17 May 2009; Dan Gordon and Kevin Duffin, left, Down, in action against Daryl Keenan, Fermanagh. Ulster GAA Football Senior Championship, First Round, Fermanagh v Down, Brewster Park, Enniskillen, Co. Fermanagh

FACT FILE

Name: Daryl Keenan
Age:  20Weight:  11st 5lbs
College:  UUJ
Club: Tempo
County: Fermanagh
Position:  Forward
Honours: SFL Div 2, 2 Minor Championships, 2 Minor Leagues, Colleges All Star 2008.

Q1: You are involved in so many teams between club, county and college.  How do you manage to sort out your schedule and keep it all going? Well I decided to give college commitments a back seat this year, and devote all my time to Fermanagh and the club.  I train every night of the week for either Fermanagh or Tempo, and I don’t mind that, it keeps me out of trouble!  It’s easy to sort out my schedule, I always make time and as a student I can have quite a lot of time on my hands!

Q2: Getting into an inter-county side at such an early age, when did you make your mark with Tempo?

Well I made my debut with Tempo at the age of 16, and that year we got relegated from Div 1, so it wasn’t an easy introduction to senior football.  We luckily managed to get promoted straight away and have thankfully remained in Div 1 ever since.  I was fortunate enough to join a senior team that had quality players such as Damien Kelly, Ryan Keenan, Declan Campbell and Conor Foy, and these players can only inspire you to better things.

Q3: You have played at this level for a few years, have you noticed much change in that time?

There are always changes at inter county level but with regards to training it is just like a professional set up, you have to train as many nights a week as possible, every other team is doing it so you have to do it.

Q4: Playing football with Jordanstown, Tempo and Fermanagh together with various other commitments, where do the studies fit in? Well to be honest the studies have to take a back seat (at times), although come exam time, I do knuckle down to some hard work, keeping well on top of coursework helps too.  Most of my time is spent in class during the day then I head down home in the evenings for training and back up again.  I especially enjoy training with my club, playing with people I’ve grown up with.  It’s all about juggling which can be hard going sometimes but the extra effort is worth it if you want to succeed.

Q5: What’s it like playing on the county team with your brother, surely a proud household?

Well it’s always nice to play with your brother, but at the same time we are team mates just wearing the same jersey and trying to do our best to win with Fermanagh.  Fermanagh is a tight knit team with everyone getting on really well together – there is a strong bond.

Q6: Fermanagh have had a poor league campaign this year, with manager Malachy O’Rourke calling the drop to Div 4 a ‘Nightmare’ what has gone wrong in the camp this year?

Obviously it was disappointing to get relegated from Div 3, but all the players and management are putting in a massive effort to get it right.  We have been training really hard but we haven’t translated that into the national league games.  It is hard to put your finger on what went wrong during the national league, but we have to accept that we just weren’t good enough in each game, we must eradicate the mistakes we made in those games to go forward and improve.

Q7: The Ulster Championship sees you take on Cavan in Breffni Park on 12 June in the Quarter Final.  How do you see the county doing this year?

We are looking no further than the Cavan game.  We are going to face a tough task heading to Breffni Park, as Cavan have had a good national league campaign behind them, and will be favourites to advance.  Fermanagh’s record in Breffni Park has been very poor, so it’s a massive challenge for the management and players to go up there and get a result.  All we will be concentrating on will be getting our own performance right, something that we have done in the national league and if we do that, then we will see what happens in the summer.

 

8 June 2008; Down's Benny Coulter celebrates after scoring his side's first goal. GAA Football Ulster Senior Championship Quarter-Final, Tyrone v Down, Healy Park, Omagh, Co. Tyrone

By, Seán Ó Sirideán.FACTFILE:

Name: Benny Coulter
Age: 28
Ht: 6 ft
Weight:  13 stone
Club: Mayobridge
County: Down
 Position: Forward
Honours: 8 Down Championships, 5 Down leagues, all underage league and Championships from 12 through to Minor’s, 1 Ulster and all-Ireland Minor Championship with Down (1999), 1 Down, Ulster and all Ireland vocational schools, 3 railway cups and represented Ireland 10 times.
 

Who were your role models as a kid?

Mickey Linden, Tom O’ Hare

Down is synonymous for its football. Have you played all your life?

Yes, I started when I was six and I’m still playing so that’s 22 years and counting.

You have almost been an automatic selection for the Compromise Rules series being selected in 2003, 2004, 2005, 2006 and 2008; surely a great honour to be selected so regularly by such great managers but to represent your country must be amazing?

 Yes it is easily the best honour of my career along with the eight club Championships I won with Mayobridge. To get to play along with the best footballers on the island of Ireland is simply brilliant and the trip to Australia was fantastic, after all the football was over.

You made your senior debut in 1999 after winning Ulster and All Ireland minor championship medals, for such a young age how did you cope with the pressures of senior football and the step up required?

 I coped ok as there was about four or five of that minor team on that senior panel. It was good to have them there and off course Mickey Linden was still there so he helped me settle in ok and I haven’t looked back since.

You look sharp so far this year, have you been doing extra training over the winter months to keep in shape?

 Yes. I know now that I only have a couple of years left so I really am focused at doing all I can to try and keep at the top for as long as I can. Yes it’s getting harder every year but I hope I can play until I’m 30 at inter-county level at the very least.

Was the league final defeat to Armagh in HQ hard to take, especially after beating them in Newry a few weeks beforehand?

 To be honest it was pretty easy to move on as the older you get the more you know that the Championship is the one that counts, maybe years ago if it had of happened it would have taken me weeks to get over but at this stage of my carer I can move on and focus on what really matters.

 You face Donegal on the 30th of May in Ballybofey, how is preparations going for this match and what are your expectations this year with Down?

 Preparations are going well at the minute. We are training very hard over the next two weeks.  We aim to go out and give it all, every game we play in.

8 June 2008; Down's Benny Coulter celebrates after scoring his side's first goal. GAA Football Ulster Senior Championship Quarter-Final, Tyrone v Down, Healy Park, Omagh, Co. Tyrone

James McCartan played for many years with distinction up front for Down, does James’s experience rub off on you?

 

 

 

 

 Yes James is great and he has a very good knowledge of the game, especially up front as he had plenty of years experience scoring points for county and club. As far as James goes as a manager, you just have to look at his record as he has done well wherever he has gone to manage.

 Who was the person who most influenced you as a footballer in your career to date?

 I would say family first and foremost.  I would also acknowledge the Mayobridge underage management teams who have mentored and nurtured me through the years coming up from under 10 through to the Minor’s. Also when Paddy O’ Rourke took over the management of Down he not only changed me as a footballer but he also changed me as a person for the better

 Who has been your most difficult opponent to date and why?

Far too many to mention them all although Armagh’s Andy Mallon and I always have great battles.

 
Given the opportunity, what is the one thing you would change in the GAA?

 I would open up Croke Park to everybody.  All county’s and clubs all over the island, not just the Dubs!

 Finally Benny, a big year ahead of you on and off the field, do you have any other interests outside of the GAA?

 Well other than Liverpool football club whom I follow and support I have a young child who I try to spend every spare minute with. Every minute I spend with him is just an amazing time in itself.

Paddy Cunningham

By Francis McNally

SHARPSHOOTER Paddy Cunningham is the epitome of Liam Bradley’s new look Antrim – dedicated, focused, ambitious.

However, while Antrim fans are hoping for another summer of success, the Saffrons captain has his mind fixed firmly on the Championship opener against Tyrone.

Q How is the mood in the Antrim camp at the minute?

It’s been good, positive, we are focused now on training. Obviously we have had a few setbacks with the league final defeat, but the main thing was getting promoted.

It was disappointing to lose a league final, but we have have already moved on.

The training level and intensity has increased and we are focused on the next three weeks and the Championship which is what it’s all about. People are now fighting for their places and training really hard.

Q Antrim have exceeded expectations over this last 18 months, is the belief and mentality there to beat Tyrone? 

Yes, there would be no point to the hard training we’ve been putting ourselves through if we thought we couldn’t beat them.

We got to an Ulster final last year and ran Kerry very close. Tyrone are a quality side with a team of stars and individuals that will need to be tightly marked. 

We drove them very close last year in a game in which we started slowly. We are under no illusions that this will be a tough game, we gave them too much respect last year.  

This year hopefully we can get ourselves right and hit form on the day, so we’ll wait and see.

Q Championship Sunday-will playing at Casement be a big advantage for you? 

Of course it will. Having that home support makes a huge difference.

Having played there so often we all know the ground so well. We’re all used to playing there now. We will still be up against it, Tyrone have some fantastic players.

Q You’ve been in the panel a few years now, has much has changed in recent times?

Things have become far more professional.  Years ago we didn’t take it seriously enough. We didn’t understand how important training on our own time was and we paid the price for that. Now we have our own training programmes and train in our own time and that makes a big difference, we take it a lot more seriously now. High standards are expected. Training away from the County team and working on our own shows the commitment we now have, hopefully that commitment will be rewarded.

Q Antrim’s fitness, tactics and discipline have all improved dramatically- how will Antrim take it to the next level in the Championship?

We have three weeks of hard work left and we will work harder than ever, we face a major obstacle in Tyrone and we are not thinking past that.

Our management team have worked hard and are credited for bringing a new professionalism to the team. The whole backroom team is an excellent set up now and the players have a different mindset and the self belief.

Q Will having the St Galls players back make a big difference?

Without a shadow of a doubt. There are nine players in the Antrim squad and three or four will be in the starting line up.  It can only be helpful in team selection and there is obviously more competition for places. These guys have played on the big days, and more important they have brought success and are used to success and this is something they can bring to the team, a winning mentality.

Q Will Michael McCann be playing up front with you?

He has played midfield all season so I can’t see that changing. Competition for places on the forward line is intense – it’s really up to Liam Bradley

Q Will you beat Tyrone?

Hopefully!

James Masters, Cork. GAA Football All-Ireland Senior Championship Quarter-Final, Cork v Kildare, Croke Park, Dublin.

One to Watch-James Masters (Cork Footballer)

Position: Full-Forward

Age: 27

Club: Nemo Rangers

Occupation: Garda Síochána

Club Honours- 4 Cork Titles

3 Munster Titles

County Honours- 1 Minor Munster

1 Minor All-Ireland

1 Munster Under-21

2 Senior Munster

1 Senior National League Divison 2

James Masters is a talented forward who showed his natural ability at a young age when he played both hurling and football at Coláiste Chríost Rí. Indeed he was the star player in 2001 scoring nine points to see his side beat St Colman’s College to win the County College’s Title.

Although Masters joined the Senior Nemo side in 2000 he had to wait to make an impact due to the fact that Joe Kavanagh and Colin Corkery both played in his favoured position. Masters featured as a substitute in 2002 when Nemo beat Monaleen of Limerick 4-15 to 0-6 in the Munster Club Championship. He missed out on a place in the All-Ireland winning side of 2003. By 2005 Masters had established himself in Nemo’s Full-Forward line winning his first County Senior Championship medal and he also picked up his second Munster Club medal. The club made it four County Championship in a row in 2008, with Masters collecting his third Munster medal in 2007.

Masters first made an impact in the County’s Minor team in 2000 when he captained them to both a Munster and All-Ireland title. Cork overcame arch-rivals Kerry in the Munster final 1-13 to 0-14. Masters had the honour of lifting the Tommy Markin Cup when his side defeating Mayo 2-12 to 0-13.

Masters also collected a Munster title with Cork Under-21s in 2001when they defeated Limerick 1-12 to 0-8.

He made his Senior debut in 2005 and lined out in his first Munster Final losing to Kerry 1-11 to 0-11. In 2006 Cork took on Kerry once again in the Munster Final and drew 0-10 to 0-10, the replay saw a freasher Cork side defeat Kerry 1-12 to 0-9 and Masters was the hero scoring 1-7. Cork lost their title to Kerry in 2007 losing by two points but inflicted revenge the following year coming back from eight points down to win by five. Kerry seemed to be cruising to victory at half-time when they held an eight point lead but Cork held them to only three scores in the second-half to seal victory.

Masters has also represented his province in 2005 reaching the semi-final stage only to be defeated by Ulster.

Ross O’Carroll-Dublin Hurler

Club: Kilmacud Crokes

Position: Centre Half-Forward

A talented hurler Ross should prove a great attribution to the Dublin side. He helped to guide Dublin to the Leinster Minor Hurling Championship title in 2005 scoring a point in the final. He was a key figure in the Under-21 side that defeated Offaly in 2007 to win the Under-21 Leinster Hurling Championship for the first time since 1972.

He made his Senior debut in 2007 against Wexford scoring 1-01.

A dual player Ross was part of the Kilmacud side that won the Senior All-Ireland Club Championship in 2008. His younger brother Rory is also a gifted dual-star.

Senior Debut: Dublin vs Wexford 2007

Accolades: 1 Leinster Minor (Hurling)

1 Leinster Under-21 (Hurling)

1 Dublin Minor (Football)

1 Dublin Senior (Football)

1 Leinster Senior (Football)

1 All-Ireland Senior Club (Football)

Tommy Walsh-Kerry Footballer

Age:21

Height: 6ft 4”

Weight: 16.5 stone

Occupation: Student

Club: Kerins O’Rahilly’s

Position: Midfield/Full-Forward

Tommy Walsh is the son of former Kerry star Sean Walsh. Tommy is a gifted and talented footballer who can play either midfield or full-forward. It has been in the full-forward position that Kerry have deployed the ‘big-man’ whose strength under the high ball, accuracy and speed makes him every defenders worst nightmare.

He was a major player for the Kerry side who reached the All-Ireland Minor Final in 2006. He was named the All-Stars Young Player of the Year in 2008.

1^st League Appearance: Kerry vs Limerick 2007

1^st Championship Appearance: Kerry vs Clare 2008

Accolades: 1 Senior All-Ireland

1 Under-21 All-Ireland

1 Munster Minor

A big thanks has to go to Enda Mcginley for helping us out with our first Magazine in Nov 2008.  Not only did he agree to do an interview with us, but he agreed to go on the front cover as well.  It was a leap of faith, but thanks to Enda and that first edition, we have been interviewing all the big names in the GAA since. Thanks Enda, we wont forget it.

Have you any experience of the compromise game?

No, I have never played it competitively.

I attended a couple of the trials before but between cruciate ligament injuries and club commitments I never managed to get to final stages.

How have you found the process of adapting to the new game?

It is very strange.

It takes a long while to get used to the rules; they feel so unnatural.

You don’t realise how innate the skills of gaelic football become over the years.

Your natural instinct and the way you move and think about the game are nearly pre-programmed at this stage.

Suddenly you are now trying to do things against your nature in the middle of a competitive game. It requires a lot of thinking.

Hopefully when we get together as a squad in Australia the rules will be become fine tuned.

The tackle area seems to be the main difference between the two games. How have you found it?

Yeah the tackle is an issue but even things like what you do when you are on the ball is different. Certain runs are not useful because your opponent can grab a hold of you.

In gaelic you can receive a ball with a man tight behind you and still pass and move the ball.

You can afford to take that pass but in the compromise rules you can’t take a ball when a man is close to you because he can wrap his arms around you and prevent you doing anything.

The type of runs you make and when you make yourself available for the ball all have to change. Then the use of the kick pass and the mark and the steps and everything comes into the mix. It’s quite technical and it will take time to adjust.

There’s also a different type of fitness required. It’s a much more physical approach.

There’s hitting in gaelic football but there’s fewer big hits and fewer full body collisions.

You also don’t spend as much time picking yourself up off the floor in gaelic football!

What are looking forward to?

One of the best things will be getting away with this squad of players.

You spend so much time within your own club and your own county this will be a chance to meet with boys from all over Ireland.

Obviously I’m looking forward to seeing Austrlia but for me the biggest thing will be the moment when I pull on an Irish jersey for the first time.

I think that will be a big moment and I’m really looking forward to that and hoping that I can make and impact and help Ireland win.

The game does have its detractors but at the same time there’s a bit of Irish pride at stake here and I’d like to think we can put it up to these boys.

It wasn’t nice watching it the last time as Australia quite easily beat Ireland. You felt the hurt watching it on television even though you had no real link with the team at that stage.

Getting back to matters closer to home, was football a big part of family life growing up?

There are six boys and no girls in the family so there was always a lot of football being played out in the yard. That’s were it all started really.

My brothers have all done very well in their own right. They have all played senior championship club football with Errigal Ciaran and Tyrone Vocational Schools.

Cormac obviously played on the Tyrone senior team. He has one All-Ireland medal as well.

My father played for Ballygawley St Ciarans as a corner back. He never speaks too much about his football. And my mum’s brother was Frank Higgins. One of the great Tyrone players in 50’s and 60’s and I was always aware of him.

How important is club football to you?

I’m very lucky to come from an exceptionally strong club.

The pride that you have playing club football is something that is very hard to match.

My father did an awful lot of work with the club on the committee for a lot of years and all my brothers have been involved with the club from underage level.

We’ve played quite regularly with four of us on the field and it’s brilliant.

The five other boys were all defenders although Kevin played a bit in midfield.

I played along with Emmet, Cormac, Ronan and Aidan. They were mostly defenders and I was always away up the field.

There was always a great atmosphere in the house coming up to big championship games. We were lucky enough to win an Ulster Club Championship title 2002 with the four of us playing. Highlights like that are just massive.

Sadly that’s the one regret this year that we made an early exit from the club championship.

We were missing a few men and I don’t think we did ourselves justice against a Clonoe team that was too good for us on the day. They did very well to beat Carrickmore in the quarter-finals.

What is your best position?

I’ve nearly always played as a forward or in midfield.

I stepped back into defence a few times. A couple of managers played me at centre-half back or full back on occasions.

I think I played for Tyrone vocational schools at full-back in a final once but the majority of my time has been spent in attack.

When I started playing club football I was very young. I was playing in the U-14s as an 11-year-old and I suppose the tendency is to be put in at corner forward where you might not have to be as physically strong.

I managed to play well enough and that’s how I got a reputation for playing in attack. Then, what you find in underage teams is that the better players tend to end up in midfield so they can influence the game. As a result, you end up finding your feet in that position as well.

There would still be plenty of arguments about whether I am a forward or not.

If asked I think in and around the midfield area is my best position. I love played full forward but sadly I don’t think I have the feet to play there!

Is midfield a difficult position to play with Tyrone?

You always have a lot of men keeping you right.

I always get a warm ear from the likes of Ricey and Conor Gourley for not getting back to help them out in defence.

I’m back more often that they seem to think but its good old slagging.

They usually tell me that they don’t see from leaving the changing room until we got in for half time.

I think there’s video evidence somewhere that refutes any of those allegations.

You’ve had a couple of bad injuries (in 2003 he suffered a serious neck injury in the All-Ireland final and in 2005 he was ruled out with a cruciate knee injury) did you ever think you might not make it back?

I was always very confident that I could manage the knee absolutely fine.

The neck and head injury was a different kettle of fish because to a certain extent it’s out of your hands.

With the knee it’s very much a case of the more work you put in the better chance you have of coming back.

I knew that because of the profession I was in (he’s a physiotherapist) and because I had a colleague called Lou O’Connor who was at the top of his trade with regards to rehabilitation that everything was in place for me to make a strong comeback.

The problem with the head and neck injury is that it is almost taken out of your hands. There’s not so much work you can do to improve or cure it.

I had to wait for nature to sort it out and it’s reared its head from time to time but as of now it seems fairly quiet and long may it continue.

I’m supposed to avoid taking strong chops around the head and neck when I’m playing but I tend to forget that on the field and throw myself about anyway leaving it up to the hands of fate.

I’d have to be very unlucky for it to come back.

Have you been unlucky with injuries?

I don’t feel I’ve had a big problem with them.

I’ve had the two serious injuries but if you look around the Tyrone squad this year I think something like nine of them alone have had orthopaedic surgery.

It’s part of the game these days and the number of injections that are given out to the team is absolutely massive as well.

I’ve had two bad injuries but aside from that I’ve had great injury free years which thankfully have coincided with Tyrone’s prolonged run.

I’m happy with my lot.

It makes you a better physio. I know what the players who come to me are going through and sometimes it’s easier for them to accept what you are telling them to do.

Sports injuries and rehab is certainly what I’m interested in work wise and I hope to push on and get more specialised in that area.

Getting on to the All-Ireland success this year, was there a moment when the team realised they had a genuine chance of winning the title?

I think there was a gradual feeling after the first qualifying game that the energy and work rate was returning to the team. They were the two most important things. Whenever Tyrone play well those two aspects are taken care of.

During the qualifying matches we didn’t play that well but those two ingredients were more and more to the fore.

I recently watched the Mayo game and although we were poor for long periods, in the last 15-20 minutes you suddenly saw a different energy level than we had produced all year. There was a change to our speed and intensity.

When I was watching it I thought that was the moment when we suddenly looked like a Tyrone team that could do serious damage.

Luckily for us it went unnoticed and we were roundly written off going into the Dublin game. After that game the public at large realised that we would have a real say in the championship.

We were capable of putting in that display against Dublin because it had already clicked with us. We took great confidence from that performance and kicked on from there.

It was a gradual build up in the key ingredients. The belief was there and then the performance against Dublin proved it to us.

When did you know you had won the final?

It was very late on.

I think whenever the clock was running down I had scored my point to put us two points up.

You knew the 70^th minute was coming up and you were saying ‘right, two points ahead we can hold on from there’, but straight from that kick-out Kevin Hughes scored a point and suddenly we were three up which was soon four.

At that stage you were thinking ‘this is great’ but I was concerned because it had been a championship of late goals and late fight backs.

At the same time, out of the corner of your eye you could see all the panel lined up on the sideline and the Tyrone fans in the stands were all on their feet in those final seconds.

Can you rate your All-Irelands?

Not really, they all come first in my eyes. I wouldn’t and couldn’t rate them.

The fact that I have three All-Ireland medals – well you have to pinch yourself at times to realise that you have three.

This latest one feels very, very special but it’s hard to say.

In 2005 to become the first team to win it after 10 matches. It was such an amazing run that year. And obviously it was the first one after Cormac (McAnallan) passed away and that had a very personal meaning.

2003 will never be surpassed because it was the first one. That will always be very special.

How much of a role did Mickey Harte play this year? He took a lot of flak after the Down defeat.

Unfortunately I think he just told Fergal McCann to run us into the ground and even worse still he’s likely to do it even more next year!

He never lost belief in us even when he was under fire. It never wavered and as we began to put in the work and picked up a couple of results that rubbed off on us as a group and we started to realise there was a foundation to his belief.

There’s nothing magical to Mickey Harte. He has supreme belief in this bunch of players and he has an incredible will to win.

It is scary. Between him and Brian Dooher they are the two most competitive and driven men you will ever meet.

And I suppose when you have one man managing and one man captaining that means there is a unified sense of purpose coming through that we will win and that we are the best.

That obviously took some time to sink in with the rest of the players?

Yeah, we had a poor National League and a poor Ulster Championship.

Things were at a low ebb and at that stage, the boys who had been there for a while realised that our era could well finish in a whimper.

Whilst we had done so much to put the Tyrone jersey right up there we were going to leave it without that same respect that we had put in to it.

There was a determination within every man on an individual basis to get the team back to the big days in Croke Park.

And the more you chatted to the players the more you realised every man was singing from the same hymn sheet.

The captain and manager fully believed that not only could we get back to our best but we could go on to win the thing.

As the season progressed that all gelled into a pretty ferocious unit.

Finally, what is it like to be nominated for an All-Star?

I’ve been very privileged to be nominated twice before and I remember when I was nominated the first time I couldn’t believe it.

It’s a lovely feeling.

Whenever you attend the night and see the All-Stars up on the stage, some of your friends included, you do have a desire to join them so it’s great to be back in with a shout of winning.

It’s a nice honour. Thankfully the other two times I have been nominated has been when Tyrone have won an All-Ireland. I’m sure it’s different for those players who have been nominated but haven’t won the title.

First and foremost the team has to win. Winning an All-Star having lost in a final would only be a consolation.

The thing that makes it better than anything is going down as a winner.

Meehan's Dreams of September Glory

Just as the Championship started in 2009- Gaelic Stars Louise Glass Caught up with the mighty Michael Meehan.  A great player, and quite a nice chap as well!  Thanks Michael.  Francis

By Louise Glasss

HIS penalty against London in the first game of this year’s Connacht Senior Football Championship helped put a better gloss on the scoreline, but Michael Meehan admits that Galway must step things up if they are to be in contention come September.

A high-rated footballer who has combined skill and power to become a lethal full-forward, it’s hard to believe that Meehan is still only 24 and that this is his sixth season in the maroon and white.

He may be young, but on the field, Michael oozes the assurance and self-belief of a seasoned campaigner.

Like the rest of his team mates he was disappointed that Galway faltered in the closing stretch of this year’s National League but it has only served to stiffen the team’s resolve heading into the summer.

“Overall we had a reasonable league campaign this year,” said the Caltra clubman.  “We started very well but unfortunately lost points in the last few group games, which cost us a place in the final.

“We were very disappointed we didn’t make it [the final] considering the position we held going into the last three group games. Our draw with Derry left the door open for them to beat us to it.

“Our aim at the moment is to prepare well and reach the Connacht final. If we can be successful in Connacht, it would set us up nicely for a crack at the All-Ireland series.”

Galway’s target for 2009 is straightforward enough, to be the last team standing come September.

Michael has yet to play in an All-Ireland semi-final for his county, but there’s no denying his success at under-age level and with his beloved club.

The youngest son in a football mad family, Michael remains passionately committed to the game.

“I think it’s [the love for the football] something inside that stemmed from when I was young and trying to emulate the likes of Maurice Fitzgerald and Mickey Linden,” he said.

“Playing alongside Padraig [Joyce], he’s a super player.  His ability and experience has a positive effect on everyone at training and in matches.  He has been a hugely successful player to date and he has plenty left in the tank, which is good for Galway football.”

Michael was on the 2004 Caltra team that won the All-Ireland Senior Club Championship alongside four of his older brothers, Declan, Tomás, Noel and captain Enda, while another one, Seamus, was a sub that day.

He won a Hogan Cup medal with St Patrick’s Tuam in 2002, the year he also captained the team, as well as a Minor Football Championship medal with Galway in the same year.

Since his senior inter-county debut in 2003 against Roscommon, he’s won three provincial medals and while he might have two All-Ireland Under 21 medals at home, the big one is still missing.

Two of his brothers, Declan and Tomás have won All-Ireland medals for Galway, in 1998 and 2001. For Michael, just like a lot of the other fellas on the Galway team, it’s the one everyone wants.

“It is a big thing, but it’s also missing from about 27 other lads on the current Galway panel Declan and Tomás are very lucky to have medals from ’98 and ’01 and it would be great to add one of my own to theirs,” he said.

Tomás has retired from inter-county football but Declan is still involved, making every county game a family occasion.

“It was very special to have a few brothers playing on the same county team.  It was a big honour for our family and club. It was also very handy with lifts too and from training,” added Michael.

“They’ve been a massive influence on me. To have people so close to you playing inter-county football and winning All-Irelands serves as huge motivation.”

Getting back to business on the field and Meehan knows Galway can’t take anything for granted if they are to retain their Connacht title, even though they are firm favourites for the provincial crown.

Standing in the way at the minute is Sligo at Markiewicz Park at the end of June.

“More often that not when you take situations like that for granted you get turned over. We don’t want that to happen against Sligo,” he said.

“We are going to have to play very well to get a result against Sligo up there. Kevin Walsh seems to be doing a very good job as manager. He knows Galway football inside out so that will give them an advantage.

“The London game was a funny game.  At stages we could and should have pulled away but we missed some easy goal chances.  London, to their credit, played well and stuck in it until the end.  They have a strong team and will only get stronger over the next few years.

“Liam (Sammon) has brought on Galway football a long way since his took over the job at the end of 2007.  He has reintroduced some of the more traditional values into our style of play, which have proven to suit us.”

Not looking past Connacht, shows that the provincial competitions are still highly regarded despite the presence of the ‘back door system’.

“The back door does take the importance off the provincial championship to a small extent,” added Michael.

“I think all counties go out to win their provincial championship. Depending on the counties involved, All Ireland’s can often be the priority over provincial titles so to have a second chance can be crucial.”

Away Galway and Connacht, Michael, who is a financial advisor sees Tyrone coming out of Ulster, Kerry out of Munster and Dublin out of Leinster, although he’s not necessarily advising anyone to put money on it.

As for destination of Sam Maguire, well that’s anyone’s call but we know Galway and Michael Meehan have set their sights on being around in late September.

Blood, sweat and tears

Marty McGrath on his search for that elusive Ulster title

FERMANAGH badly needed a decent run in the Ulster Championship.

After the highs of last year and the Ulster final against Armagh there was always a strong possibility that the team might suffer a bit of a slump.

The problem was that the early season slump became a slide and then it became a crisis which saw them relegated from Division Two.

The omens weren’t good heading into the preliminary round game against Down but the team pulled together to dig out a crucial victory.

“We were disappointed to lose the final last year, naturally enough,” said captain Martin McGrath.

“We were even more disappointing by the manner in which we lost the final.

“So we needed to get off to a good start to make sure that last year wasn’t a flash in the pan.

“It was disappointing to get relegated. It was not what we wanted but there was no panic. We lost the last few games narrowly and we also were carrying a few injuries.

“We’ve focused on the Championship and hopefully we’ll be fresh and ready to do well.”

Unfortunately, the Erne bandwagon never managed to pick up any momentum and hit the rocks against Cavan.

It leaves the 27-year-old McGrath still looking for that Ulster title and who knows how many more chances remain?

Marty, as everyone in Fermanagh will tell you, is a former All-Star and Ulster Player of the Year (2004). A rep for the Quinn Group, he has played both midfield (his favoured position) and centre-back for his county.

He has represented Ireland in the International Rules series and this year he has the added responsibility of being Fermanagh’s captain.

The St Joseph’s Ederney clubman has been a regular county player for almost a decade and he still savours every chance he gets to play football although he doesn’t get to play for his club side as often as he would like.

In many ways it’s not surprising that he still enjoys the opportunity to compete. Over the years McGrath has had to deal with a heart problem and a cancer scare.

He’s suffered more than his fair share of injuries and it’s helped him appreciate the basic act of getting out onto the field to play.

“Sometimes it can be a bit demoralising to be held back by injury but you just have to keep going,” he added.

“I suppose when you get knocks playing county football it’s the club scene that suffers. Sometimes trying to do both just puts too much wear and tear on the body.

“I enjoy any chance I get to play and I still look forward to it.

“I’m 27 years of age now and I don’t know how much longer I’ll be playing for so you have to take every opportunity you can get.

“I’m playing for nine years or so now without a county medal to show for it. There’s been a lot of final defeats. I’d love to get a medal and that’s why I enjoy getting out there to play.”

McGrath played midfield against Down in he preliminary round, picking up a point as Fermanagh progressed but like the game itself, he came in for some criticism after the final whistle with Down boss Ross Carr accusing him of diving following a push from Aidan Carr.

The Fermanagh star brushed aside the incident which saw Carr red carded and insisted that he wasn’t too concerned by the adverse publicity.

“It’s part and parcel of modern game and sometimes you use it as a motivation,” he said.

“Fermanagh has come in for a bit of criticism (after beating Down) I suppose we can use that to motivate us, we can disprove those accusations.”

With the Ulster Championship as a whole, also coming in for some heavy criticism, particularly after the Derry/Monaghan game the midfielder offered some insights into the ‘win at all costs mentality’

“Players are training all year. They are out in the long dark nights and at the end of the day you want to win your games,” he said.

“You also want to be involved in games that are good and exciting. If it’s a high scoring game and you come out on the right end it’s great to be involved but if it’s a high scoring game and you’re beaten it’s disappointing.

“If it’s one of the best games ever and you lose you’re left thinking that it is of no value to you.

“Now, looking at it from the punters point of view, they want to see good games and they are there to support you and be entertained but generally come championship time, it’s winning that counts.”

On the same theme, McGrath disputed some claims that the experimental rules, ditched after the national league trials, would somehow have contributed to a better spectacle in Ulster.

“In general I wasn’t a fan of the experimental rules,” he said.

“I think that the small teams were at a disadvantage because if they lost a player or two they didn’t have the depth in their squads to replace them whereas the ‘bigger’ teams had a larger pool to choose from.

“People kept referring to the Dublin/Tyrone game and how great a game it was but there wasn’t much tackling and it wasn’t at championship level

“I don’t know if the rules would have worked because the intensity is so much less in the league than it is come championship time.

“The rules that are there at the minute are adequate if they are used consistently.

“I always thought the experimental rules put far more pressure on the referee which wasn’t fair because it was a hard enough job in the first place.

“A referee generally is looking to get through a game without being seen but with the experimental rules the whole talk was all about referees.”

CHARLIE Vernon has been described as Armagh’s natural successor to Paul McGrane. A hardworking midfielder, he strives to get forward and play a central attacking role at every available opportunity.

Charlie’s life is Gaelic football and in particular Armagh inter-county football.

The quiet, shy and unassuming figure off the field is quite the contrast to his on-field reputation as a hardworking and uncompromising midfielder who loves the chance to play for his beloved Orchard County.

Charlie believes he got his passion for sport and Gaelic games from his parents, both school teachers.

“Sport in general was very big in our house, my parents are both PE teachers so that made a big impact on me. John Morrison took me for Under 8’s in Armagh Harps so my first GAA memory is standing in Mitre boots chasing after a football,” he said.

While Vernon has excelled in the Gaelic football world he has also received attention from the world of Australian Rules football attracted by his ample ability and athleticism.

“Ricky Nixon (Australian sports agent) contacted me a few months ago about attending a trial down in Dublin.  At 22 years of age you would nearly be too old to start a transitional period such as learning the new rules of the game and getting comfortable with the code,” added Charlie.

“I attended the trials purely out of curiosity and to see what kind of deal they had to offer.”

While Charlie is only concerned about Armagh at the moment he did express his desire to play football on a full time basis.

“I suppose it is a lifetime ambition of mine to be a professional sportsman.  To do what I love on a full time basis would be a real dream come true.  So if things go ok for me when I return to the Armagh team I might be attending trials over in Australia.  As it stands I am keeping my options open,” he said.

Charlie missed Armagh’s Ulster Championship defeat at the hands of Tyrone courtesy of a shocking jaw injury suffered during a challenge match against Dublin in early May.

“I initially thought I had lost a tooth as I could feel the void in my gum.  When I got in to the changing room it was only then that I realised that my jaw was broken,” he said.

“The first thought that came to my mind was that I was going to miss the first round of the Ulster Championship against Tyrone and that made me very angry.”

In light of the injury, it would be understandable if Charlie agreed with Mickey Harte’s analysis that challenge matches are unnecessary and dangerous.

However, he feels that the best preparation for any game is always playing.

“I would say that in the run up to Championship football a team needs to prepare themselves for the challenges that will be enviably be thrown at them at this level,” he said.

“There really is no point in wrapping yourself up in cotton wool.  In terms of ‘In House’ games they can be even more furious than real challenge games as a lot of the boys are competing against each other for places.

“At the end of the day you can get injured stepping off a bus or walking down the street so in my opinion challenge matches are there to help us prepare.”

Obviously Charlie was devastated to miss the game against Tyrone but he believes that Armagh have enough strength and depth to cope with his absence.

“In Armagh we believe it is a team game and we are prepared for scenarios like this whereby players can slip in to different positions,” he said.

“Injuries can come at unfortunate times and that is why we have such a strong panel so I have no doubt we can cover all bases no matter who is out injured.”

The midfielder also publicly backed manager Peter McDonnell who has endured a tough time since his appointment.

“I have had experiences with Peter McDonnell through club and county football and he is the best man for the job,” he said.

“He took on a job that perhaps a lot of other managers would have shied away from due to the massive success that Joe Kernan had with the county.  Peter took on a ‘poisoned chalice’ so to speak and he has massive respect amongst all the players involved with the county.”

Armagh have been written off in recent times with some pundits calling them a ‘spent force’ particularly after the defeat by Tyrone, but Charlie feels the Orchard boys could have the last laugh.

“People were writing off Armagh when we were getting to back to back All-Ireland finals and we were written off in 2002 when we lifted the Sam Maguire so in that respect we are comfortable with the title,” he said.

“If truth be told every county panel is in transition but if you look at the age profile of the Armagh panel the average age is around 23-25 years of age with a lot of players under that age which is only a positive thing and very encouraging.”

That said the county have lost a number of hugely influential players like Paul McGrane, Oisín McConville and Paddy McKeever to retirement.

“Players of that calibre would be a big loss to any team in the country.  They were quality players but also quality people off the field,” he said.

“They gave great encouragement to the younger lads on the team and personally I am very grateful to them for the lessons they have given me.  At the end of the day it’s the boys in the panel now who have to stand in the retired players’ boots and do the best that they can.”

He is still suffering some discomfort with the metal pins in his jaw but Charlie is looking forward to pulling on an Armagh jersey again.

“We want to win medals and silverware.  While I will be on the sidelines hopefully for just one match I will be kicking and catching every ball with the lads on the pitch,” he said.