By Cian O’Connell

The cast list has changed somewhat, but Enda Tierney remains hopeful that Maurice Sheridan’s NUIG outfit can still make an impact in the Electric Ireland Sigerson Cup.

NUIG, beaten finalists in 2018, face the 2017 winners St Mary’s, Belfast in an attractive first round encounter at Dangan on the banks of the Corrib.

Tierney, who has senior inter-county experience with Galway, acknowledges that NUIG’s resurgence in recent years owes much to their work at Freshers level in the Higher Education arena.

“It seems to be coming back into NUIG that a real emphasis is being placed on football,” Oughterard clubman Tierney admits.

“We've had good Fresher teams and it has progressed along up through the club, that conveyor belt into the Sigerson. Hopefully it will be the same again this year because we have a good Fresher team that got to a League final, and it would be good to see them push on to produce a few players for the Sigerson.

“This year we have maybe six or seven involved in the Galway panel, it is good to see that the footballers in Galway are staying in Galway, not going to Dublin or Cork for college which did do that. It is good that they are staying around to show their worth with NUIG.”

There is a significant bond in the current NUIG set-up which has been cultivated by Sheridan, who enjoyed some excellent moments as a player in the competition. “We've Antrim lads, Wexford lads, you become really good friends,” Tierney says. “Maurice and the lads have really instilled a thing about getting friendly with the lads, getting to know them, you build relationships and it is really enjoyable.

“A spirit is what you want to build especially when the Sigerson is a short term competition. If you are looking from the outside you want to instil a family relationship among players, that is what we tried to do.

“Hopefully this year we can have a good crack at it, but we have lost a lot of key and high profile players. We've lost a few like Damien Comer, Adam Gallagher, and Gerard O'Kelly-Lynch, high profile players, but hopefully with a few good young lads coming in we can do well.”

Tierney enjoyed a stint in Chicago last summer, but would relish a return to the Galway panel at some stage in the future. “If I get given the opportunity it is something I would love to have a crack at again,” Tierney remarks.

“I played a few Championship games for Galway, but never got the Championship start which is the one I wanted. Hopefully I will get another crack at it to show my worth.”

On the eve of the Allianz Football League the Sigerson Cup offers an ideal environment for emerging talent.

Electric Ireland Sigerson Cup First Round

Wednesday January 16

NUIG v St Mary's, Dangan, 2pm

UCC v Athlone IT, Mardyke, 7pm

DIT v UL, Grangegorman, 7.30pm

Thursday January 17

UCD v CIT, Belfield, 2pm

Garda v IT Sligo, Templemore, 2.15pm

Friday January 18

DCU v IT Carlow, DCU, 7.30PM

Sunday January 20

Queens University v Maynooth University, The Dub, 2pm

IT Tralee v Ulster University, John Mitchels, 1pm