Clane and Clonmullion set to serve up cup cracker

This Sunday’s KDFL Lumsden League Cup Final at Doctors Road (2pm k/o) has the makings of a real cracker as Clane United look to complete the first part of a possible treble this season.

Standing in their way of such a feat is a Clonmullion outfit that is the only side to have ever lifted the Lumsden, Senior League and Senior Cup honours all in the same season.

Certainly, Brian Hickey’s men will be going all out to make sure Clonmullion remain the only treble-winning club at this level, but in order to do that, they will have to beat Clane in their own backyard on Sunday, having already suffered a 5-3 loss to Daragh Deane’s side earlier in the season.

What’s more, Clane will, themselves, not be short of incentive to get their hands on this prize having fallen just one step short of that piece of silverware back in 2022 when they lost 4-1 to Clonmullion in the decider.

And given the number of close calls that Clane have survived throughout this season’s Lumsden campaign, some might believe that their name appears to be on the trophy.

Indeed, they were seconds away from going out of the competition at the hands of Newbridge Hotspurs, only to see Rasdi N Simba serve up an 89th minute equaliser before James Ralph found the back of the net in extra time for a 2-1 victory.

In the last 16 of the competition, they trailed Newbridge United 2-0 before battling back for an emphatic 6-3 victory, while in the semi-finals, it took a 95th -minute goal by Andrew Hyland to see them clinch a 2-1 victory over Moone Celtic.

Yet that same tenacity and ability to battle their way right to the final whistle has proven crucial in seeing Clane on course for a season of unprecedented success in the club’s history.

In addition to finding themselves back on the brink of, what would be, their first ever Lumsden League Cup, Clane are also just two games away from lifting the Senior Division crown for the first time also, while having a Senior Cup Final showdown against Naas on the horizon.

For manager, Daragh Deane, youth has been a key factor in the progress Clane has made over recent years.

“Our team is based a lot on youth players who have come up through the ranks” he told The Kildare Nationalist. “It’s something we pride ourselves on in the club. These players have developed so well.” In addition to quality young players like James Ralph, Liam Deane, Nathan Carr, Andrew Hyland and Dean Comiskey, Clane have their share of experienced campaigners in Gavin Dwyer, Cathal Geoghegan and captain, Jack Kelly.

“They’re a very good squad and you’d be hoping they can carry on together for a few years, provided they stay in the country” continued Deane. “We have lost a few lads to Australia, but that’s life.

“Eoghan Maguire, our star striker and one of the best players in the league, went to Australia at the end of last season.

“He was a massive loss for us, but there are players who have stepped up and they’ve all developed” said the Clane manager, who is assisted by Benny Langan.

While Clane are on track for possibly the greatest season in their history, Clonmullion, the biggest force in KDFL Senior Division soccer over recent years, have suffered a downturn by their standards.

Out of the running on both the Senior Division and Cup fronts, they will be eager to salvage something, in what has been a very long season for their players.

“To be fair, the lads have been relentless over the last few years, so much so, that people probably think it’s been a bad year for us just to get to a Lumsden Cup Final” said Clonmullion boss, Brian Hickey.

“This group of players have probably been playing for the last 18 months now non-stop.

“We were in the quarter final of the Leinster Junior Cup last season and so it kind of went on over our off-season.

“So, at the start of this season, there were guys who were tired, guys who were injured. We’re not making excuses, but it has been a long 18 months for the lads.

“It’s important to be able to switch off from soccer too, because it is a lot of commitment at this level” he stressed.

While they may have fallen short on other fronts this season, Clonmullion have been very convincing in the Lumsden Cup, carding emphatic victories over Rathangan, Cappakeel, Arlington, Leixlip United and semi-final opponents, Kildare Town whom, they beat 5-1.

“The lads have been excellent. It has taken a massive commitment by them” said Hickey, who runs the team alongside coaches, Barry Hughes, Martin Redmond and John Phillips.

“Just to be able to regroup after losing in the Leinster Junior Cup quarter finals and go again, they’ve been great.

“We did have a couple of bad results early on in the league and that affected us in that, but to get to this final has been great.

“The Lumsden is massive for us because we were beaten in the final last year by Naas.

“If we had won that final last year, it would have been back-to-back trebles, which would have been an unbelievable achievement, but we just missed out on that.

“We’ve been in the last four Lumsden Cup Finals. We won two and lost one and, hopefully we can make that three wins from four on Sunday” he said.