‘With the work we are putting in I think we will give it a good shot’

Dunsany keep coming back after past finals heartbreak

There is a serious sense of deja vu all over again about next Sunday's JFC final in Pairc Tailteann, only this time Dunsany will be hoping history doesn't repeat itself for the ninth time.

Eight times previously Dunsany have put everything they have on the line to be crowned junior champions of Meath and eight times since they first appeared in the final in 1972 they have had their dreams dashed.

Even more pertinent is that four of those losses have come since 2015, but a combined losing margin of just nine points, an average of just over two points a game.

Such statistics would break mere mortals, but Dunsany keep coming back.

After their 2015 loss to Curraha they reached the final again the following year, only to be edged out by Bective.

In the 2021 decider they lost out in a dour affair to next Sunday's opponents St Vincent's by 0-6 to 1-4, but 12 months later they were back in the final again where Castletown proved too strong.

Last year saw Dunsany flirt briefly with relegation, but such an outcome was never likely. In fact their truer form was reflected in how close they ran eventual champions Kilbride in the group stages.

So where does all this belief come from? What keeps enticing Dunsany back to the well?

Long serving midfielder Shane Brennan believes it is the steady influx and influence of young players that keeps the flame of hope alight.

"I'm definilley hoping this will be the year. We know we have lost a few finals, but we are a young team, I think we have eight lads under 22, so it is not something they would be thinking of," suggested Brennan.

"They do know those days happened and they are aware of them. We do talk about it, and we are hoping that this will be the year we can take that extra step.

"With the work we are putting in I think we will give it a good shot.

"We know who our opponents are and what they are about, we know they will be very, very strong.

"Dunsany have done brilliant work at underage. We were amalgamated with Bective for a good while and there was a lot of good work done with young lads.

"We have gone back out on our own and have gone down a couple of divisions, but they won the minor Div 5 just last week.

"There is Trojan work going on here. That has always been the case as long as I have been involved with Dunsany, there are very dedicated people there at underage level putting in a lot of very hard work.

"You see some clubs that come and go, and some that have to recycle and go again, but in Dunsany there has always been great work done, a lot of the same names doing it, but they do great work," enthused Brennan.

Last year Dunsany flirted a little with relegation, but Brennan never seriously felt that would happen.

Instead he feels a strong professional set-up was established last year and that manager Kevin Cahill has brought everything to a whole new level in the club.

"This year has been excellent. The standards Kevin (Cahill) has set have been brilliant. This is his first year as manager, he was there last year working with Paul O'Donnell, and he has been great," said Brennan.

"I know we were in relegation trouble last year, but in the group stages we lost out to Kilbride in Curraha in a tight game and look at how they pushed on from there, so we know we are not far away.

"The standards that were set last year are really coming to the fore now. At the start of this year not too many people gave us much of a chance, but our standards are very, very high and very, very professional.

"We want for nothing. Kevin has worked well with the Kilmessan club. This is the first time we have worked together, almost like a dual club. That has been massive."

So what of Sunday's opponents. St Vincent's too have had their share of final disappointment, losing to St Peter's and Ballivor in 2018 and 2020 respectively.

However, the Ardcath men did manage to win the JFC in 2021 when they got the better of Dunsany in atrocious conditions, and Brennan believes they will be a tough nut to crack again.

"Ourselves and St Vincent's have played a lot of times down through the years, they are a dogged side, that's the way they play. That final in 2021 finished 1-4 to 0-6 I think, we found them hard to break down.

"They are a very good side. Things didn't work out for them when they went up to Intermediate, but we have a huge amount of respect for them.

"They have proved themselves again this year. They had a good league and obviously they have brought that into the championship.

"I watched their semi-final last week against Clann na nGael. They're a good side, especially at this level," warned the Dunsany midfielder.