Split, rebirth and success - Errigal Ciaran's history

As Errigal Ciaran's present, past and future celebrated on the St Conleth's Park pitch after last Saturday's dramatic extra-time victory over Dr Crokes, the club couldn't have exhibited unity in a more tangible fashion.

While the post-match interviews were taking place, other players somehow summoned up the energy for the autographs and the mobile phone snaps with young, middle aged and the more senior as proud parents such as Peter Canavan himself had their hands almost shaken off.

In those particular moments, one could have been forgiven for thinking that it was always thus among the Errigal Ciaran faithful. Except that it wasn't.

The story has been well documented but as the club prepares to de-camp to Croke Park this weekend, it's probably worth recalling the bitter 1980s split in Ballygawley GAA whose victims at one stage included the burgeoning career of the young Canavan and whose initial two protagonists included none other than Mickey Harte.

The dispute had escalated from the most parish pump of beginnings.

This followed a decision by the then St Ciaran's Ballygawley club to keep football going in the parish in the winter of 1982 by staging an internal competition featuring the four townlands of Ballygawley, Glencull, Garvaghy and Altamuskin.

During one of the new competition's games, a row broke out between Glencull's Harte, then a Tyrone county player, and a Ballygawley opponent.

The decision to hand Harte a suspension and exonerate the Ballygawley player caused an almighty row as Glencull pulled out of the competition, then withdrew their personnel withdrew from St Ciaran's before taking the nuclear option of setting up their own new club.

"We felt we were a bit victimised so a group of us decided that unless this was sorted out in a fair manner to our liking then we would withdraw our services," Harte told the GAA's Oral History Project in 2010., external

However, the Tyrone county board refused to sanction the new club and for the next eight years, St Malachy's Glencull found themselves in effectively a GAA limbo with their games confined to challenge matches and unofficial tournaments.

Glencull men such as the older Canavan brothers Stevie and Barry conceivably could have been part of the Tyrone team that faced off against Kerry in the 1986 All-Ireland Final - where the Red Hands' goalscorer was St Ciaran's Ballygawley and later Errigal Ciaran man Paudge Quinn - but for the stand-off while the third Canavan sibling Pascal had been among those to miss out entirely on underage and minor football.

But it was the emergence of the precocious talents of their younger sibling Peter that finally forced sense to prevail in the Ballygawley parish.

Tyrone GAA's refusal to affiliate the St Malachy's outfit had led the young Canavan to register with Killyclogher Hurling Club which enabled him to line out for Francie Martin's county minor football team in 1988.

But this slight of hand couldn't work for everyone and after a Glencull-less St Ciaran's were beaten by Coalisland in the 1989 Tyrone Football Final, parish priest, and former Armagh manager Father Sean Hegarty brokered a solution to the dispute which resulted in the formation of the new Errigal Ciaran club in 1990.

Within three years, Errigal Ciaran had landed the first Tyrone senior title to arrive in Ballygawley since 1931 and for good measure went to clinch provincial honours as the four Canavan brothers played in the 3-7 to 1-8 Ulster Final win over Downpatrick.

Despite all his subsequent successes in the Tyrone jersey, Peter Canavan plumped for the '93 provincial club final triumph when he contributed to the My Greatest Game series on the BBC Sport NI website in 2020.

"County football wasn't bringing good memories or good experiences. I had been playing for four years and hadn't won a championship game," said a player whose performances for club, county and country were to lead to him being dubbed 'Peter the Great'.

"In some quarters and in some media articles it was said that I wasn't able to do it at senior level."

Therefore, winning the Ulster title for a club that hadn't even existed four years earlier brought a redemption of sorts as they also became the first Tyrone outfit to lift the Seamus McFerran Cup.

"I felt I had a point to prove at senior level so it was good to answer the critics winning that Ulster club title," continued Canavan.

"I wouldn't say it was a dream performance. I made mistakes but scored a goal, set up a goal, kicked a few points and made a good contribution.

"Errigal invaded the pitch. People were drunk on emotion because it had never been done by our club or any Tyrone club.

[And] To play alongside three of my brothers made it very special."

Nemo Rangers proved a bridge too far in the subsequent All-Ireland semi-final as they earned a 1-13 to 0-11 extra-time victory and the Cork men proved Errigal Ciaran's nemesis again nine years later at the same stage on an uncannily similar 1-12 to 0-11 scoreline after the Ballygawley club had clinched their second provincial title with Mickey Harte at the managerial helm.

That Errigal side included Peter and Pascal Canavan plus several players who went on to win All-Ireland medals with Tyrone including John Devine, Davy Harte, Mark Harte and Enda McGinley, with the latter describing the 2002 semi-final loss against Nemo Rangers as the worst defeat of his career.

A few months later, McGinley, Devine and Peter Canavan were Tyrone starters as Harte led the Red Hands to a cherished first All-Ireland title in his first season in charge after taking over from Art McRory and Eugene McKenna.

But while the county went on to accumulate further Sam Maguire Cup triumphs in 2005, 2008 and 2021 and Errigal Ciaran racked up a remarkable eighth Tyrone title by 2022, Ulster, let alone All-Ireland Club success, remained frustratingly beyond them until the current campaign.

Speaking during his 'My Greatest Game' interview in 2020, Canavan ventured that "it's as hard to win Tyrone as it is to win Ulster".

"Some people throw up the excuse that players put so much effort in with the county that there's not a lot left but Tyrone teams do prepare well," he added

"There are around eight clubs in Tyrone who expect to win the county title every year - not expect to do well, expect to win it.

"That has been borne out by no team being able to win back-to-back titles since Carrickmore in 2005.

"Tyrone teams have got close to winning Ulster. I expect it to happen at some stage, hopefully sooner rather than later."

It was another four years before Canavan was to be proved right by his own beloved club and after their stirring extra-time victory over Dr Crokes last weekend, Errigal Ciaran have already created history by becoming the first Tyrone team to reach an All-Ireland Senior Club Football Final.

Con O'Callaghan and Cuala stand in their way but Errigal Ciaran's present, past and future players will head to Croke Park on Sunday along with their families and friends as a totally unified entry with the squabbles of the 1980s a distant and head-scratching memory.