The University of Ulster’s Jordanstown campus is getting ready for the Ulster Bank Sigerson Cup quarter-final today and joint manager Adrian McGuckin is demanding the most from his players.
McGuckin's side face NUI Maynooth in today's clash, which gets underway at 2pm at the Jordanstown campus and he is hoping his players can muster the same spirit that saw the Shore Road men secure a one-point win over rivals QUB in the second round earlier this month.
"The team are in good spirits and in good form before the game and thankfully I’m selecting from a full panel and have no real injuries to worry about," said McGuckin.
"It can be difficult because to be honest I don't know too much about Maynooth. We're venturing into the unknown against a Division Two side who have a number of under-21 county players. So it is going to be tough."
Jordanstown have lifted the Sigerson Cup five times – most recently in 2008 – and are hoping to make it through to the Sigerson finals weekend at NUI Maynooth on 26-27 February.
McGuckin said: "It will be difficult coming up against the hosts because they will be wanting to prove a point and get through to play at their own venue, so we have to put our favourites tag to the back of our minds.
"We will just have to get out there and play our own game and it doesn’t matter what the other team does."
Jordanstown will take to the field with a wealth of talent and will look to big game players like Darren Hughes, Jamie Clarke, Enda Kenny, Thomas McCann, Colm Cavanagh and Ciaran McGinley to perform well, but the manager is not resting on his laurels.
"I’m looking for every single one of my players to perform. You can’t win a game if everyone doesn’t show up so I would be looking for big performances for every man in the panel."
With throw in at the Jordanstown campus at 2pm, a big crowd is expected and the significance of the competition to the student population isn’t lost on McGuckin.
"Gaelic football and all the Gaelic sports are having a massive impact at the University of Ulster. It is a big part of the students’ life and a team winning or losing can change the mood about campus."