The tension was high around the dressing room area under the stand at Pairc Tailteann approaching 4.0 on the first Sunday of October this year. Parish rivals St Ultan's and Cortown were preparing to race out onto the beautifully manicured Navan pitch for surely the most talked-about IFC final in the history of the competition. Players who had lined out together at under-age level with St Cuthbert's, who celebrated the 25th anniversary of their foundation in 2008, were about to battle it out for the Mattie McDonnell Cup. There were even brothers on opposing sides, Tomas Coyne with St Ultan's and sibling David with Cortown. It was the day that divided a parish, but when referee Marcus Quinn sounded his final whistle it was the Bohermeen/Martry combination St Ultan's who could celebrate and start thinking about life in the senior ranks alongside the big boys of Meath football like this year's Keegan Cup finalists Navan O'Mahonys and Summerhill. The triumph means that St Ultan's have taken two steps up the ladder in the space of three years following their JFC win in 2006. By contrast, Cortown's attempts to return to the premier grade after their demotion the same year were frustrated just 12 months after they had to battle for survival in the intermediate ranks. St Ultan's lost to Cortown in the first round of the IFC last year when they impressed in the opening half and built up a solid lead, only to have a player sent off and then watch as their neighbours came from behind to take the points. But, while Cortown struggled subsequently, Ultan's reached the knockout stages where they beat St Colmcille's in a preliminary quarter-final, but then lost to Nobber at the last eight stage. They also reached the A League Div. 3 final, where they were beaten by Donaghmore/Ashbourne, but there was the consolation of gaining promotion to the higher section where the standard is better. Former Bective and Nobber player Davy Cahill was again their manager this year, with Padraig Travers and Chris Murray acting as selectors, and they got their championship campaign off to a flying start when beating 2007 runners-up Castletown by 1-9 to 0-9 in a cracking game at Meath Hill. An Alan Martin goal and two pointed 45s from goalkeeper Neil Burke helped them to a 1-6 to 0-3 interval lead and they worked hard to stifle a Castletown recovery in the last quarter. The losers were left to regret an early penalty miss. A solid second half performance did the trick in the second round when Ultan's defeated Drumconrath by 2-10 to 0-7 at Kilberry where the opposition led by 0-4 to 0-3 at the break. But goals from Cian Rennicks and Eugene Brady propelled them to a comfortable victory. Kells was the venue for a third round meeting with last year's SFC demoted side Ballinlough and an impressive victory by 2-7 to 2-4 in dreadful conditions signalled that Ultan's were serious title contenders. They were rocked by Peadar Byrne's early goal, but with Rennicks netting they led by 1-5 to 1-2 at half-time. Ballinlough reduced the deficit to the minimum early in the second period, but another Rennicks goal helped Ultan's push six points clear. They didn't score again as Byrne notched his second goal three minutes from the end to set up a tense finish, but solid defending meant they were three points ahead at the end. It took a late goal from Rennicks to secure a draw with Syddan in their last group assignment at Pairc Tailteann. This was a thrilling contest and the point gained was sufficient to secure top spot in the group for St Ultan's on seven points, ahead of Ballinlough on six and Syddan on five. The sides were level (0-6 each) at the interval, before Ultan's pushed two points ahead, but they were then rocked by a brace of Syddan goals which helped them to lead by four. Rennicks split the uprights to reduce the deficit and then earned a share of the spoils with his late goal. St Ultan's quarter-final opponents were St Michael's, managed by former Navan O'Mahonys and Meath goalkeeper Donal Smyth, and they laid the foundations for victory with a strong first half performance, before hanging on in the closing stages as the Carlanstown/Kilbeg outfit produced a spirited recovery. The match at Pairc Tailteann was played under lights on a wet Friday evening and a punched goal from Gary Gorman after 12 minutes helped Ultan's to a 1-6 to 0-4 lead at the break. Eugene Brady was highly impressive in that period and when they extended their advantage to six points early in the second period only one outcome looked possible. But St Michael's came back strongly to reduce the deficit to a couple of points and Ultan's were happy to hear the final whistle as they won by 1-11 to 0-12. Gaeil Colmcille were eliminated at the penultimate hurdle for the second successive year when St Ultan's defeated them by 0-12 to 1-7 at a wet Pairc Tailteann and when Cortown beat Ballinlough after extra-time in a rearranged semi-final six days later, the 'dream final' was set up. Ultan's were very impressive in the first half against the Kells men as they made light of the conditions and opened up a 0-3 to 0-1 lead approaching the end of the first quarter with points from Brian Galligan, Eugene Brady and Kevin Rogers. Brady was magnificent in that period and he added to his tally with another point as they moved into a 0-9 to 1-2 interval advantage. Gaeil Colmcille gave themselves real hope when Brian Hanlon goaled on 20 minutes, but they didn't build on that score and found themselves four points adrift going into the second period. Ultan's added just three points to their score in the second half and had to defend stoutly to protect their lead. They also relied on Neil Burke to produce a late save from Mickey Foley, but they held out. The final against Cortown generated a huge amount of interest and plenty of publicity in the build-up to the big day, but it still had to be won. St Ultan's made their intentions clear when playing the superior football in the first half and that provided them with the platform to go on and claim a deserved victory. Brady gave them a settling start with a point inside the first minute, but the big score of the opening period was Daryl McLoughlin's brilliantly taken goal after Rennicks broke the ball to him. That left them ahead by 1-5 to 0-2 near the end of the first quarter and they went on to lead by 1-9 to 0-4 at the interval. The impressive Brady added two further points in that half, as did the brilliant Brian Galligan and Rennicks, while the influential Kevin Rogers and McLoughlin also split the uprights to help them to that comfortable advantage. But the open football of the first half disappeared in the second and it took 10 minutes for the first point to arrive when Gary Coyne registered for Cortown. After another lengthy barren spell, Galligan pointed for Ultan's, but Sylvie Skelton (two) and Codd responded for Cortown, before Galligan pointed again to leave Ultan's ahead by 1-11 to 0-8. Codd and Gary Gorman traded points and with seven minutes of injury time announced, the men in yellow sensed that they still had a slight chance. That became a more realistic chance when Skelton fisted to the net four minutes into added time, but Ultan's had defended well and they continued to do so as they held out. It was some day for the Galligan clan, with brothers Declan, Brian, Kevin and substitute Niall helping St Ultan's to victory, while the honour of receiving the Mattie McDonnell Cup went to captain Alan Martin. Three players - Tomas Coyne, Gary Rogers, who was introduced as a substitute, and Brian Mulroe - have figured in St Ultan's three major successes this decade, the JFC victories in 2000 and 2006 and this year's intermediate triumph. How they would love to add a senior medal to their collections. Davy Cahill was a man in demand after the final whistle. He had delivered senior football to the club and practically every St Ultan's supporter wanted to slap him on the back. It was a chaotic scene - but a happy one - and Cahill was quick to pay tribute to the men who had done the hard graft on the field. "This has to be one of the best groups of lads I have ever worked with," he said. "They have a never say die attitude and when they are asked to do anything in training they do it without question. When you have a panel of lads that will do that for you, you are going the right way." But how did he feel when they failed to repeat their impressive first half performance in the second and left themselves prone to a Cortown revival late in the game? "It was probably more a lack of concentration rather than taking the foot off the pedal," he added. "We were the superior team and did more ball work than Cortown. It worked for us and I am delighted. "I always dread to see half-time coming with these lads. I would rather have no break and just go right through for the full 60 minutes. It is hard to get the lads going again in the second half of games, but thankfully they held out today. It is great to have gone through the year in such fine form. To win today is the perfect conclusion." And what about St Ultan's prospects when they kick ball with the big boys in the SFC? "We are looking forward to senior football next year," Cahill said. "We should be able to cope because we have proved ourselves against senior sides in the Feis Cup, reaching the quarter-finals for the last two years. "The lads are well able to hold their own with most teams in senior football. When we start playing those senior lads next year we will start to learn how to play them." When playing at their best, as they have done in the first half of many games, St Ultan's are an attractive team to watch. They are a welcome addition to the SFC race and it will be a surprise if they don't take the step-up in their stride. Their first campaign in the top flight is awaited with interest. The St Ultan's team in the final was - N Burke; K Lynch, D Galligan, J Bennett; D Mallon, A Martin, B Galligan (0-4); B Mulroe, K Galligan; D McLoughlin (1-1), C Rennicks (0-2), K Rogers (0-1); E Brady (0-3), P Murray, T Coyne. Subs - G Rennicks for Mallon, N Galligan for Bennett, G Gorman (0-1) for McLoughlin, G Rogers for K Galligan. Tweet

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