“We’re in a really good place” - Ryan O'Neill

Derry under-20 hurling manager Ryan O’Neill said he was proud of his side’s effort despite their 0-19 to 1-11 defeat to Antrim in round three of the Ulster U20 Hurling Cup at Celtic Park on Friday evening.

Having narrowly lost to Tyrone in their opening fixture, O’Neill’s men responded by seeing off Donegal comfortably in round two. With Antrim strong favourites to top the competition and secure a place in the Leinster U20 Championship, the Derry boss was heartened by the grit and competitiveness his young side displayed.

The result leaves the Oakleaf county fourth in the table after three games, behind unbeaten Antrim and joint second-placed Down and Tyrone, who both sit on four points.

“We really knuckled down and prepared for this match,” said O’Neill. “We got a good bit of work done on our tackling and discipline. We knew that we could throw everything at Antrim and see where we were at.

“We’re really pleased with the lads’ performance. It was nip and tuck the whole game, and there were a few times when we were in the lead. Antrim just pulled away in the last seven or eight minutes. They are a top, top side. We threw everything at them and worked really hard, and we’ll take a lot of positives coming out of that game moving forward.

“We came up just short and were unlucky, but I’m so pleased with the lads and the effort.”

This year’s expanded Ulster Cup format has doubled the size of the competition, with Donegal, Tyrone and Wicklow joining Derry, Down and Antrim. The new structure provides players with a demanding run of weekly fixtures, something O’Neill believes is accelerating development within the squad.

The application and commitment of the panel has particularly impressed the Derry manager, who credits both the format and the character of his players for the steady improvement shown in recent weeks.

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“As the games go on we’re building momentum and character in the team,” he said. “The lads are bonding well together and gelling as a group. To see the improvement is massive; everyone is buzzing. From where we were a few weeks ago, we’ve come on leaps and bounds.

“We’re really pleased with the buy-in from the players. That’s the biggest plus for us as management. They’re taking everything in, working on their discipline in training and matches, and constantly trying to get better.

“We’ve still a lot of work to do, especially on our scoring and decision-making in the final third. But the biggest takeaway is that we’ve got a team prepared to work hard right until the final whistle.”

Derry have two round-robin fixtures remaining, travelling to Darver in County Louth to face Wicklow before concluding their campaign away to Down in Ballygalget. O’Neill believes the performance against Antrim can serve as a benchmark for the remainder of the season.

“Coming out against Antrim and putting in a performance like that fills us with excitement for the last two games,” he said. “We’ve Wicklow next week, and we can’t wait to get stuck into them, and then we bounce from that into Down the following week. After that we’ll see where we’re at.

“We’re in a really good place. All along we’re building a team, building bonds and friendships on and off the pitch and, above all else, building hurlers.”