'We can throw favourite’s talk out the window' - Ian Martin

The Downs' joint captain Ian Martin has great memories of the senior success three years’ ago and he’s hoping to draw on that positive experience in the lead up to Sunday’s decider. Furthermore, they are on a mission to right the wrongs of last year, but they fully understand that threat posed by a Coralstown/Kinnegad side that has already overcome defending champions St Loman's, Mullingar in the semi-final.

“It means a lot, obviously,” he said when asked about leading the team alongside Luke Loughlin.

“It's our second in-a-row to reach the final, it'll be nice now hopefully to put the wrongs of last year right this year. Obviously three years ago went well for us, 2024 didn't go so well. So hopefully now this year's final will go well.

"It'd be brilliant to win. I can remember the car journey in the back of Tommy Kelly's jeep in 2022; we were hanging out the windows. I don't think anyone was able to rest in Mullingar that night, there were horns going everywhere. But it was a great night out at The Downs, so hopefully now this year we can get it again.”

Reflecting on a hectic season, Ian said the players have really enjoyed the journey and found a fresh lease of life under Dermot Power, who leads a new management team.

“Training up to the Shamrocks game was going really well. We were in the gym the following day; got back into it. We met on Thursday night and got going again. We’re over that semi-final and now looking at Kinnegad; everybody will be raring to go. We'll probably have a couple of hard training sessions coming up and then taper off later in week, get ready for the final again,” he said.

While most experts have The Downs as firm favourites to claim the top prize on Sunday, Martin said the players will not concern themselves with that, but rather focus on hitting their own targets. Regardless of the favourite’s tag, he knows Coralstown/Kinnegad are a serious threat.

“I think we can throw a lot of that favourite’s talk out the window. When we turn up to The Downs, we have our own kind of set of expectations; we come into the match, we have our own standards that we kind of try and hit. Whether that's with kickouts, turnovers, scores. If we hit those targets, we're happy enough, regardless of what the opposition is doing,” he remarked.

“Kinnegad are going to be going into this game and thinking they have every bit as much a chance of winning as we do. They won't fear us at all; they've turned us over before in other years, so really it's 50-50. Being favourites doesn't really matter to us.”

Martin said the enhanced playing rules this year have made football more enjoyable for players.

“It's different, obviously the game's much faster now, there's not as many rest periods. I remember at the times in that final last year you were nearly walking around, hand passing from side to side. There's no real rest this year unless you're lucky enough to get caught up with the rule on three up. That doesn't happen if Luke’s inside!

“There's a big kind of demand, especially around the middle eight, because you attack as a unit and you defend as a unit. It's more enjoyable, there definitely is more space. It probably suits our game of in The Downs that we're able to use our running power a little bit more: we're able to kind of get bodies up the pitch and then we've scored quite a few goals actually, especially in the earlier games.

“It's creating more space for us. It's different. It took a little while to adapt.

“I haven't quite got the hang of the two-point rule just yet, we need that to loop, Luke's kind of mastered that one," he observed.

The Downs have quality, strength and experience in all sectors, but especially in attack where Martin provides a formidable combination alongside Loughlin.

It will take a major effort to keep the pair quiet in Sunday's final.