JARLATH BELL revealed that being written off gave Ballinderry all the motivation they needed.
The 2002 All-Ireland senior champions produced a powerful second-half display to secure their intermediate final place.
2
Ballinderry players Daniel McKinless and Matt Quinn celebrate after their side’s victory in the All-Ireland Intermediate Club Championship semi-final match against Austin Stacks
2
Ballinderry manager Jarlath Bell hailed his troops after the win in tough conditions
They trailed by two points at the interval in freezing conditions at Parnell Park before turning up the heat.
Derry star Gareth McKinless was one of those who hit the afterburners, scoring a point and making another.
Five points in a row in the third quarter put Ballinderry in pole position and they never looked back.
Their reward is an All-Ireland final with Crossmolina at Croke Park next Sunday.
But Ballinderry boss Bell says it was nice to be written off before their trip to the capital.
Bell said: “We heard about odds of 4-1 on us and one thing or another.
“It was a motivating factor. We’re a club with a proud history and a proud tradition.”
Ballinderry were Ulster senior champions as recently as 2013, though Bell says it is not about comparing teams and generations.
He said: “You just can’t compare the two, this and anything we did as seniors. We were in a different situation then.
“We were coming off ten or 15 years of underage teams dominating in Derry.”
With Kerry teams dominating this competition over the years and Stacks hitting seven goals in the Munster final, it was no surprise they were favourites.
And even without in-form Kerry ace Joe O’Connor in midfield, they hit the interval with a 0-4 to 0-2 lead.
It was not a classic with both sides pulling 14 and 15 behind the ball when needed.
But Stacks were doing just enough with rising Kingdom star Paddy Lane scoring two of their first-half points.
The scores dried up after that before Ballinderry kicked on after the break.
Darren Lawn, Conor O’Neill and Ryan Bell picked off important points while McKinless drew on his experience at centre-back.
He slotted a point and created another as Ballinderry pointed their way to the final.
Ballinderry (Derry) 0-11Austin Stacks (Kerry) 0-7
BALLINDERRY: B McKinless; R O’Neill, O Duffin, A Mullan; R Forbes, G McKinless 0-1, E Devlin; N O’Donnell, S Coleman; T Rocks, C O’Neill 0-3, 1f, S McCann; C Crozier 0-2f, R Bell 0-2, D Lawn 0-1. Subs: D McKinless 0-2, 1m for Coleman 34 mins; J Bell for O’Donnell 41; E McCracken for Mullan 60; M Quinn for Lawn 60.
AUSTIN STACKS: M Tansley; C Griffin, D Casey 0-2, J Nagle 0-1; R Shanahan, J O’Shea, P O’Sullivan; M O’Donnell, G Horan; F Mangan, A Heinrich, D Kirby 0-2; C Purcell, S O’Callaghan, P Lane 0-2, 1f. Subs: E Carroll for O’Callaghan 39 mins; L Casey for O’Donnell 48; D O’Brien for Mangan 48; C Browne for O’Sullivan 52; J Kissane for Lane 55.
REFEREE: J Henry (Mayo).