Peter McDonnell guided Armagh to their last Ulster U21 trophy in 2007

ARMAGH U21 boss Peter McDonnell has expressed his bitter disappointment with the lack of access he has had with his players heading into their quarter-final clash against Down next Wednesday.

St Ronan’s Lurgan, St Paul’s Bessbrook and St Colman’s Newry were involved in the MacRory Cup semi-finals, while Crossmaglen played in last weekend’s U21 Ulster Club final. His access to the players involved in those campaigns has been severely curtailed.

In the noughties, the Orchard County won six Ulster senior titles, two Ulster 21 titles, and two provincial minor titles. This decade that’s reverted to a zero in all three tournaments, which has only heightened McDonnell’s frustration at the turn of events.

“I was manager of Errigal Ciaran whenever Mark Harte and Enda McGinley were playing for Tyrone U21s and taking All-Ireland medals back to Tyrone before they were winning senior All-Irelands. That’s where Tyrone’s success started from.

“If it’s important enough for Tyrone people it should be important enough for Armagh people and everybody else. Looking at least weekend, winning a league match was a big thing for Armagh!”

The full interview with Peter McDonnell is available in store today or online here.