The Road to Celtic Park

[county derry post]

Hope he mods don't mind, only want this to sit for a few days, think it would be of interest.

The County Derry Post's Derry club season preview magazine, The Road to Celtic Park, hits the shops this Friday morning, April 12. We felt out 48 page efforts of the last two years just wasn't going to cut it so we went all out and made it a 68 page glossy magazine. The format is all changed, though the hugely popular club by club previews and predictions remain.

But we've also really gone to town with a series of feature interviews. I went down to Ballinascreen a few weeks back to speak to John Francis Bradley and his mother Marie about how his recovery is going. He's mad looking to get back to the football. There's a 4-page feature on that.

Conan Doherty had the pleasure of spending 20 minutes on the phone to Joe Brolly. It's the best read in the supplement.

There's a massive feature on club football in 1993, another on whether smaller clubs feel they will need to amalgamate in future, and a look at whether the proposed restructure of the leagues will be good or bad for junior and intermediate clubs.

On top of that, there are interviews with a host of players gearing up for the new season. Ruairi Boylan, Paul Cartin and Gary Doyle share their hopes for the season. Michael Warnock looks forward to another busy season as a footballer with Glen and a hurler with Derry and Swatragh.

His football manager, Enda Gormley, prepares to try and guide Glen back to senior football and shares his opinion that some of the old brigade need to take the rosé tinted glasses off and see that modern football is a superior game.

Paddy Henry talks of the pitfalls of life in Belfast, while Lissan's Oran Donnelly speaks to us from the other side of the world about how he misses it all. Faughanvale's Irish League star Joe Gray gives a brilliantly honest account of his own career, while Moneymore's Paudie O'Neill modestly tells us he was never good enough to play county football. I'd certainly argue the point.

That's on top of even more in-depth club by club previews, with a look at the strengths and weaknesses of each team, a deeper look at the men in charge, as well as key men and ones to watch.

It's out in shops on Friday morning and there are a limited number of copies so you'll have to be quick to pick one up. At £2 we reckon it's a steal. Any feedback is welcomed as ever, positive or negative!

Thanks for your continued support.

Cahair O'Kane
Sports Editor
County Derry Post

[Wildweasel74]

None of us miss Mr Donnelly, hope he enjoys down under and stays there for awhile lol

[Wildweasel74]

And paudie was good enough to play county football

[omagh_gael]

You'd probably be better posting directions to Celtic Park as it appears very little Derry folk know how to get there

[theticklemister]

You'd probably be better posting directions to Celtic Park as it appears very little Derry folk know how to get there

They know the direction; but the pricks wont come!

[trasna man]

You'd probably be better posting directions to Celtic Park as it appears very little Derry folk know how to get there

They know the direction; but the pricks wont come!

Think theres a tablet for their problem

[theticklemister]

You'd probably be better posting directions to Celtic Park as it appears very little Derry folk know how to get there

They know the direction; but the pricks wont come!

Think theres a tablet for their problem

I think Cahir knows something we don't.................. is the final for Celtic Park then and not Owenbeg??

[HiMucker]

And paudie was good enough to play county football

Agree with you there wild weasel.  A player that would have benefitted if Derry had the Kerry model for club championship.  Never seemed to get a fair crack at it

[Syferus]

I wish our journos and the county board too put this much effort into putting together a proper preview for the county championships. We're lucky if we get a three page preview for the senior football championship in the local paper.

£2 sounds like a ridiculously good price for this mag.

[theticklemister]

I wish our journos and the county board too put this much effort into putting together a proper preview for the county championships. We're lucky if we get a three page preview for the senior football championship in the local paper.

£2 sounds like a ridiculously good price for this mag.

To be fair syferus,the County Derry Post do an outstanding job in promoting the GAA in the county. They have the best club scene news reports that I have seen Ireland, suppose if the editor of a paper thinks that your GAA reporting will sell papers that they will give ye the pages in the paper. The club scene in Derry is huge and provokes public reaction so the paper sells.

In last year's senior championship games each match had a double spread (colour) of the match, stats of game, star man, terrace talk, turning point, each team with scorers and then a breakdown of each player and how they played. For the intermediate they hadthe same and the Junior reporting was non too shabby either.