Family bragging rights are at stake this weekend when Michael Hawkins’ Crumlin Star II host younger cousin Connor Kelly’s Ballycastle United in the Junior Shield quarters.
Hawkins is steeped in the Star, with his father Eamonn, a former Distillery midfielder, seeing out his playing days at his local club before taking over as manager, while his younger brother Niall is a mainstay of the current all-conquering first team.
Hawkins took over somewhat reluctantly as player-manager of the second string in pre-season, but admits he’s been buoyed by the sense of togetherness the lads have shown so far this season, with his team in the hunt for the 3A title, just a point off leaders Rosario, and still in the mix for the Junior Cup as well as the Shield, with a short trip to St Mary’s to come a week after the Ballycastle clash.
“I didn’t really have any other choice, I wanted to keep playing but I didn’t want someone else coming in either who the lads didn’t know and dismantling what we have built over the years,” explained Hawkins.
“Everyone is pitching in this season, everyone is putting a shift in every week and we’re not really getting anyone down from the first team.
“So we’re doing rightly, there’s plenty of competition for places, it’s just trying to keep everyone happy.
“And Gerry Goodall has come in to give me a hand too and he’s been an absolute breath of fresh air, the lads have responded really well to him.”
Ballycastle United will undoubtedly pose his in-form Star one of their toughest challenges yet.
The north coast side made the final three years ago, eventually losing out 3-1 to the highly-rated Willowbank, while they have already accounted for some decent Amateur League sides en route to the quarters, 2C title contenders Newhill and unpredictable 2A outfit Queen’s Grads among them.
So Hawkins knows his team have their work cut out if he is to emulate his aul lad who led the firsts to their last Shield success before they stepped up into Intermediate football more than a decade ago.
“It’s going to be a tough game for us, we’re only a second team,” added the Star chief.
“The core of our team have all grown up together, and then you have the likes of myself and Cormac Mullan who are the more senior statesmen if you like.
“Whenever the Star last won the Shield in 2010 and then moved up into Intermediate, I always thought our wee second team could so something like that but it’s actually taken us from then to get a good run in it.”
After an injury and GAA-hit start to the season, Ballycastle have found their own groove lately and head into this weekend’s clash on a long winning streak, picking up victories in every game they’ve played since December, including a 4-1 drubbing of Cookstown RBL on Saturday courtesy of goals from Saul McCaughan, Oran Kearney, Conleth McCaughan and Conor McBride.
“We’re going ok and starting to get a more settled team,” explained Hawkins’ younger cousin Kelly, 29, head coach at United under manager Shane O’Connell.
“Funny I watched the Star when they played Kilrea in the Shield, they play in the same league as us and it was just the week after that that we were drawn against them.
“And Shane went and watched the Star last weekend when they played Portstewart Town in the Junior Cup so we’ve a decent enough idea about how they play.”
And lobbing a grenade into his good-natured rivalry with Hawkins, he said the gameplan was to exploit his cousin’s ageing 35-year-old legs.
“I think we’ll target Michael at the back with the pace that we have,” Kelly added, before breaking into a laugh.
“No, you go into these games in the dark, you just try and make sure the attitude is right, to focus on your own game and to be solid.”
