By Shaun Casey

KILCOO have dominated the club scene in Down for a number of years now, and on Sunday they beat their old adversaries Burren to claim a sixth consecutive title and their 12th crown in 13 years.

Indeed, Burren’s 2018 win is the only blot on Kilcoo’s record during that time, and midfielder Aaron Morgan, the joint captain of Karl Lacey’s side alongside Darryl Branagan, was delighted to once again get his hands on the Frank O’Hare Cup.

“It’s as special as the first one,” Morgan said after their convincing 1-10 to 0-4 victory over Burren. “We know that it takes a lot of hard work every year to get back here; you don’t get it handed to you.

“It takes a massive effort from everybody in the team and the entire panel. All the boys are a part of it. So, every (championship title) win feels as good as the one before it and we’re very happy.”

Kilcoo’s defensive structure is what their championship charge has been built on and they conceded just one goal throughout the campaign. They kept another clean sheet in the decider and held Burren to just 0-4.

“That comes down to the team effort,” added Morgan. “If one player lets it slip then it doesn’t work so in terms of our structure. Although the scoring was low, it was still a very, very tough game.

“Burren are a good team, but credit to all of the boys on the field there. This doesn’t happen unless every man is working their hardest, so we have to be happy with that.”

The Magpies soared into a comfortable 0-7 to 0-2 lead by half time, hitting the final six points of the opening period, to keep their opponents at arms’ length. That purple patch, along with a goal in the final few minutes, paved the way to victory.

“We got that gap on the scoreboard and then we probably sat back a wee bit too much and didn’t tag on too many points in the second half. We kicked it a few times when maybe we should have run with the ball, and we could have tipped on a couple of more scores.

“But credit to Burren, because coming down the home stretch, if they got even one more score it could have been a completely different game. But we’re happy with how we were able to close it out regardless.”

It’s on to the provincial series now where the 2021 All-Ireland champions are hoping to capture an Ulster title for the first time in three years. Kilcoo reached the final in 2022 but lost out to three-in-a-row chasing Glen and will open their provincial series with a home fixture against the winners of Cavan finalists Crosserlough and Ramor United.

“We’re looking forward to the challenge,” Morgan continued, on the notion of carrying their form into Ulster. “Obviously we couldn’t look past winning the Down Championship, because it’s very competitive.

“Every year it gets tougher and tougher. We’ll celebrate over the next few days, but now that we’re in it (Ulster) we’ll look at what’s coming ahead.”