior Cup but they are going through something of a transition at the minute.

However, a core of players remain from those wins and Welsh feels that their experience will be vital on Saturday.

“The experience of the likes of Gavin [Warrington], big Davy [Buchanan], Mark O’Shea and [James] Carleton will be important.

“Even for being only 23, Jack Rutledge and Matty Dane have played finals and won medals.

“It is good having that blend and hopefully the experienced boys can put an arm around the younger fellas and drag them through.”

With plenty of youth in both sides though, Welsh believes that it will be a fast-paced encounter at Kingspan Stadium.

“Clogher are a young side, like the majority of our boys, and Ravenhill is a good big pitch and has a firm surface so it will be fairly quick-paced.

‘More energy’

“Given the fact that it is a final the boys will have more energy and the crowd will drive them on so I would say it will be a fairly quick game.”

And he believes that it is going to take a season-best performance for Skins to come out on top.

“It will have to be the best, it will have to be Monskstown and more, because Clogher will lift their game too, so we will have to be even better.

“We will have to take every chance that we get and it will have to be a complete performance,” he said.

So, if they do come away with the win, what would it mean to the club? “It would mean the world to the club.

“There are people about the club 80 years and they would never have seen this before, – Enniskillen competing in an All-Ireland final.

“It is something you would never forget,” he concluded.