Online Club Football Championship coverage brought to you by the Shannon Springs Hotel—home of The Old Lodge Gastropub.
*Kilmihil’s Martin O’Leary. Photograph: Gerard O’Neill.
BACK TO back victories in the final that nobody wants to be in, Kilmihil have had their fill of relegation woes and are determined to avoid such a fight this season.
Unlucky to have ended up in the relegation series in 2025 having overcome Ennistymon in the second round, this win was not enough for Kilmihil to avoid scrapping for their status in the top flight.
Fight they did and it looked like they would cause an upset against Kildysart after Shane Downes’ fifty ninth minute green flag but they conceded a two pointer and last-minute Diarmuid O’Donnell to end up having to do it all again, this time coming out the right side against Wolfe Tones in the relegation final.
Mickey Doran has stepped down as manager with John Normoyle taking on the reigns joined by former FAI CDO Denis Hynes as coach and Seán Johnston as selector.
Speaking to The Clare Echo, Seán admitted that the shortage of numbers in Kilmihil can make preparations tricky. “It is tough going, numbers are tight with us, training can be tough at times but we have quality there which is always encouraging, when we have everyone we have real quality”.
Staying out of any relegation fight is the primary focus as they set sail on a new campaign. “That is the goal every year to avoid being in a relegation battle, we were unfortunate last year in that we managed to get a win in our group but we still finished bottom of the group, that doesn’t happen too many teams that they win a game but still end up in trouble so that was disappointing. We definitely want to avoid being in the drop zone this year”.
Ciaran Downes’ absence will be a blow to their challenge, Johnston said they do not expect to have the former Clare forward available for the championship. The energetic Seán Crowley will be another loss from their first fifteen but fresh faces have brought new energy. “We’ve three or four new faces which is great to see, we haven’t had that since Ciaran came through, it is nice to get new lads which are talented and seen as options to come on”.
Cooraclare is the setting just as it was last year as they face off with Kildysart. “We know what Kildysart have, they are a strong and upcoming team with plenty of county players, we were disappointed with the result in Cooraclare last year, we should have seen out the game but we didn’t and that is how we finished up in the relegation final. We’ve no feat going back to play them, we’re very hopeful and we will give it everything we can”.
Round two sees them clash with Ennistymon, another side they won’t feat having got the upperhand on them in what was one of the shocks of the championship. “We have Ennistymon again, we beat them last year but it will be another tough game. Our numbers are very tight but that means we have a very tight-knit squad, they have won together and lost together, they know what it takes, we’re hopeful and happy with our group of players”.
Of all the senior sides, they compete in the lowest league (Division 3), this didn’t deter Cratloe when they were at the height of their powers and it’s a similar approach as treating it as a completely different competition for Kilmihil. “We got beaten in the league semi-final and really left the game after us, we should have seen out the semi-final and that would have got us promoted but we didn’t. The league has its ups and downs but at the end of the day, league is league and championship is championship. We only ended up with one point in the league last year and were unlucky not to make a championship quarter-final so you can’t go on league form really, we’re hoping to step it up for championship”.
Kilmihil Factfile
Management: John Normoyle (manager), Sean Johnston (selector), Denis Hynes (Coach)
Captain: Mikey Keating
Key Player: Dan Keating
One to watch: Darragh Connors
Fresh blood: Darragh Connors, Sean O’Gorman, Daniel Finucane, Darragh Walsh
Departures Gate: Ciaran Downes (travel), Shane Downes (emigrated), Sean Crowley (emigrated)
Treatment table: None
Titles won: 2 (1944 with Cooraclare, 1980)
Last season’s run: Retained their status after beating Wolfe Tones in the relegation final
Schedule of games:
Round 1 vs Kildysart on Friday July 31st at 19:30 in Páirc Cuar an Chláir, Cooraclare
Round 2 vs Ennistymon on Sunday August 16th at 13:00 in Shanahan McNamara Memorial Park, Doonbeg
Round 3 vs St Joseph’s Doora/Barefield on Saturday August 29th at 17:00 in Páirc na Muintire, Lissycasey
Championship power ranking (1=weak/unlikely winners, 10=strong contenders): 5
