Having drawn Wicklow, a division four side, in the qualifiers Fermanagh fans could perhaps have been forgiven for thinking that it was a rather plum draw but given that the game is away from home and the fact that Wicklow have shown some decent form in their two Championship games this game promises to be anything but easy.

And certainly this is the train of thought which Malachy O'Rourke was on this week,

"They will be no push-over, especially down in Wicklow. We were hoping for a home draw, but it's down in Aughrim and they have Mick O'Dwyer with them. On top of that, they've had a couple of championship games under their belt, so it's going to be a very tight game."

So, after the dust has settled what now of the Cavan defeat?

O'Rourke was brutally candid: "It's gone. As a collective group of management and players we all hold our hands up and say, 'we were not good enough on the day'. Barry (Owens) going on was a big positive.

The Derrylin native was delighted with how the Teemore man fared and a little regretful that he was perhaps not introduced to the fare earlier.

"It was a case we didn't know how much he would fit in, especially with the trouble he had over the past couple of years. The 20-25 minutes he was on it was very good and I suppose, afterwards, one of the regrets was we didn't put him on sooner.

"But, everybody knows best in hindsight. That's the way it turned out, but it was a positive coming out of the game. He had no ill-effects. He got through it and he has got through a couple of club games as well."

And speaking of the spirit in the camp in general O'Rourke reported that everyone was singing off the same hymn sheet and had been honest about the shortcomings which showed themselves against Cavan.

"We had a good week after the game and came back on Thursday night and had a bit of a chat afterwards. Everybody, obviously, was disappointed but I think everybody took it (defeat) on the chin.

"Everybody agreed that, on the day, we didn't as a group perform to our best and that it's now a case of looking forward and trying to respond in the right way."

Returning to this Saturday's game with Wicklow O'Rourke knows what his team must do if they are to get the right result.

"And, like we said before the Cavan match, really whichever team performs better on the day is going to win it. There are no guarantees. If we play well, I think we will give ourselves a chance."

The squad are due to train again tonight and it is expected the line-out or Saturday's first round Qualifier will be announced after that.