Ulster University will line out without two of their more high-profile players in Wednesday night’s Electric Ireland Sigerson Cup final.
Derry duo Conor Glass and Ethan Doherty are both studying in the University of Ulster but having missed the college’s entire campaign due to club commitments, the team manager Barry Dillon has confirmed that they won’t be drafted in for the final.
Glass and Doherty both enjoyed an extended run with Watty Graham’s Glen for the second year in a row and while rumours were rife that they would play for their college in the aftermath of their All-Ireland club final victory, it wasn’t to be.
The Glen duo were back playing for Derry less than six days after winning the All-Ireland club title and speaking to the Belfast Telegraph, Ulster University manager Barry Dillon said that they were ‘running on empty.’
“They were very keen to get involved, they were happy to play, it’s just the timing of it,” said Dillon.
“We were talking to them before they even finished the Derry Club Championship, they were in with us before that.
“Then they went on to the All-Ireland Club Semi-Final and Final and fair play to them they won it.
“They went down then to play in the National League in Kerry, they were kind of running on empty a bit.
“So they missed out on our Quarter-Final and then it was too late really, it was too late to start bringing boys in for just a Final, I just wouldn’t do it for any team. It’s not the way to do it,” he said.
Ulster University are slight underdogs heading into the game but they still boast plenty of talent in their ranks, such as the two Canavans of Tyrone and Niall Loughlin of Derry.
They showed good team spirit in recent victories over TUD and Maynooth respectively, and Dillon is eager not to mess with the winning formula.
“There’s a bit of a bond going in there with the boys and they’re playing for the shirts on their backs at the minute,” he said. “Win, lose or draw, when boys are giving you everything like that, you can accept whatever happens.”
From a UCD perspective, Galway legend John Divilly’s side have high profile players such as Ben O’Carroll and Sam Callinan in their ranks.
Ulster University take on UCD in Wednesday night’s Electric Ireland Sigerson Cup final in Austin Stack Park, Tralee. You can view our combined 15 of the two colleges here.
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