Saturday 12 Aug – Buncrana – 1.45pm
The Armagh u16s take on Tyrone this Saturday afternoon and the pair will be battling it out for the Buncrana Cup.
It’s a competition that the Orchard County have never won before in their history. The youngsters are treading on new ground.
It will mark their 12th competitive outing this season, with only one loss on their record from the previous 11 games.
Dublin defeated Armagh on the opening weekend of the Buncrana Cup. But since then, they’ve put together a streak of ten wins on the trot.
That included notable victories over Ulster rivals Derry, Down, Monaghan along with Meath Mayo and Wexford.
Armagh also defeated their old foes Tyrone when they met in the earlier round of the Buncrana Cup.
To reach the decider, the Orchard County saw off Mayo by six-points in the semi-final, 0-13 to 0-7, away from home.
Management
The side is managed by Crossmaglen man Gene O’Callaghan, who has formed a strong backroom team.
Barra O’ Muiri, Brendan Nugent and Armagh Ladies star Niamh Marley are all included in the management team.
The scoring power of Caolan McGinley (Pearse Og), James McCooe (Clann Eireann) and Aaron Garvey (Culloville) has been a massive help.
Defensively, Armagh will look to the likes of Sean Woods (Keady) and keeper Michael Finnegan (Silverbridge) for inspiration.
To reach the final, Tyrone had to overcome Dublin in the last four and did so with seven to spare, 0-17 to 0-10.
The Red Hands were much the better team in that particular outing and led for the majority of the game.
They are managed by Lorcan Martin, who has three-time All-Ireland winner Enda McGinley as his right-hand man.
Tyrone are the defending champions, so it’s a huge task for Armagh. But if they bring the same dedication and desire they’ve had all year, they’ll be in with a great chance.
