Ernesiders look to recapture spirit of ’04 in Kingdom trip
Admittedly, they won’t have too many happy memories of their last visit to Fitzgerald Stadium. Two seasons ago, almost to the day, they were hammered by the hosts in a league encounter, a game that marked one of the lowest ebbs for Fermanagh football under Charlie Mulgrew.
Yet that defeat proved something of a watershed. Mulgrew knew his team were better than that. His players knew they were better than that. And over a long fairytale summer, they set about proving to the country that they were better than that 2-18 to 0-6 drubbing.
A couple of months later they beat Cork by six points in the All-Ireland qualifiers, and claimed another notable scalp when they defeated Armagh by a point in the quarter-finals before their incredible journey finally came to an end at the hands of Mayo by two points in a semi-final replay.
“Those were heady days for Fermanagh football,” admits manager Mulgrew.
How he would love to have them back.
Mulgrew, who had taken over from Dominic Corrigan, at the time described that crushing loss as “a huge setback to Fermanagh football”.
But he couldn’t possibly have foreseen what was to unfold.
“We didn’t win the Ulster championship that year so it was the scenic route for us. Cork were our opponents in the qualifiers and few gave us any chance of winning that game. The view within the county was, we’d settle for a good show against them.
“Imagine then when we beat Cork by six points what that did for our confidence. Having got the scent of victory, we faced Armagh in the All-Ireland quarter-final, and after another emotional day, we emerged winners by a point.
“It was an incredible time for Fermanagh football. We were now through to the semi-final where Mayo provided the opposition. We were on a roll, had the whole of Fermanagh, Ulster and possibly Ireland behind us, and we looked winners until Mayo came with a late spurt to force a draw.
“The bubble finally burst on us in the replay when Mayo won by two points, 0-13 to 1-8, but we gained huge respect as a football county as a result of our great run.
“We have the guts of the squad from 2004 still with us which has proved invaluable. Our objective this year would be to maintain our Division One league status and thankfully we’ve started well with two wins out of two.
“Our last visit to Kerry was not a happy one, but that’s water under the bridge. We are going into the game off the back of wins over Monaghan and Tyrone, but no-one is getting carried away.
“This is only March, a time when most teams are in the throes of hard training and trying out various combinations in matches.
“At the same time we are not going down to Killarney to view the scenery. The lads are confident they can win and remain unbeaten, but accept that Kerry at home will be very difficult to beat.
“Kerry are an exceptional outfit, and I will be looking for our lads to continue their improvement. If we can improve on how we have been playing that would be great. You can only do that by playing the best and that is why it’s so important for us to win sufficient points to stay in the division.
“Anything after that is a bonus.”
CONNECT WITH US TODAY
Be the first to know the latest news and updates
