For progressive Roscommon outfit Tulsk, 2005 started on the same positive note that '04 had ended. On Saturday January 29, they became the first Roscommon side to claim the Connacht junior club football championship with a deserved 1-10 to 1-5 victory over Mayo side Aghamore. Despite the fact that their opponents had home advantage, Tulsk edged the first half and compiled a narrow 1-4 to 1-3 interval lead thanks to John Carlton's goal from the penalty spot at the start of the second quarter. Points from Carlton and Joe Cunnane on the restart set the tone for the second half and Tulsk went on to record a historic win, booking an All-Ireland semi-final place in the process. Tulsk's victory in the 2004 Roscommon junior football championship was equally spectacular. They had lost the previous two finals but persevered to take the laurels in style, accounting for Clann na nGael in the decider. And so to the magnificent voyage through Connacht: Sligo champions Oranmore Gaels were tamed at the semi-final stage of the provincial competition to set up a Connacht final showdown against a side that had won their semi-final by a whopping 38-point margin. Daunting the task may have been, but Tulsk passed with distinction. Midfield stalwart Joe Cunnane has been a key player for the club since U13 level. He missed out on a few seasons due to work and study commitments, but has been a mainstay of the first team since 2000. Tulsk slipped ingloriously from senior to junior level in successive seasons, 2000-2001, but the recent heroics in Connacht have gone a long way towards dispelling the bitter memory of that sudden fall from grace. Joe notes: "The club was senior up until 2000, but we went intermediate that year and then went straight down to junior. When we went down, we thought we'd be punching well below our weight. While you would be with some teams, we soon found out that it's not easy to win any title at any level. We had to work as hard to win the junior championship as we ever did at senior level. It all worked out in the end, though, so hopefully we can learn from the experience. "We won the county junior championship last year after losing two finals in a row - the first by two points and the next one by a point. It was a big boost to the club to finally come good because when you lose two finals, doubts start to creep in." While the spectacular voyage through Connacht to the All-Ireland series came as a welcome bonus and an enjoyable distraction, such matters were far from Tulsk's collective subconscious when they set off around about this time last year. "Our priority was to get up to intermediate level," Joe confirms. "We have a very young team and it was vital that we started to move back up through the grades. The majority of the team is in the 21-23 age group and it's important that we're playing at as high a level as possible to enable them to develop as players." How far can Tulsk take it? Are they good enough to go senior again? "We'll have to work at it. We're playing in the intermediate championship this year and the target is to win it. It's one grade at a time. We'll certainly give it our best shot this year and hopefully that'll prove good enough." Ruling the roost in Connacht has given the reigning Roscommon junior football champions a major boost. "It's an enormous boost," says Joe, who was a member of TG4's Underdogs panel in 2004. "It's another step up, especially the Connacht final, which was against a very good side. There's more belief amongst the players now and it's great to see the older clubmen and former players smiling again. There was a feeling that perhaps we'd let them down a little by going down to junior, but it's nice to have restored a bit of pride in the club." Despite the exertions of recent months, Tulsk are feeling surprisingly refreshed: "Winning the Connacht championship has recharged our batteries," the midfielder reveals. "We're as fresh now as we were at any time last year. If anything, it has had a beneficial effect. Perhaps if we'd lost the final it would have knocked us back a bit, but overall the whole experience has given us a big lift. It was great to be involved in the Connacht championship, which we feel was a once-in-a-lifetime experience as we've no intention of going down junior again any time soon! "We played the Roscommon final at the end of October and took a break until Christmas. A lot of the lads are working outdoors and the players who are office-based also look after themselves. Everybody kept themselves ticking over and we're all fresh and ready for the challenges of a new season." Which is just as well, as the All-Ireland semi-final against Kerry and Munster champions Finuge was played on February 20 (Tulsk were beaten by seven points) with the Roscommon leagues due to commence in mid-March! Away from the football field, Joe Cunnane is a principal in DCA Accountants & Business Advisors, headquartered on Pearse Street, Dublin. The practice was established in 2000 when three existing businesses merged, and employs a team of 16. The four principals are Joe Cunnane, Eddie Geraghty, Declan Dolan (all from Roscommon) and Eamonn Garvey from Kildare. DCA provides a full range of services including audit & assurance, financial accounting & bookkeeping, taxation consultancy, small & medium business support, contractor solutions, HR & payroll, company secretarial & formation, strategic & business planning and overseas property investment advice. The firm is dedicated to helping clients achieve their strategic objectives and improve operational performances. The DCA's professionals are extensively trained and continually educated to ensure that businesses are provided with leading-edge concepts, tools and techniques applicable to their specific situation. While the company HQ is in Dublin, DCA also retains offices in Kildare, Roscommon and Sligo so that clients there can avail of its personal touch. In keeping with the young age profile of the four partners, DCA Accountants & Business Advisors is a very pro-active operation. Joe promises: "Before we work for anybody, we will first determine what level of service the prospective client requires and will provide them with an all-inclusive quote for our services. It's important to get that out of the way first so that people know exactly what they're getting and how much it's going to cost. "People can innocently fall foul of the law, so they need to ensure both their tax and or corporate affairs are in order. Plus they want to ensure they don't overpay their taxes. When an accountant provides a service, then the very minimum they can do is provide clients with a level of savings that will at the very least cover their accountancy costs." For further information, contact Joe at [email protected] Tweet

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