Age: 44
Club: Enniskillen Gaels
When did you play for Fermanagh?
1990-2003
What do you do nowadays?
I run a marine energy business. I’ve been involved in maritime stuff, wave energy, my whole career, since I left Queen’s. We have an office over in the States too, we’re doing a big project over there at the minute.
Are you still involved in Gaelic football?
I’m not, I knew there would be a lot of travelling this year, with this US thing coming up. Last year, I had a bit of spare time and I was involved with Bellaghy, helping out behind the scenes.
What do you remember about your first game for Fermanagh?
It was against Sligo in Irvinestown, I was 19, just a slip of a lad - I was built very differently from what I ended up! I came on at corner-forward and scored a goal on my debut. I could barely kick the ball the length of myself, but it came across, I was at the back post, no yards out - the ‘keeper saved it, it trickled along the line and I buried it to the net... I still boast about it to this day.
What’s your best memory?
The night we won the All-Ireland B Championship in Carrick-on-Shannon [in 1996] under Pat King, God rest him. We were in Division Four, but we knuckled down and got at it and beat some good teams on the way, including Longford in the final.
Fermanagh hasn’t won a lot of trophies, so that was a big night. For any Gaelic footballer, if you’ve got bonfires greeting you coming through the door, it’s a nice feeling.
And the worst?
Tyrone absolutely annihilated us in Omagh in the Ulster Championship in 1996. It was a good Tyrone team, but we were totally ill-prepared, nobody was training. The week before in training, you knew we weren’t ready for it.
Are you glad you played in your era rather than today?
I’d have played any time.
Any regrets?
I remember in 1996, Martin McHugh was over Cavan and, after we were hammered by Tyrone, he said Fermanagh shouldn’t be in the Championship. He was probably right, but those things stay with you.
The next year, we played Cavan in the first round in Ulster and it went to a replay - we had them beat both days, but let them off the hook and they went on to win Ulster.
