By Niall Gartland

IT’S a familiar pairing in the Ulster Senior Championship final, but as much as anything else that speaks to the strength of both Armagh and Donegal over a sustained period of time.

This is the fifth season running that the two teams will battle it out for provincial supremacy – and this particular match up rarely fails to disappoint.

While Armagh have been quite evidently the more competitive side at league and All-Ireland level in the last couple of years, Donegal always give them their fill of it when the Ulster title is up for grabs.

They came up trumps in the 2023 showdown, and although Armagh wrestled back control of the rivalry this time last year, they needed extra-time to do so, a last-gasp point from Niamh Reel finally settling matters in the Orchard County’s favour.

Leading Donegal out this Saturday afternoon is captain Róisín Rodgers, already one of the more experienced heads in a team that has undergone a fairly dramatic shift in personnel in the last 18 months or so.

They missed out on a promotion spot in the league but fared pretty well on the whole under new manager James Daly (who so happens to be an Armagh man) so she’s in good form heading into Saturday’s provincial showdown.

“The league was tough, we got a lot of draws and we’d have liked to see a few more wins in there, but we battled hard and I think we’ve improved quite a lot since our first day out, against Clare.

“We’ve taken a lot of learnings and we’ll see how Ulster goes.

“We knew we’d be coming up against a bigger and stronger team in Ulster so it will definitely be a challenge but we’re looking forward to it.”

The Naomh Mhuire clubwoman acknowledges that there’s a healthy ongoing rivalry with the Orchard County, who will be looking to bounce back after an unusually healthy defeat to Kerry in the Division One final.

“We’ve played Armagh in Ulster finals for the last number of years and there’s definitely a bit of a rivalry, and the title has gone back and fourth.

“It’s been tit for tat and it’s good to have that rivalry, it pushes you on and you want to get the title back for them.

“In the last year or two we’ve lost a lot of our more senior players on the team, so we’re going into this game as slight underdogs but we just have to take that in our stride and see what we can do.”

When Rodgers first joined the Donegal team, she was surrounded by household names who had dominated the provincial landscape in the years prior.

It was a learning experience in the best possible sense and she still idolises many of the players involved.

“I was only 17 at the time, it was something I’d dreamt of since I was a little girl, playing with those players you always looked up to.

“Geraldine and Niamh McLaughlin, Karen Guthrie, Niamh Hegarty, all those girls are legends and always will be in my eyes.

“It was an honour to be able to play with them, they taught me so much and I hope I can do that for the younger girls coming through now.”

It’s a big double bill on Saturday as the Ladies final will be followed by the men’s showdown, also between Donegal and Armagh. Rodgers is mindful that they have to play the game and not the occasion.

“It’s great to be able to go out and support their men in their own Ulster final, I wish them the very best and I’m sure they’ll give it their best shot, we’ll all Donegal fans at the end of the day.

“Though at the end of the day we’ve a game to play and we need to give it our best shot and hopefully get the upper hand.

“You could argue it’s an extra bit of pressure, there’d be a bigger crowd in Clones than we’d usually get, but we have to put that to one side and concentrate on our own game.

“We’re really looking forward to it and it should be a great occasion.”