A fifth in six years would go down well in Portarlington

PORTARLINGTON are on the hunt for a fifth Laois Senior Football Championship in six years. Their captain Ronan Coffey lifted the Jack Delaney Cup aloft last October and he’ll be hoping to do likewise in his second year as skipper.

Speaking at the pre-final media event, Coffey gave his reaction to reaching yet another county decider.

“We're obviously delighted to be in our final. It's what we set out at the start of the year. We’re probably not too happy with how Sunday went performance-wise, but I suppose the last 10-15 minutes, we kind of stood up and showed what we were about. But yeah, very happy to be in another final, of course,” he said.

A more settled squad has helped Portarlington this season, with far fewer late arrivals compared to last year. Sean Byrne returned in Round 3 against Rosenallis, while Jake Foster made his return in the quarter-final against Arles Killeen.

Just what the return of players do to give a team a gist was seen against Rosenallis when Portarlington turned in a composed and clinical performance to book their quarter-final place.

Colm Murphy made a dream return to the starting team, opening the scoring inside two minutes before turning provider for Rioghan Murphy, who netted an early goal to give Portarlington the perfect launchpad.

Portarlington then powered into the semi-finals with a dominant 20-point victory over Arles Killeen. The big story of that afternoon was the return of Jake Foster from Australia, and he finished with 1-6 that day.

“You'd love to have them here from day one, and it does get awkward when you’ve lads who've been training all year that aren't starting eventually. But look, the lads are unreal, and to have them back, any team in the county would want them back.

“The lads you named there, Sean and Jake, are two unbelievable players. Colm, D Bennett and Paddy were back at the start of the year as well, so look, it's great to have them back, definitely,” he added.

Despite their progress to another final, Coffey believes Portarlington have not yet produced their best football over a full hour.

“We wouldn't be too happy with how Sunday went. Against Rosenallis, we probably weren't great either. We've probably been playing in periods. We haven't probably put in a 60-minute performance yet, but I suppose that's what we're looking for now, Sunday week,” he explained.

Coffey’s performances last season also earned him a call-up to the Laois panel. It was an experience he admitted enjoying more than he expected.

“I really enjoyed it, I really did. I didn't think I'd enjoy it as much as I did, to be honest. I suppose the new rules have favoured me in that, you know, there's probably a lot more room for forwards and that. There's not as much up and down the field and not as much defending, which wouldn't be my strong point, as the lads would say,” he laughed.

Looking at the bigger picture, Coffey also shared his view on how Portarlington have adapted to the new rules, particularly in attack.

“I suppose when you're bringing a few lads back into the team, we've probably only played two or three games with our full 15. Our forwards are trying to adjust to the two-point line and stuff like that, but we're not really trying to put pressure on kicking two-pointers.

“If we can just rack up a big score, which is what is needed, you probably need 20-22 points now, plus. That's probably what we're aiming for, instead of kicking two-pointers, it's opened up the pitch for us and I think our forwards are kind of getting used to it now at the moment,” he concluded.