Glendermott captain Trevor Britton admits winning the Irish National Cup would be the perfect way to crown what has already been a memorable centenary season for the famous Waterside club.

The North West Championship leaders travel to Clontarf on Saturday to face Ballyspallen in an historic all-North West final, with Britton’s side still firmly in contention for a league and cup double.

For a club celebrating its 100th year, the timing could scarcely have been better.

“It’s been a good season so far,” said Britton. “It would be nice now to finish it off well.

“We started back in February, so a lot of hard work was put in during pre-season. We spoke at the start of the year about what we wanted to achieve and I think that work has carried through into the rest of the season.

“It has put us in a good position.”

Promotion and the Championship title remain very much within Glendermott’s grasp, but if Britton was forced to choose between domestic success and lifting the National Cup, there is one prize which carries that little bit of extra significance.

“That’s a really hard question, but I think if you had asked me at the start of the year I would probably have said the National Cup,” he admitted.
“The Irish Cup was always the one growing up. That’s the cup you want to play for.

“You always want to do your best in the league, of course, but if you win the National Cup it means you have come out on top against the best teams at that level from around the country.

“For me it would probably be the National Cup — although I’d happily take the two if that was possible!”

The fact that Glendermott’s opponents will be Ballyspallen adds another layer of intrigue to Saturday’s decider.

There will be no mystery surrounding either team, with the two clubs having already met in Championship action this season and sharing the honours.

Ballyspallen won their first meeting before Glendermott gained revenge when the teams met again recently.

Britton, however, insists previous results will count for very little once the final begins.

“I would say the two teams deserve to be there,” he said.

“We played them earlier in the season and they beat us, then we beat them at home more recently.

“But it doesn’t really matter who we play. Our focus is on ourselves.

“If we turn up and play our game, that’s the main thing. We have to concentrate on what we can control rather than worrying too much about the opposition.”

There was also positive news concerning the skipper himself.

Britton has missed around a month through injury but is hoping to return for the biggest game of Glendermott’s season.

“Hopefully everything goes well and I’ll be there,” he said.

“We’re missing JJ O'Brien, sadly, because he’s away on holiday, but apart from that we should have pretty much a full squad to choose from.

“It’s an exciting occasion for everybody.”

Glendermott were backed by a sizeable and vocal travelling contingent during their semi-final victory at Ardmore, and Britton expects the club’s supporters to make the longer journey to Dublin in numbers.

“I don’t think it matters where we’re going — our fans will travel,” he smiled.

“There are plenty coming down and they’ll make plenty of noise.

“It’s important for us to have them there. They really are like a 12th man in those situations.

“You hear them when you’re out there and it does make a difference.”

Clontarf will represent unfamiliar surroundings for many of the Glendermott players, with Britton unable to recall the club playing at the Castle Avenue venue in recent years.

That, though, only adds to the sense of occasion.

“It’ll probably be new for everybody,” he said.

“It’s great to have two North West teams there representing the region in Dublin. Obviously both of us want to win it, but it reflects well on North West cricket to have two clubs in the final.”

Glendermott have received major contributions from their leading batsmen throughout the campaign, but Britton is reluctant to place the responsibility for Saturday on any particular individuals.

For him, their success has been built around the collective.

“The thing about our team is that it is a team,” he stressed.

“I try never to pick out just one or two boys because there have been days when everybody has chipped in — whether that has been with the bat, the ball or taking an important catch.

“That’s been one of the big things for us this season. Every player has contributed at different stages and hopefully we’ll see that again on Saturday.”

For Britton personally, captaining Glendermott in a national final during the club’s centenary year carries enormous significance.

But he is equally conscious that Saturday is about far more than the 11 players who walk onto the field at Clontarf.

“It’s a huge honour for me to captain the club on a day like this,” he said.

“To win it would be massive for Glendermott and massive for the North West.

“But it’s not just about the players.

“It’s about the supporters, the families, the wives and partners, the volunteers around the club, the committee and the former players.

“There are so many people who put so much into Glendermott and it would mean an awful lot to all of them.”
One hundred years after the Waterside club was formed, Glendermott now stand just one victory away from adding one of the most significant chapters yet to their history.

And for Britton and his players, there could hardly be a more fitting way to celebrate a centenary.