Readers over 35 will remember the television programme, 'New Faces.' The talent show, which was at it's peak in the mid to late 70's, gave performers their shot at the big time.

And, it was a talent search that new Fermanagh manager Malachy O'Rourke was implored to undertake by many supporters at the start of this year. 'New Faces' were needed to freshen things up, and much was made of the need to scour the county for all available talent. Malachy O'Rourke, it was thought, needed to unearth a few gems if he was to succeed where his predecessor, Charlie Mulgrew, failed.

Indeed, it is a widely held belief that it was the fresh blood which was injected into the squad in 2004 which was the main reason for the tremendous run to the All Ireland semi final that year, and many considered that the same approach was needed in 2008.

So how many nuggets did O'Rourke's mining produce? Not as many as you might think, although this is not the fault of the manager who cast his net far and wide. At the start of the season, O'Rourke opened up the door and offered every player in the county the opportunity to attend trials. And, from

this exhaustive search, five 'new faces' were unearthed, four of whom were under 21 last year. Those five take their place alongside another 30 for the official 35 man squad which has been released to the press.

If we look closer at this 35, a few interesting facts are thrown up.

The first is that 26 of last year's panel are back again this year. This might tell us that the new broom which many thought O'Rourke should have used at the start of the season appears to have been largely left in the cupboard by the Derrylin native. Excluding the five new players, the remaining four, who were not on last year's panel, have been on panels in 2004, 2005 or 2006. In simpler terms, 30 players of this year's squad have been on Fermanagh Championship panels before.

And, what may cause a few more eyebrows to raise is the fact that 25 of those 30 have tasted the white heat of Championship football.

I would doubt if any panel of players in Ulster would have that many players who have played Championship before. One could conclude then, that far from this years squad being a fresh faced outfit, it is probably one of the most experienced squads operating in this years All Ireland Championships.

But back to the 'new faces.' The five men who will be experiencing the atmosphere of a Championship dressing room for the first time are; Niall Leonard of Belcoo, Matthew Keenan from Enniskillen Gael's, Derrygonnelly Harps man Paul Ward, Pat Cadden from St Pat's and Darren McQuaid from the Coa club.

Of these five, Keenan, Ward and Cadden have featured during the league campaign, with Keenan emerging as Fermanagh's top scorer. It is probably no surprise that these three players are forwards as it was this area, more than others perhaps, which needed improving.

And, come Sunday I would expect at least one if not two of these trio to be starting.

Keenan, as has been said, has a real eye for a score and in a forward division that lacks natural scorers, this dimension to his game may be the key factor if he is to be included this Sunday.

Pat Cadden, also offers an accurate boot, although his league was interrupted by injury.

He offers intelligent running off the ball and a willingness to shoot when the chance arises but may not have had enough game time under his belt to force his way into the starting grid.

The last of this trio, Paul Ward, has been the unluckiest thus far with injury really prohibiting his influence throughout the year.

But, the speedy Derrygonnelly Harps man offers real punch and has the ability to take on his man and draw frees.

He is also a goalscorer but, with having just recovered from injury, he may be used as an impact sub in the last twenty minutes.