Damian Cassidy was in charge of a committed group of Bellaghy players and with captain Gavin Diamond leading the side, they captured another Derry senior football championship and were narrowly defeated in the Ulster final. When Derry overcame Cork to win the All-Ireland championship in 1993, it completed an Ulster treble after the earlier exploits of Down (1991) and Donegal (1992). In the 1990s, Ulster club football also began to make its mark on the national stage with Crossmaglen winning the first of their three All-Ireland titles in 1997. Bellaghy won the Derry senior football county final in 1996, beating Dungiven, and in 2000, the team shot sixteen wides in the Ulster final but still managed to overcome Peter Canavan's Errigal Ciaran challenge to capture the title. It wasn't until 2005, though, that the club regained the Derry championship. The season dragged on somewhat with Derry's run in the championship postponing a number of fixtures. But it's been worth the wait. Victories over Slaughtneil and Swatragh set up a clash with the Loup in the county final. "It was a long year. The (club) championship only started at the end of July. We have to be fair to the county team as well," says Diamond. Diamond was delighted at the county final win. Crossmaglen had won their tenth county final in succession in 2005 and Bellaghy had the unenviable task of trying to halt their gallop when the sides met in the Ulster championship quarter-final. This they did and after a late scare against Cavan Gaels the team progressed to the final. It was the fourteenth occasion a Derry club were making an Ulster final appearance. Although St Gall's (Antrim) spoiled the party, winning by three points, Cassidy was philosophical in defeat. To him, Bellaghy had not been expected to come out of Derry so was it an added bonus to get to the Ulster final? "It's nice to have won the Derry county title but it's disappointing not to have won the Ulster title. If somebody had said to us at the start of the year that we would have won the Derry county final, we'd have said 'great'. But then we beat Crossmaglen and a strong Cavan Gaels side. We felt disappointed after we were beaten in the final because we knew we didn't perform to our potential however good luck to St Galls on the days they got the breaks and took their chances which ensured the victory. Bellaghy's relatively young panel suggests they will not be far away next year. Their oldest player is only 30 while there are also a number of players in the 25-28 age bracket. At 26, Diamond has been fortunate in the last few years in that he has won a number of county titles. While still a teenager he was on the Bellaghy side which won the Derry county final in 1996; the then 17-year-old part of the outfit which overcame Dungiven in the final. Diamond played three years with the county team and says he would love another chance to prove his worth in the Derry side. As he says though, it's not his decision and for now he can concentrate on maintaining Bellaghy's grip on Derry football in 2006. He cites the career of Joe Cassidy as a reason why the county football scene is so strong in Derry. The former minor, U-21 and senior county player has been in excellent form this year, hitting four points in the county final and seven points in the eventual defeat to St Gall's in the Ulster final. Still, like Diamond, Cassidy hasn't featured on a Derry team in a number of years and perhaps it is a testimony to the strength of Derry football that he hasn't appeared in the county colours for some time. Though he has now stepped aside, team manager Damian Cassidy, who will be assistant team manager to Martin McElkennon in Cavan, had, Diamond says, done an "excellent job" with the team. Diamond also praised the players' commitment all year, stating that they "come to training whenever it is called". Diamond has been working with SDC Trailers for the past six years. He is the company's Parts Manager. Normally he would work in the office and also be out with customers, selling trailer parts to the haulage sector. With Don Campbell as Managing Director, Enda Cushnahan as Finance Director and Mark Cuskeran as Director of Operations, the company has successfully sold to the haulage sector for a number of years. Owned by the Donnelly family the company are based in Toomebridge, Co. Antrim. There are a number of gaels who work within SDC such AS ex-Tyrone man Stephen Lawn and current county referee Mickey Convery, Ballinderry duo Adrian McGuckin and Gerard Cassidy all working in the company, there is plenty of football discussion and "friendly banter" at dinner time. Despite the disappointment of losing at the last hurdle, Bellaghy can look to 2006 with optimism. With the will-to-win they have shown in 2005, they can continue to pose a threat in Derry and Ulster next year. Tweet

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