Crossmaglen's remarkable run of success has been built on the solid foundations of a foot-passing gameplan.

"That's just the way we have always played our football," captain Paul Hearty outlined to The Irish Independent ahead of today's All-Ireland semi-final against Castlebar Mitchels.

"We feel it's the most effective way to beat others. Some teams do gravitate towards a mass defence, so you try and move the ball quickly to beat it.

"When an opposition team lose the ball in the middle of the field, the middle eight all seem to make a sprint back to the 'D' and that's it.

"I think the best thing is the ball travels faster than any man, so make the ball do the work."

The veteran goalkeeper's enthusiasm burns as bright as ever and he is relishing the prospect of taking to the Kingspan Breffni Park pitch this evening (6.15pm).

"The club (is) getting a lot more publicity because it's probably a lot more exciting than county football at the minute.

"I think the media are starting to recognise that. The club competitions have gone up in value."

The five-time All-Ireland club winner concluded: "I can't really wait. The butterflies are starting already and I can't wait for it to come around, to get out onto the field and put in a good performance."

Keep up to date will all the action this weekend on our Match Trackers. On Saturday and Sunday you can follow the All-Ireland club SFC semi-finals and the Allianz HL.

Tweet

Most Read Stories