 Well, in our Gila game section this weekend, we're looking forward to an Ulster Junior club championship semi-final. Good to have the other Kenny Gales men back in action once again. They're taking on Stewards Town of Turon on Sunday at Owen Begg. Delighted to say, Darren Hunter of the Gales joins us on the programme, Darren. You're welcome along to Highland. Good to see you. Good to talk to you. Hi, thanks very much for having me. Well, Darren, what's it been like over the last two weeks of training? It's both the first thing is, this time of the year, isn't it fantastic to be still involved in football? But I would say there's an extra sort of spice to training given that you're going to a provincial semi-final. Yeah, that's it. I suppose it's a bit surreal. Normally this time of year, times will be the last thing you want to be doing is playing football or kicking a ball. But I have to say, I'm absolutely delighted to still be involved and still playing competitive games and still having things to play for. So I think that probably echoes with the rest of the boys as well. So no, it's been very, very good, very enjoyable. It's great to be part of something that's still going. Yeah, and obviously, you boys, we get a huge lift as well off the victory the last time out because, Darren, when you come from eight points down in a provincial game and then to snatch it then at the death and won it by one, it was a fantastic result, but it was a fantastic bounce back from halftime. Listen, it'll probably stick with me for a while. It was one of them ones and one halftime get in. I knew we weren't probably at our, we weren't near best to be quite honest, but even looking at the scoreboard as we would surprise to realize how far we were behind. And at that stage, I suppose there might be a wee bit of doubt and all the rest, but when we regrouped and we kind of set ourselves the targets of getting added early, thankfully we did. And we just gradually clawed it back, clawed it back, got an all-important goal then. And the momentum was with us, you could tell, and we had the breeze on our backs as well. So our tails were up when we drove on, but that gives us a serious lift. I'd say probably, it was very similar to the kind of nollie game in the county final because like that, we were not as fired out, but we were fived out and that and came back. So we had that self-belief in that game that we could do it and we could get back into it. So I was wondering, it was very enjoyable to be a part of. Yeah. What was it like for you guys as a group playing in an Ulster competition for the first time? I'll go back to what we experienced last Sunday with Neve Connell playing in Belfast. Ulster football is different. The referees have a tendency to let things go. It can be a lot more physical than Donegal football. So what was it like for you? Yeah, I suppose it was getting, I suppose the boss for a start was nearly you to us. We had been getting lifts all year, we got the boss up. So it was just that kind of extra special thing. Maybe that was part of maybe we were still the start or whatever. It was the two-hour journey up, you know, you're getting food and there was a lot of different things that you're not normally doing. But the occasion that as well, you know, it's very structured and when you're supposed to be here and there and photographs and as well as that's all a bit different. It takes a bit of getting used to, but that's where everybody wants to be at. They're the days that you remember and the days that you enjoy. It was just good for us that we came out the right side and we get to go out another day now. Yeah. And so it's a tough one as well, Darnstierge Town, the Terrone champions. Well, Susan Sight. They definitely are. They've had a great year from what I've seen about them so far. I think they've actually gone unbeaten. So we know we're going to have a challenge on our hands. But as I know a lot of people chat about bonus territory, but you can go in and you can give it a rattle. It might be considered bonus territory, but we're going to fully confident that, you know, we're going to give it our best. We're not going to maybe push it over or whatever. We're going to be ones that maybe hopefully, if we can, to stop their own beat and run with everything at it. But no, they will be good. Anything we've heard about them, they seem to be a fairly good team. But less than every team we're going to play at this stage of competition is obviously good. So another game, we want that we keep going and if we lose, well, well, that's that's the journey over. And these whole, yeah, and these maybe knows well, like that Donegal clubs have performed well in recent junior championship campaigns. Do you feel that this is a competition that just can go the whole way under? I suppose it's we've we've been just taking it a game at a time, to be honest, when we're doing this in the last game, it was just that was our sole focus. And then this time around, like we've just been chatting about shirts time, we haven't looked anywhere beyond that lesson. It'd be the history and all downings there have done well in recent years and Red Hughes before them and a few other teams have done well. So it does tell you that obviously coming out of junior that the junior football in Donegal is obviously pretty good because teams do tend to go well. So I suppose it does give that added bit of confidence that, you know, yeah, we come in when obviously where the junior champions is shouldn't only go maybe we have the capacity to go well as well. So not listen, we'll go at it. We'll watch shirts time and see what happens Sunday. If we get over them, then it's just the next game and the next game or whatever. So one game at a time is the way we've taken everything all year. It's been driven in this from the start. Just there's no point looking past anybody. Just take a game at a time that's your focus and see what happens. See where you're at after that. Yeah. What about the slow start this week? That can't happen. Do you feel against it? It's your own side? No, no. That's two games in a row there. So it's one of them ones I'd say if we have the same, if we're lucky, we play for 30 minutes this weekend. It could be the end of the road. So there's no average teams left. You need to be at your best and that might need to be good enough. We just don't know we'll see. So we can't afford a slow start. So if we get out of the blocks early, get at it and if we could put 60 minutes together, who knows what we could do. Yeah. And what's the feeling around the club at the moment? Obviously you guys are a group. We're working very hard and training and focusing towards this, but I would say the response of the members and the rest of those involved in the club has been fantastic and very supportive there. That's brilliant. Even the young boys there, I'd help out with the minors a bit like and they're up at all the games. They were travelling up with supporters bosses and you see some of the younger ones up with flags and you know, it's brilliant to see it. It's brilliant for the club to get that bit of recognition and get that support. Give us something to cheer about because we haven't had very much of it, to be quite honest. So now it's absolutely fantastic and you meet people around and they're wishing you well and people from other clubs as well have been fantastic. You don't want us to do well as well. So it's nice. Nice happens here. Nice, nice thing to be a part of, something that we'll remember. But no, it's very, very positive and it's good for another club members as well who have spent a lifetime in the Daldrums there with maybe nothing to cheer about. So it's good for them too because some of the work behind the scenes by, I wouldn't even start naming people, but it's incredible what people are doing there. So it's good now that you don't want to be getting somewhere and there's something to celebrate and something to cheer for. So not for them. It's just as much for them as it is for us as a group too. Yeah. Many years now have you been kicking a ball with the Gales? Because I started this one. I actually started playing Gaelic in my late dax. I think I was under 16s before I started playing Gaelic football. So probably, what's that, maybe about 15 seasons or whatever I've been at it and about probably 17 or about probably, what do I say, 15, so about 12 of them are probably at senior level. So it's been a long time, a long time, but less than I've enjoyed it and I'll continue to enjoy it hopefully for another couple of years yet. Do you still feel as young as you are when you were 16, 17 years old? No, it takes a wee bit longer now to recover after the games than that. You feel a little wee bit more, but I still love it. The appetite is there just as much as ever. That's what I will still be playing in November and you're already, you're thinking about next year, you have the intermediate championship to look forward to. You're still playing in Division 2. So you know, this year's not even over yet. You're already thinking about, I can we're going again for next year. We haven't even finished yet. So now the appetite's still there. So and hopefully stay there for another while yet. You don't mind the soreness when you're wanting to do it, aren't you? No, it's a bit easier when you're coming out at the right side of results. Could be a different story if we weren't there. Just back to the game then on Sunday, we'll have coverage here on Highland from that match. But what sort of a level of performance, Darren, then are you going to need to get over the line in this one? Because you need to be sort of very realistic about the level of football now that you're playing at in Ulster. Yeah, listen, we're going to have to be at our best and nothing short of that will be any good to us. I don't think it is a very good opposition we're coming up against. They've proven that Dave, as they say, one is a habit. They've been one in all year. We've been one quite recently. So hopefully if we're not at our best, it could be down the road for us. So it has to be just we have to go at it. And we can't afford, as you said earlier there, a slow start or only plan for a half or whatever. So if we're not at our best, I'd say we'll know about it early. But the boys are moving well, the atmosphere is good. And it's all there for us to go at it and give it a proper out. Okay, well, we look forward to darn many. Thanks for joining us and the very best to look on the semi final and also this weekend. Thanks a million. Thanks for having me.