*Cratloe’s Conor McGrath. Photograph: Gerard O’Neill.
HAVING come within a whisker of reaching last year’s decider, Cratloe will be hoping to redress the balance this time around.
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Cratloe Fact File
Management: John O’Gorman (Manager); Mike Deegan, James Hickey (Coaches); Barry Duggan, Tim Danaher (Selectors); Dermot Quain, David Foley (Backroom Team); Oscar O’Dwyer (S&C); Ger Crotty (Physio)
Captain: Diarmuid Ryan
Key Player: Conor McGrath
One to Watch: Marc O’Brien
Fresh Blood: Shane Gleeson, Tadhg Lohan, Marc O’Brien
Departure Gate: None
Treatment Table: Cathal McInerney (hamstring)
Titles Won: 2 (2009, 2014)
Last season’s run: Semi-Finalists
Schedule
Round 1 v Scariff on Saturday July 26th in Glenomra Park Broadford at 18:00
Round 2 v Kilmaley on Saturday August 9th in Zimmer Biomet Páirc Chiosóg Ennis at 19:00
Round 3 v Ballyea on Saturday August 23rd in O’Garney Park Sixmilebridge at 19:00
Championship power ranking (1=weak/unlikely winners, 10=strong contenders): 7
The thing is though that a final seems so far away considering how difficult it was last summer just to even get out of the group as it had to take a miraculous Conor McGrath point from the sideline to inch through to the knock-out stages on score difference.
Their arduous task got no easier in the business end as Cratloe had to produce another grandstand finish against Scariff to overturn a six point deficit before missed chances including twelve wides in the semi-final saw them agonisingly edged out by Feakle by just two points.
Having had to play without two of their most experienced performers in Sean and Podge Collins for that penultimate stage showdown, the sight of Cathal McInerney having to retire prematurely ithrough a hamstring injury in last Friday’s Clare SFC opener against holders Éire Óg is a major early blow but it hasn’t dampened manager John O’Gorman’s spirits ahead of this Saturday’s hurling throw-in.
“Cathal won’t be right for the opening round anyway but we still have plenty of experience in the team. There are one or two young lads coming through and they will be helped by that experience. We’re just hoping that the mix and balance will be right and that on the day things click,” he told The Clare Echo.
Cratloe didn’t quite click in the league this spring as injuries again hampered their progress as they dropped to Division 2 for 2026. “Obviously our Clare Cup form was a bit mixed but in fairness we didn’t have a full hand to play with I suppose. We ended up being relegated but we’ve picked things up ever since and with championship approaching, our squad has been coming together more as we get players back on the field.
“It’s still hard to gauge where we’re really at though coming into this weekend’s first round because we haven’t a whole lot of challenge games played either. So we’re just hoping that on the day, the lads perform and can give a good account of themselves and see where it takes us.”
Having shaded inch-tight knock-out contests against Scariff and Kilmaley last year, holding off any revenge will be crucial in their opening two bouts against the same opponents.
“We played Scariff last year in the quarter-final and there was only a puck of the ball in it and the result could easily have gone either way. So we know exactly the challenge that lies ahead on Saturday starting out. They’re a good team so we need one hundred per cent all around the field and need to get up to speed from the start. We just cannot afford to leave any stone unturned when we play them as we know the serious firepower that they have with Mark Rodgers and Patrick Crotty and these lads. If they get a run on you, they’re very hard to stop so we need the whole defensive unit up for the challenge.
“We’re in a really tough group but looking down through all the groups, I think in the Clare championship overall, every team genuinely feels that they can get out of their group and so it should be. There’s no doubt that our group is evenly matched between all four teams so getting off to a winning start is crucial and therefore playing Scariff on Saturday is the only thing we’re focused on. If you don’t win that first game, it puts you under pressure so it would be super to get the win on Saturday and build from there again. That’s the aim anyway”.
