Erne County striving for promotion push

Niall Gartland assesses Fermanagh’s ambitions under their new manager Declan Bonner

THERE’S no point beating around the bush – promotion is the name of the game for Fermanagh.

That was acknowledged as such in a recent post-match interview from new manager Declan Bonner, who stated that their aim for the coming weeks and months is promotion, though at the same time he recognised that it won’t necessarily be straightforward.

They get their campaign underway against Wexford, who have come up from Division Four, before subsequent clashes against Sligo (away) and Clare (home).

Then a six-day period that could come to define their league campaign. In the space of less than a week, they will front up to the two teams that were relegated out of Division Two last year – Westmeath and Down.

If they don’t get off on the right foot, however, their chances of promotion may already be slim at that stage though.

They head into the league in confident enough form after a really productive showing in the McKenna Cup. In the first official game of Bonner’s tenure (they played a few challenge matches before Christmas), they overcame Cavan though that game was later declared null and void on a dramatic afternoon on the administration front. In their second outing they were caught by a late Monaghan surge but it was still a productive evening’s work as focus now turns to Sunday’s opening round league encounter at home to Westmeath.

Last year they could have no real complaints with a fourth-placed finish and their championship dreams were killed off by Kildare in a Tailteann Cup semi-final on a scoreline of 1-13 to 0-9, marking Kieran Donnelly’s final game in charge.

Into the breach stepped former Donegal star Bonner, a vastly experienced manager who steered Erne Gaels to the last two senior championship titles in Fermanagh.

While it usually takes time for a new management team to really leave their imprint on a side, there was still plenty to be gleaned from their recent outings, both in the McKenna Cup and in friendlies.

Devenish lad Cian O’Brien is unerringly accurate in front of the posts and it would be more surprising than not if he doesn’t manage to nail down a starting berth. Irvinestown’s Mattie McDermott, son of renowned former Fermanagh defender Shane, is another potential star in the making.

Josh Largo-Ellis has been in really impressive form in the half-back line and plundered a goal against Monaghan, while Stephen McGullion, who has made a promising return to the intercounty scene, has combined well with Joe McDade in the middle of the park. Further back, Seán McNally has developed into a really fine goalkeeper and won the official player of the match award for his performance against Cavan in their first competitive outing of the year.

Che and Lee Cullen have moved on and it’ll be interesting to see who nails down the full-back role. Last year’s Fermanagh u-20 captain Shaun McCarron seems to be first in line having started both McKenna Cup matches.

Stalwart Declan McCusker has given incredible commitment to the county cause down the years and is back for another year. Then there’s the Kelm brothers – unfortunately it looks like Ultan Kelm is sidelined having underwent surgery for a really troublesome hip injury. Aogan and Ultan are fit to play their part though, two players who played a leading role in Erne Gaels’ rise to the top of the ranks in Fermanagh over the last couple of seasons.

Elsewhere on the personnel front, Oisin Smyth is set to miss the opening rounds of the league with injury, while Paul Breen pulled up in the warm-up before last Wednesday night’s McKenna Cup clash against Monaghan.

Johnny Cassidy, a well-established county footballer, is back from his travels in a considerable boost ahead of the league.

On the whole, the panel is in good health. A batch of experienced Fermanagh players have retired in recent years (the Eoin Donnelly, Ryan Jones and Aidan Breens of this world) but the important thing is that there is a willing batch of young recruits coming through the ranks.

That does seem to be the case, though time will tell whether they can hit the heights of the previous decade, where they took on the Dubs in the 2015 All-Ireland quarter-final before an Ulster final appearance three years later.

Expectations are undoubtedly fairly measured for the road ahead, though they’ll quietly fancy their chances of a top-two finish in Division Three. Beyond that, they face a really tough Ulster Championship opener against the winners of the preliminary round clash against Tyrone or Armagh, and it looks like they’ll be pitted in the Tailteann Cup, the trophy they have sought for the last number of years. The dream season would climax on the steps of the Hogan Stand, but for now all their energies will be poured into their looming Division Three campaign.

NFL TARGET

AT the very least, Fermanagh will wish to maintain their Division Three status, but beyond that they’ll see promotion as an eminently reachable target. It won’t be easy – they’ll need to win most, if not all, of the matches they’re expected to win, and then it could all come down to massive matches against Westmeath and Down.

SFC TARGET

FIRST, Fermanagh will hope to give a strong account of themselves when they take on either Armagh or Tyrone in the Ulster Championship. In all likelihood they’ll field in the Tailteann Cup, and the team will feel they have a point to prove in the competition after a fairly meek semi-final defeat to Kildare last year.