 So Martin looking forward to yet another Donegal senior club championship final. What's the weight been like for you guys because you've had to hang around for a long time 11 months now since you're going to get this 2020 decider played and now it's here. What's the intervening time been like since the day it was cancelled up until now just days out before you get to play the county final Martin. So this is the time when it was called off it was difficult of the first month or two like for Christmas it was difficult and not known when it might be but it was once you knew that it wasn't the middle of the summertime and it made that bit easier and the boys stepped away themselves and they got themselves in good shape over the early period of the month and it was once it moved on time moves fairly quickly at the same time once we got to the summer the league game started made things a little bit easier and we focused on the league games for the first month or two and once we got the county boys back then we started zoning on the county final so it was a time as it's 11 months is a long time waiting for a game but it has gone quick enough and we've had games in between so we're looking forward to the next week down to Pernford. Yeah, speaking of those games that you had in between you won the division one league title. Is that good enough preparation do you feel now ahead of a county final, Martin given the fact that there's been no other sort of championship games or games rather a championship level to be played. It's difficult to know it's difficult to say is was we know that answer with a good enough preparation, we know that answer Saturday night but I suppose we've, a lot of teams were weak in the league as well and a lot of the games do one fairly easy something is one fairly easy and so some not as easy but I think we do we train very well we're very good at level training wise and some more training sessions and in house games have been very competitive as well so we've got loads of uprope with some of the boys are sharp we've looked after ourselves really well and we feel we're in a good place but I suppose you won't know that until 9.30 or something even if you're having the steps and you'll hope you're in a good place with us. Yeah, your preparations I suppose from the point of view of one of your key man picking up an injury and a serious injury that too has been very very disappointing and it's been hugely disappointing for the club and for the team but for the young man himself when we're getting and picking up that serious injury and his years down which is just hugely disappointing so it is. It's very very tough and all and I said that last week he's he's obviously got it missing the final and that's what's annoying him more than Anthony and like I said that last week it's him I feel sorry for and you know he's not accepting that he's is not the finalist the finalist playing this final but it is look at he's missed a lot through injury and he wouldn't have played much football this year he was in the county and didn't get too many games we didn't get many games this year so he missed the championship and he's unbelievable the talent is just oozing out of all and and we just haven't seen it right he's the best shape he's ever been in this year and it's just as point he was ready to explode on to see that field this year and from to pick up that injury it's it's very disappointing for him more than obviously he's a huge loss to us there's no doubt about that but I really do feel so sorry for all that he's missed the guts of a year now through that injury and it's just unfortunate but look at that sport deals up these horrible blows and we're not the only club to be affected by bad injuries and he's not the only individual to be affected by bad injuries but it's how he recovers from it and gets himself back on track and he will I know he will look at it he bothered before he's out a year and a half with had trouble before and he came back from that there brilliantly but it's tough it's a hard pill to stomach for him but he will I know well he'll come out a bit again and he'll be the better player for this time next year again. Cruciate was it that he'd done last week? Cruciate yeah. Yeah which is a horrible injury I wish him all the best with his recovery but to be cheering you guys on I'm sure from the south and making himself very vocal. Oh big time look he's been down training with us even since that there he's been down training and talking to the lads and he's brilliant lad to have both the place he's full of energy and like even that he was down two days later and crutches him in a strap and seeing him by the place it was a huge lift for the boys and really encouraging to see him down there. What about the rest of the squad how you shaping up then Martin? Yeah we're happy enough with whoever we're at now at the moment with no other injuries we had a few injuries throughout the summer and then leading up to Saturday evening so hopefully we pick up no more injuries this weekend. We have a full deck to pick from. Yeah. I suppose going into this final and back to the point that you haven't played a championship game now comparatively in 11 months but given the fact that you were involved in so many finals in recent years three of which happened in the one year with this current squad that you have Martin do you feel that maybe with that experience of playing and all those games particularly in 18 and 19 that it'll stand these at the weekend? It does I think that experience does stand here when it comes down to experience and it comes down to the last 5-10 minutes and the games there to be won the last 10 minutes. It does stand here in them cases. And still look at them get over games they're brilliant and they brought the team on so much and they held us in good stead with a doster but in like nearly two years away now since them games were played so they're really in the back of our minds completely in the back of our minds like you know injury own picked up last week like two weeks is a huge amount of time and get it up in about two years. So I think you're writing that there's to learn from experiences like that they're in tight games and see our tight games and hang in games like that there so I think that will stand us but look at the car note if they've been a lot of big games during the years as well. We've played in county vinyls, county semi-vinyls and big Ulster games and games was doing all they're all county players so yes we're experienced but I think the car note are different if you look at all the big games. We've played all air in the vinyls and Ulster vinyls so they're no different to us really they're a well experienced and it's not going to count for much inside or even. Yeah and the fact that you know each other so well as Martin is there any surprises here is there any rabbits set to come out of the hotness game at the weekend or is it a case of you boys know each other that well since you have played so much in recent years? No but I suppose the personnel has changed a bit in the last couple of years as well and we've played each other a lot but like even in the past we would have played the car in the past. Their pace was frightening we could never live with their pace and I think we have kind of caught up a wee bit in that regard and that we've added the authorities and boys like that there the boys with their pace, Jack and Caleb, Ethan they've added a bit of pace to our team so we can probably match them in that regard whereas in the past then we would have felt that physically we could dominate them in the past that we were bigger than them. But then you look at Andrew McLean boys with that that have really filled out Ryan McHugh they've all filled out they're physically they're really strong as well so when we feel we have caught up with them in terms of pace they both feel the same that they've caught up with us in terms of physicality so yeah we've played each other a lot we know each other a lot but they're two different teams like even to the car team we would have played in 2016 and 2017 most teams have changed a lot even our inside players like we've gone for more physicality inside whereas we've had small players back then and the car are no different teams have changed and we know each other well but I think the styles of play will have changed a bit in that time as well. And is it the sort of game, Martin, that you can't be found chasing in the early stages of Kjavis to get a bit of an advantage on you? Yeah, I suppose going back to 2016 where you found yourselves behind the car have, we know the pace they have and when they get into the lead they're very hard to crawl back and more you push on they can really kill you on the counter they're a really good counter-packing team so it is a game you don't want to find yourself too far behind of course you don't, I guess the team made that there but I can't see it going that way I can see it being a really really tight battle, there will not be much and it will be score for score both ways both teams can score both teams can defend really well as well and it will be tight battle, I can't see it in a four or five point game either way and any team chasing it will be Kj, it will be tough and it will be tight. But we're not expecting one of these all out attacking matches then we've seen it under county level where all these Harlins scores were put up in football matches then Martin? No, I think it's kind of a sign of the respect teams have for each other as well but I know they respect our forward line as much as we respect their forward line as well and it will be a case of keeping the score down as much as it is of trying to score to kind of the other end Like even in county level games are ten minutes longer as well you know them ten minutes you do add on more scores as well it's not, it is a different game the county game and the club game but look at it I don't know it's not all about scores either it's you can get a great low scoring game as well where you're physicality and tackle and defend it's an art in itself so I've no doubt it will be a close game whether it's high score or low score I don't know but I've no doubt it will be close anyway regardless. Can you see that the hunger still in the group from which was there a couple of years ago? Oh big time, yeah big time, and it's a different group but a lot of the individuals are still there and some of them are even there from 05 but when you're bringing in new players all the time you see a lot of new players there introduced into the squad this year they may not even see game time at the weekend but they have added a hunger as well to the whole thing. Yeah and I suppose as well and I spoke to you earlier about this, about keeping the young players involved and you've got a squad now that has got a tremendous mix of youth plus experienced players and you've got a good spread of county players there as well Martin. What is it that makes the Connell special around the Paris that you're able to keep these young players there? Obviously you've got the likes of Nathan Burns one of them, Karen Gallagher's back with you as well. What is it because other clubs struggle to keep players but what is it about me Connell that you're able to keep this very talented group together, Martin? I suppose it makes a difference they're coming through and they see a bit of success at the end but for them and they're coming in, it's very competitive, they're coming in trying to nail a place and a lot of the young lads that would have brought in this year, like there's seven right of them would have joined the training panel like Zabor Michalniak, Neil Francis Boyle, Daniel Gallair, Robbie McDonald, Joel Shanky, there's lots of them would have joined the panel and then boys would have been on the terraces in 2019 when they won the championship and I suppose that added a bit of hunger, some of them would have been playing a lot of soccer then and we've managed to get them over to the Gaelic side of things but their friends are playing too as well and they want to be part of it They're coming down and I've said it in the past and I always say it about some of our older players and our more experienced players, they're great individuals and great men as well as being great footballers, they're really good lads, really good role models and they take a lot of them players under their wings as well and encourage them and they're delighted to see, yes they're looking to get their places but they're delighted to follow that competition and encourage them and coach them along a lot as well so I think there is a good camaraderie there between young and older than the club. Would you agree that you've boys are seen as favourites? Not if you look at the betting on Paddy Power or not, I think Calcaro, the favourites are going to be that there but I look at it on the date, it means nothing favourites, the tag means nothing really. You know get over rage and hot favourites against us in 2019 and we felt within our camp, we had every chance of turning them over and whoever would be favourites I don't think it'll matter, Calcaro going to the scheme conference, we're going into the scheme conference, we'll not be paying too much heed now to who's favourites and who's not. Only 500's allowed in, the crowd's going to be split between Calcaro and Nick Connell between the two parishes, it's going to be a different sort of final, what's the build up like now, what's the buzz around Glenty's like Martin? Yeah it's strange, you know there's going to be a final round the corner now definitely, there's a lot of talk about it and a lot of colour going up, I suppose the demand for tickets is huge which is incredible come up to a club game, obviously the circumstances too with only 500 being allowed in, it's difficult, a lot of people are wondering about tickets, will they get a ticket, won't they get a ticket or they don't, where will they watch it, that's a lot of the talk, so you know there's a big game coming up now, there's a huge buzz about it so there is and obviously within the two clubs are within Nick Connell and Nick Connell, they were both football mad, communities really it's all Gaelic in both clubs as well, so there's nobody within Glenty's and Fenton and Nick Connell that doesn't know the final's coming up and everyone's tuned in and they've been talking about it the last couple of weeks. Yeah, this is a very exciting time once again for Nick Connell, listen Martin thanks for talking to us and all we can do is wish you the very best of luck this weekend and then I'll come to you final. Thanks very much.