BY DAMIAN CAMPBELL
Minor team manager Kieran Donnelly delivered an upbeat prediction in a pre match interview last weekend regarding the prospects of the Erne minor panel for the quarter final meeting with Monaghan.
Not surprising that the Brookeboro clubman, in his first season in charge of a team at county level, should be optimistic about the chances of his side making an impact on the provincial scene this summer.
For Fermanagh have performed well in the recent league and finished that five match campaign on a particularly encouraging note as they scored an impressive victory over Derry, an eight point winning margin in Irvinestown back in mid April.
"Initially we didn't have the St Michael's college MacRory panellists available, " commented the Omagh CBS based teacher, no stranger himself to MacRory management having guided the Tyrone college for a couple of seasons.
In fact it was in Omagh were he cut his managerial teeth having taken charge of teams all the way through from Dalton Cup to MacRory, so his apprenticeship for the Erne minor job has been thorough.
Donegal was the opening assignment for Donnelly and with a restricted pool of players on call it was a case of using the opportunity to take a good look at players who might not otherwise have had the chance to prove their worth.
"And all through the subsequent league games it has been the policy to experiment to a greater or lesser extent," the manager revealed, " trying to gel players together and for all the games we fielded different lineouts, trying players in different positions.
By the time of the final game with Derry we had things coming into focus however and in that Derry game we were very happy with the way we played.
We moved the ball especially well, looked sharp and were clinical in our finishing."
Asked for a quick rundown on the various sectors of the team, Donnelly declared himself satisfied with the way that the defence has been working.
"No massive scorelines conceded by them with a very satisfactory effort in holding a very good Derry attack. In the middle of the park we are solid as well with Ryan Jones chipping in with important scores. Up front we are small in stature but there is great work rate and a lot of pace."
As for opposing Monaghan, Donnelly accepts that they will present a formidable challenge.
"They won the Ulster Vocational schools title and went on to reach the All Ireland final so that panel of players form the backbone of their team," he stated.
" They are particularly strong up the centre and I have watched them and would have to say that I was impressed by what I saw. Without doubt they are a good side."
The Fermanagh manager went on to single out players such as half forward Ciaran Hughes, midfielder Ciaran Duffy and forward Dermot Malone as a trio of especially talented players.
So he is fully conscious of the effort that Fermanagh will have to mount if they are to clear this hurdle but he remains confident that the Erne side, " if we hit our form will come through."
Preparation for the game has included a number of sessions on Brewster Park, an important factor in players becoming familiar with the newly laid pitch and surroundings.
"Very important that we did this," noted Donnelly.
Preparation has also included a series of recent challenge games in which the team continued to perform to a high standard. Further boost is that there are no injury problems to undermine team confidence.
"We should have a clean bill of health, nothing beyond some small niggling injuries and team morale is strong," he declared. " The expectation is good and we are totally focussed on the upcoming game.
We know of course that Monaghan will also be coming to Brewster Park with a strong team that is also well prepared and up for the game but if we hit form then we can win."
