Just over twenty years ago, Armagh All-Ireland winner Aidan O’Rourke guided the Dromintee u21 team to championship success and all this time later, he’s still guiding the next generation of footballers coming through the ranks.
On Sunday, O’Rourke will lead his Armagh minor team into the county's first Electric Ireland Minor All-Ireland final grade since 2009, and no matter what the result against Derry, it’ll be a proud day for not only the O’Rourke household, but for the Dromintee club.
Aidan’s son Diarmuid is a chip off the old block, and he is one of the first names on the Armagh team sheet given his terrific performances in helping the Orchard County go all the way to the decider.
Not only that, but there are nine Dromintee players in total involved with the squad, while James Daly and Davy O’Hare are part of the management. The St Patrick’s club contingent have played a major role with Armagh this year.
“He’s been putting the hard work in at club level from over two decades ago,” recalled former Armagh and Dromintee goalkeeper Philly McEvoy, who was a member of that u21 championship winning team in 2003.
“Whilst people think this crop of minor players coming through is great, there has been a lot of work behind the scenes over the last two decades really from Aidan and a lot of other people in Dromintee to develop football as best they can within the area.
23 June 2024; Armagh manager Aidan O'Rourke during the Electric Ireland GAA Football All-Ireland Minor Championship semi-final match between Armagh and Mayo at Glennon Brothers Pearse Park in Longford. Photo by Sam Barnes/Sportsfile
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“I've had the pleasure over the years to not only play with Aidan but be under his tutelage as a player and then also work alongside him as a goalkeeper coach whenever he was with the Down seniors a few years ago.
“You can learn so much off Aidan, I've learned so much from playing with him, under him and obviously coaching alongside him as well. He knows everything there is to know about football, all the ins and outs.
“Even the RTE articles that Aidan would have written for a couple of years where he gave real insightful analysis, and he provides that across all age levels really and the Armagh minors are benefiting from that now.”
Success breeds success
It’s been a collective effort in the south Armagh club to develop the rising stars and that has brought a lot of success. Dromintee won the All-Ireland u15 Feile title in 2022, before collecting the Paul McGirr u16 Ulster Club Championship crown last year.
League and championship success has been the norm for Dromintee underage footballers in recent times, and that’s due to the hard work and dedication going on behind the scenes.
“There's a coaching committee here in Dromintee and it’s really been a collective effort with the parents too,” added McEvoy, who takes the clubs u10 team. “I suppose Aidan would be the focal point there but there’s different responsibilities on different people within the club.
“There’s great development happening across all ages and it’s not just about the brilliant teams, it’s getting participation numbers up as high as possible and getting enjoyment levels and engagement levels from both the schools in Jonesborough and Dromintee.
“That’s the main emphasis behind the coaching committee, is to get kids involved in the club and to get them enjoying their football.”
McEvoy has worked closely with Dromintee goalkeeper James McBennett, who is the Armagh substitute shot stopper, and a number of the players coming through the ranks have caught the eye.
7 April 2013; Philip McEvoy, Armagh. Allianz Football League, Division 2, Armagh v Galway, Athletic Grounds, Armagh. Photo by Sportsfile
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“I would have worked closely with James McBennett, who's the sub keeper to Michael Finnegan at the minute, from an early age of nine or ten,” he continued. “We would have worked together on goalkeeping stuff the whole way up.
“He has undoubted quality and Finnegan, who is in nets at the minute, has had a storming season as well so there's quality throughout. There are other players there like Conor Laverty who's really developed over the years.
“It's testament to the late bloomers and you see some people trying to make decisions on players at nine or ten years of age, but this is a guy who has constantly developed over his years with Dromintee to the point where he’s on an All-Ireland minor panel.
Like father like son
“Then there’s the likes of Diarmaid (O’Rourke), and not just because he's Aidan’s son, but Diarmaid was always the standout player when he was growing up. He was kicking with his right and left foot at ten or 11 years of age, and he really was the standout player.
“The whole nine of them really have progressed so much that the team itself, that Dromintee minor team, have been coming up through the ranks and Aidan has been with them the whole way up from u6 pretty much.
“There's been a lot of emphasis on the youth development in Dromintee over that time and Aidan has been the leading man. There's a nice spread there but Aidan would be the first to say this isn't a Dromintee team, this is the Armagh minors.
“While it’s a proud day for the club to have so many representatives, be it on the pitch or on the sideline, it's very much the whole club getting behind the Armagh minors.
“The whole club is buzzing with so many Dromintee representatives, but mainly buzzing because the county's competing in an All-Ireland final to go alongside how well the senior men are doing in the semi-final and the senior ladies in the quarter-final as well.”
23 June 2024; Oisin Deane of Mayo in action against Diarmaid O'Rourke of Armagh during the Electric Ireland GAA Football All-Ireland Minor Championship semi-final match between Armagh and Mayo at Glennon Brothers Pearse Park in Longford. Photo by Sam Barnes/Sportsfile
