At 22, Jay Dee Alawiye is the experienced man in the Finn Harps Reserves dressing room – and he wants to make it count as Joe Boyle’s team look to make useful their Four Lanterns Ulster Senior League season.
Harps have two wins to their name so far this season and, ahead of the resumption of Four Lanterns USL action on Sunday, when Harps take on Fanad United, Alawiye says game time is key to their development.
The well-traveled Alawiye spent time in the Donegal League at Lagan Harps, Gweedore Celtic and Drumoghill FC. Alawiye is also a former Fanad player himself, having lined out for them in the Donegal Youth League.
Now, though, the popular Alawiye has pitched up at Harps with a plan.
“It’s been a good season so far, although I’d like us to have had more game time,” he says.
“I enjoy it. We’ve had a lot of breaks this season so hopefully now we can get more football. It’s all good here, the coaching is excellent with the likes of Joe, Declan (Boyle) and Shane Barr.
“It gets a bit stop-start and it’s hard to get into it. Game time is the most important thing. Especially my age, it’s important to play regularly.
“I would love to one day play for Finn Harps.
“Ever since I was maybe 16, I always said that one day I want to look back and say I played at senior level in football. I always look to score more goals, to get more assists and to be fitter. You never know what could happen.
“I’m a competitive person – I have that mentality – and, of course, I would love to progress into the Division 1 team. That is my personal goal.
Another plan for Alawiye was going down the American route, but the Letterkenny resident has a baby on the way, which means staying local is likely to be the option for now.
Being the old head at 22 isn’t something he thinks about too much.
Given his background in coaching, Alawiye is quite content to don that mantle.
“I have coached in Youth League and in Schoolboys,” he says.
“I love coaching. I haven’t done anything since I was at Drumkeen. We got to two finals and didn’t win any of them! We got to the final in the Galway Cup with Finn Harps Under-14 Academy, but we didn’t win either. I’ve had an unlucky year in coaching! But I love it and it’s definitely something that I’d like to do in the future.
“I’m always learning here at Finn Harps from great, qualified coaches. Training is unbelievable at Finn Harps now and they’re always advising you what you could do better.”
Alawiye spent last season at Drumoghill who, at the time, were the defending Donegal League champions, but he sees a big step up to the intermediate grade.
He said: “It’s not that the standard is bad in the Donegal League, because there are some really, really top players and teams, but the USL is just a bit more advanced. Everyone, technically, is better and fitter. The standard of opposition is unreal. Derry City played us off the park a few weeks ago and you know you just have to get up to a certain level.
“Our team changes a lot, but we’re a development squad at the end of the day. We have some top quality in it, though: Conor O’Reilly, Brendan Barr, Shane Blaney, Ryan Finn…I could keep going. We know we have quality and we know we have great competition there.
“Everyone wants to play every Sunday too, which is good.”
Although their ultimate aim is to advance into the Harps first team by development, Alawiye insists that Harps aren’t in the USL simply to make up the numbers.
He said: “We’re obviously looking to improve players who come in from the under-17s and under-19s. But we always want to get winning into our game and get medals.
“The kind of coaches we have are about winning, about playing for the team and wanting to win. I love that about the coaches. There’s no point going out week-in, week-out just settling for something else.”
RESULTS
FAI Intermediate Cup, Third Round
Sunday
Letterkenny Rovers 3 Midleton 2
Cockhill Celtic 3 Swords Celtic 1
FIXTURES
Four Lanterns Ulster Senior League
Sunday, December 3, 2pm
Bonagee United v Letterkenny Rovers
Cockhill Celtic v Derry City Reserves
Finn Harps Reserves v Fanad United
TOP GOALSCORERS (League goals only)
Garbhan Friel (Cockhill Celtic) 5
Sean McBride (Derry City Reserves) 5
Oisin McMenamin (Fanad United) 5
Tony McNamee (Fanad United) 5
Laurence Toland (Cockhill Celtic) 4
Mark Moran (Cockhill Celtic) 4
Jimmy Bradley (Cockhill Celtic) 3
Matty Doherty (Derry City Reserves) 3
Connor O’Reilly (Finn Harps Reserves) 3
| Table | P | W | D | L | F | A | GD | Pts | |
| Cockhill Celtic | 4 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 25 | 4 | 21 | 12 | |
| Derry City Reserves | 4 | 3 | 0 | 1 | 14 | 4 | 10 | 9 | |
| Letterkenny Rovers | 4 | 3 | 0 | 1 | 9 | 8 | 1 | 9 | * |
| Fanad United | 4 | 2 | 0 | 2 | 16 | 9 | 7 | 6 | * |
| Finn Harps Reserves | 5 | 2 | 0 | 3 | 12 | 19 | -7 | 6 | |
| Bonagee United | 4 | 0 | 1 | 3 | 4 | 17 | -13 | 1 | |
| Swilly Rovers | 4 | 0 | 1 | 4 | 5 | 24 | -19 | 1 |
