Football

Enda Gormley not drawn on Conor Glass return rumours as Glen prepare for Slaughtneil in Derry semi-final clash

Conor Glass was upgraded to Hawthorn's senior list after he enjoyed a stellar career in underage football before turning professional in the AFL
Conor Glass was upgraded to Hawthorn's senior list after he enjoyed a stellar career in underage football before turning professional in the AFL Conor Glass was upgraded to Hawthorn's senior list after he enjoyed a stellar career in underage football before turning professional in the AFL

SIGHTINGS of a tall, well-built, ginger-haired youngster around Maghera have added a touch of intrigue ahead of Glen’s Derry SFC semi-final against reigning county and provincial champions Slaughtneil.

Conor Glass, Glen-born, Glen-bred but lured away by Aussie Rules outfit Hawthorn, is reportedly back in town and poised to make a timely return to the green and gold jersey as the Watty Graham’s club strives to reach a first ever Derry senior final.

If rumours that former Derry minor skipper Glass is back in town have reached The Irish News, it’s a good bet Slaughtneil manager Mickey Moran will have heard them too. However, his opposite number Enda Gormley was determined to give nothing away.

“No comment,” said the 1993 All-Ireland winner when it was put to him that the MacRory Cup and Ulster minor championship winner could line out for the Owenbeg clash.

“Everybody wants to speculate and I’m hearing different stories, we’ll see what takes the field.

“Put it this way, if he lands at the changing rooms on Sunday I would say we’ll not chase him.”

Glass or no Glass, this is obviously a considerable challenge for the Maghera club that has seen hard work at underage level begin to bear fruit.

Glen beat Crossmaglen to win the Ulster U21 title on March 4 and that takes some doing, but they are up against a Slaughtneil side that reached the All-Ireland senior club final a fortnight later and is chasing four in-a-row in Derry and back-to-back provincial titles.

“Every game is a massive game in a straight knockout,” said Gormley.

“You don’t get to a county final without winning the first round. We did that, we won the quarter-final and now this is the big step.

“Every game is a final for us and that’s the way you have to treat it and Sunday is no different.”

Derry has produced three of the last four Ulster club champions. Ballinderry Shamrocks won the Seamus McFerran Cup in 2013 and Slaughtneil did likewise in 2014 and last year.

“We all know the standard of club football in Derry is very strong and if you get to the semi-final you don’t expect to meet anybody easy,” said Gormley.

“This is the draw we were given and if we’re going to get there (to a final) we’re going to have to beat the big boys. It’s a big learning curve for us but there’s only way these lads are going to learn and that’s by playing the best teams out there and at the minute they (Slaughtneil) are the best team in Derry.”

Nine of the side that started Glen’s quarter-final win over Kilrea had played in the club’s U21 triumph in March.

Two others featured as substitutes and there were three more who had graduated from the previous year’s U21 side. That paints a picture of a club swelled with young talent and all the indications are that a senior breakthrough will come soon. Is this the year?

“We’re an extremely young team but they’ve been used to success all their lives,” said Gormley, a two-time Allstar.

“There’s a winning mentality and the naivety of youth is brilliant because they take these things on and they don’t care who they play.

“But I can only imagine that Slaughtneil will be hot favourites. Look at their record and then look at ours… We’ll certainly try to upset the applecart and we’ll try to cause an upset. I’m not sure if too many people will be expecting a surprise but we’ll try and provide one.”