It was a night to savour for Naomh Colmcille’s brothers in arms last night as they penned a new, glorious chapter.
Matthew Crossan’s goals and three points apiece from Michael Lynch, Daniel Clarke and Willie Gillespie took Naomh Colmcille to the Promised Land.
The 1-9 to 0-6 win over Fermanagh’s Belnaleck means they’re the first Donegal club ever to win an Ulster Junior crown.
The squad contains five sets of brothers: Michael and William Lynch; Ricky and Don Hegarty; Eddie and Willie Gillespie; Paul, Michael and Mark Friel; and Barry and Stephen Gallagher.
“We’re here by merit and we won it by merit,” Michael Lynch, who famously cut a cast off a broken right hand last week.
“The thumb is still intact – I’ll worry about it in the morning!”
His older brother William had a huge influence on things too. With 15 on his back, he was deployed in a deep-lying role, from which he orchestrated a lot of what was good about Naomh Colmcille.
He helped form a tight padlock on the gates that kept Belnaleck at bay.
He said: “The defence probably doesn’t get the credit it deserves. All year, we’ve been very tight at the back. We’ve given away one goal in five games. That sets us up.”