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Queen’s University coach Feargal Logan is wary of the threat of the University of Galway ahead of Wednesday’s tie, singling out breakthrough county star Matthew Thompson.
The 2025 Young Footballer of the Year nominee is expected to fly across the Atlantic next week, and will miss the entire league as well as early championship due to his university Erasmus in the USA.
But having been listed in the University of Galway’s Sigerson Cup panel alongside a 20-strong Tribesmen contingent, Logan is wary of what looks like a gelled outfit on paper at least, with the Salthill-Knocknacarra star likely to feature:
“They do have a majority of Galwegians. Obviously Thompson is the one who will stand out for everyone, and we’ve seen what he’s been capable of in the last 12-18 months.
“(Mark) McInerney from Clare is another very capable footballer. Canice Mulligan from Sligo another. There’s plenty of names there, and often it’s difficult to get a handle on the real threats until we see what happens in round one.
“Quality comes to the surface. I’ve been out of the game but you can see under the new rules there’s more room for these guys to shine. You’re relying on your one-on-one defending and you cannot back off star players, we saw what happened Donegal against Kerry.
“They are a thriving university, and I have bad memories myself of meeting them in the 1992 decider. We lost out to them, Seán Óg de Paor was captain. Dessie Ryan was at the helm for us, a maestro of a manager, but it just didn’t work out for us on the day.”
Ably assisted by joint-manager Dan McCartan and a host of others, Queen’s look to have a strong middle third on paper, with Anton Tohill and Dan Higgins amongst 12 Derry men in their squad.
Logan’s fellow countymen Joey Clarke and Noah Grimes will be other star names taking extra attention from opposition, while Antrim’s Ryan McQuillan is one of the more experienced intercounty campaigners up top, though this is a competition where county involvement can sometimes hinder as much as help.
Final whistle celebrations for Dan Higgins and Ronan Walls of Magherafelt after beating Glen during the Derry Senior Football Championship semi final played at Owenbeg on Saturday 11th October 2025. PICTURE: MARGARET MCLAUGHLIN (MARGARET MCLAUGHLIN COPYRIGHT / ) Read More:
That said, guidelines have been introduced to give Sigerson managers more access to players, and in the case that a Sigerson and intercounty match are fixed within 48 hours of each other, intercounty managers cannot involve players in the Dr McKenna Cup or other pre-season competitions.
So with Oak Leaf men Tohill and Higgins, does the All-Ireland winning manager feel his team can hold an advantage around the middle?
“It’s the law of the jungle as I talk about. You’re trying to gain primary possession with the likes of Dan and Anton. Cathal Hynds is another I’ve been very impressed with.
“A lot of it is the second phase ball, and it boils down to the element of desire. Though things can be put in place, good plans can go out the window very quickly.”
With Hynds one of the first perhaps lesser heralded player to get a mention, Logan puts a few others in that bracket, not least the only Armagh man in his squad, in a competition he notes is dominated by Derry and Tyrone men, in Ulster side’s squads at least:
“Michael Burnett (Armagh) has really impressed me. He’s got a rugby background, but he’s fully focussed on GAA from what I know. He’s a super lad, and he’s got great ability.
“Matthew Ennis (Monaghan), is another man who has stood out. There’s Luke Diamond (Derry), son of Karl, you have Donal Scullion (Down), his grandfather won a Sigerson in the 50’s.
“It’s bad enough knowing lads’ fathers but when you know their grandfathers that shows you the stage of life that I’m at!”
A team with a rich history, QUB last won the tournament with McCartan as captain in 2007. Outside of the usual game at a time approach, do Logan and his group have intentions of competing for the big prize?
“I think in Queen’s, the key is to have ambition. We’re expecting to be very competitive, starting against Galway and we’ll see where that takes us.”
