*Diarmuid O’Donnell. Photograph: Gerard O’Neill.
28 points separated the Clare senior and U20 footballers when they met in a challenge match on Sunday, the exercise may have been of little value but will be significant for certain players keeping their place on the respective panels.
Both Paul Madden and Dermot Coughlan are coming close to finalising their panels for the upcoming 2026 campaigns. Sunday’s challenge match in many ways will have been pointless but for some footballers, it may have worked out as a morning which preserved their status as a county footballer.
Stephen Ryan’s availability to the squad from the off has been confirmed with the former vice captain back between the posts. The Kilrush man only appeared in Clare’s final championship outing last season with Peter Keane and his management unsuccessful in their repeated requests to get the AIB employee to join their set-up quicker. Ryan wasn’t overly busy in Sunday’s challenge game but was vocal and drifted up field when the seniors had the ball in their attack to help get the message across.
Once again, The Clare Echo was casting an eye on the top performers with 28 footballers featuring for the seniors over the course of three periods of 25 minutes. Over 25 players took to the field for the U20s.
Making a welcome return to action was Eoin Cleary at corner forward. There was no element of rustiness for the St Joseph’s Miltown man in his first challenge game of the season for Clare. The former captain finished with 1-4 during a forty five minute stint, scoring off left and right, he brought energy when on the ball and it looked as if scores were coming to come off his involvement. They did and he also chipped in with an assist. Cleary could well be revitalised by the Madden led management.
Though only on the pitch for half an hour, Dermot Coughlan was very influential. Facing off against a side managed by his father, Dermot shipped plenty of tackles, many of them during the opening third. He was still able to elude the hits when assisting three of the first four scores in the game. Coughlan had been in the half-back line last week for the seniors, a role he did well in with his club but there was more scores created off him for Clare when back in the half-forward line. Of course, he also contributed on the scoreboard and kicked 1-1.
For the second game in a row, Fionn Kelleher was Clare’s top defender. Tough and physical with his challenges, he was tasked with minding Diarmuid McMahon, a lively footballer with a high graph but Fionn kept him scoreless and his judgement was on the money, reading each play well to know whether it was time to go and win the ball directly or just shadow his man by pushing him into a position where scores would not be conceded.
Making a big contribution was wing-back James Curran. He was alert from the off and maintained this energetic approach for his fifty minute appearance. Acting as an attacking wing-back, James got involved in plenty of the play, he had Clare’s first goal on four minutes when combining with Dermot Coughlan. An excellent assist from Caoilfhionn O’Dea when he stopped the ball dead was picked up by the on-rushing Curran to allow him chip over a point on nineteen minutes. Runs off the shoulder and how well they were executed was one of the more impressive aspects of the senior performance with James standing out in this sector.
Leadership and maturity was shown by Diarmuid O’Donnell when he entered the fray. He guided new additions to the panel by issuing them with calm, clear instructions on what to do when they were in possession, signalled moves which were all in the best interests of the team. This was not all as he also kicked 1-4, of this tally 1-1 was from play but his willingness to step up and take the frees was also admirable. The Kildysart man made a match-winning contribution in February 2024 when scoring 1-2 off the bench to help Clare beat Offaly in the National League, he was in a long list of players who didn’t receive adequate game-time in 2025 which was unfair and damaging to long-term development of the panel but his display showed he’s out to prove a point for 2026.
Notable mentions are warranted for midfielder Michael Nash who once again impressed, the St Joseph’s Doora/Barefield was brought in to fill up numbers for an internal match three weeks ago and is doing all the right things to keep himself on the panel. Gearoid Cahill’s creation of scores from full-forward really helped the seniors kill off their opposing challenge early on, his unselfishness to let others finish to the net must be noted.
For the U20s, the most impressive player was wing forward Donnacha O’Dwyer. Last year’s Clare minor captain may have received criticism more than once for his delivery to their attack but he was trying to do the right thing and onlookers were able to spot that this is a footballer with vision trying to pick out the right pass. That he scored 1-1 was deserved for his showing but was not the reason for him standing out, rather his attempts to do the right thing and to try a bold pass here and there.
