Mood high in Slaughtneil camp ahead of St John’s showdown

Slaughtneil captain Mark McGuigan says morale within the camp is sky-high following Robert Emmet’s victory over Portaferry last weekend, a result that secured their place in the AIB Ulster Club Hurling Final for the sixth consecutive year, in Armagh on Saturday evening.

The thirteen-in-a-row Derry champions now hope to secure a sixth Ulster title, seeking to complete their second successful provincial defence since claiming back-to-back crowns in 2017. That hunger has only intensified since last year’s All-Ireland semi-final heartbreak against Cork’s Sarsfields, where they fell agonisingly short in a 0-18 to 0-17 defeat.

Awaiting them this time are Antrim champions St John’s of Belfast, who ended a fifty-two-year wait to claim their eighth Saffron title. Slaughtneil, meanwhile, warmed up for Ulster by tearing through the Derry championship once more, overpowering Kevin Lynch’s in the Leadon Timber Frames Senior Hurling Final to secure their thirteenth consecutive Fr Collins Cup.

That victory continued a long-running rivalry, with the sides meeting in six of the last seven county finals. Slaughtneil’s dominance was clear this year in a comprehensive 3-24 to 1-10 win.

Their provincial form remained intact too: last season they toppled Cushendall after extra time in a pulsating semi-final before edging Portaferry to lift the Four Seasons Cup for the first time since 2021, when they overcame Down’s Ballycran.

And it was Portaferry again who stood before them last weekend, with Slaughtneil producing a late surge to win 1-23 to 1-18 in a repeat of last year’s provincial decider. McGuigan, who has collected thirteen county medals and four Ulster titles during Robert Emmet’s remarkable winning run, is brimming with excitement ahead of next weekend’s clash with St John’s.

“We’re buzzing. We knew it was going to be tough. Last year Portaferry could have beaten us, so in a way that was a good thing because it meant we had our guard up and knew they were going to be difficult to beat again. Just to come out the right side of it with a decent performance is definitely a good feeling.”

“Everyone is really looking forward to the final now. The mood is really high. It’s a good mix of young heads and old heads, and the management bring great energy every night, and the craic is good. We’re all really looking forward to next Saturday in Armagh.”

“Portaferry are very close to winning Ulster, and we knew that, at the very least, we’d have to match their hunger. We knew it was going to be difficult because they were going to be so hungry, but we are a very hungry group ourselves.”

Their ability to rise to the occasion against Portaferry was all the more impressive given that the Derry kingpins hadn’t played a competitive match in over six weeks since lifting the Fr Collins Cup in early October.

Portaferry, narrowly beaten by Slaughtneil last year and by eventual champions Cushendall in 2023, have been edging closer to a breakthrough, something Robert Emmet’s were acutely aware of.

Derry champions Slaughtneil bidding to win back-to-back Ulster titles

The AIB Ulster Senior Club Hurling Final takes centre stage this weekend

Portaferry dogfight will stand to Slaughtneil - Ó Mianáin

Derry star Ruairí Ó Mianáin confident Portaferry battle has prepared Slaughtneil for Ulster club hurling final clash with St John's

At the heart of the Derrymen’s sustained success, McGuigan sees an insatiable internal drive. The squad has fused the experience of seasoned campaigners with a wave of emerging talent, all anchored by a culture of accountability and giving back to the club and community.

“We’ve got a lot of experienced heads coupled with younger lads who are fresh and keen to win as much as they can. It wasn’t difficult to get up for the match because we are a highly motivated group.”

“I don’t think there’s an exact science, but we know that a lot of time and effort was invested in us when we were kids. Now it’s our time in the jersey, and we won’t have it forever, so we owe it to the club to give it the absolute best and the absolute maximum that we have. We want to make the most of the group we have at the minute.”

“We’ve created a bit of a culture in Slaughtneil where the only currency is winning, and if you don’t win, then the season is a failure.

“There’s a bit of weight there, but at the same time you take a lot of confidence going out to play with the calibre of players that we have.”