FERMANAGH manager Pete McGrath doesn’t expect Antrim to have any hangover from their Division Four final loss to Louth.
McGrath’s Erne men take on the Saffrons in the Ulster Championship preliminary round in just over two weeks’ time and he was an interested observer at Croke Park last Saturday.
A strong finish from Colin Kelly’s Wee county denied Antrim the title, but McGrath doesn’t expect that to influence the outcome on May 15 - after all, Fermanagh were well beaten in the Division Three final by Armagh last year and went on to reach the All-Ireland quarter-finals.
“I was down for all the matches over the weekend and, yes, I was taking a particular look at Antrim,” said McGrath.
“They had a very good league campaign and Saturday was their first defeat. It was a very narrow defeat and, for periods of the match, they looked like they were going to win the game, they played very well at times.
“They will put that defeat to be bed very quickly, there won’t be too much depression around the Antrim camp this week, they’ll be setting their sights on the Championship like everybody else.
“At different times in the game, they were in control and playing good, progressive football. Antrim will look at their performance and they will take the positives from it, so I don’t think there was any fatal damage done. They’ll be disappointed - we were disappointed last year when we lost to Armagh - but they’ll put it behind them very, very quickly and move on.”
Fermanagh’s last game was a fortnight ago, when they drew with Tyrone to ensure their survival in Division Two. For McGrath, staying in the second-tier is vital to the team’s development.
“It’s very important for Fermanagh,” he said.
“For the long-term development of the team and the players individually, the higher the level they are playing at over the seven matches brings the team on enormously. I would like to think that the league campaign that we had will put us into a very positive place going into the Championship because the seven games were highly competitive and we learned a lot about our best system of play and our character and resilience. It has been a very productive league for us.”
McGrath says Fermanagh now have “the Championship in our sights” and he can begin preparing for Antrim in earnest after Friday’s night’s round of league fixtures when the players return to the county unit.
“They had two matches over the weekend there, but we are still doing enough to keep them up to the level of preparation and fitness that we think is necessary,” he added.
“At this stage, I think we’re in a positive enough place going forward.”
Midfielder Richard O’Callaghan, who missed the last two NFL games with a hamstring injury, has been back in club action with Enniskillen Gaels and should be fit for the Antrim showdown.
“Richard is most certainly going to be in the frame for selection,” McGrath confirmed.
“They’re playing club football, so there’s the normal quota of bumps and bruises here and there but nothing, at this stage, that’s going to keep anyone out of the Antrim game.
“Ask any county manager and they’ll say the same: it is a worrying time once the players are playing league matches with the clubs - they have to play them, needless to say - but you always have the worry that they’ll pick up injuries. Hopefully, there’ll be nothing major on Friday night.”
