NO excuses nor complaints from defeated Erne County captain Shannan McQuade – but also no doubt that Fermanagh Ladies will be back in Croke Park.
Roscommon were very impressive victors, taking a double figures lead after only 20 minutes and winning by 12 points in the end.
The Tempo woman acknowledged her opponents’ superiority: “Roscommon no doubt was the better team there and they definitely deserved to be lifting that cup.”
Yet she’s also very optimistic about the future for the girls in green after manager Barry McKenna led them to this unexpected final appearance in his first season in charge.
Although she made her own senior debut 13 years ago, she’s still only 29, and points to the young age profile of the squad:
“Definitely, we have exciting youth that are coming through - you see the likes of Sinead Barrett, Cliodhna Martin (both 21) there’s plenty of girls that are coming through, this is maybe the first or second year on the county panel.
“Fermanagh will be here again.”
The very fact they were here at all was worthy of praise, and a shock to many. Beaten by Cavan in Ulster, then by another set of neighbours - Connacht Intermediate champs Leitrim – they regrouped superbly.
Wicklow were stuffed by 14 points, then Clare beaten by 10, before Fermanagh saw off Down by two in the All-Ireland semi-final.
Sadly they never got going in this final, and McQuade was especially sorry for Fermanagh’s followers:
“It’s disappointing with the amount of supporters out there out the day. You’ve seen the people that travelled up here and made the effort.
“We had a really good squad for the final so it was disappointing that we weren’t able to show up for them today. We’ve definitely had a lot of better performances than that today.”
Roscommon left wing-back Ella Thompson, whose two points from play were more than the entire Fermanagh team managed, was one of several star performers for the winners.
The 22-year-old St Croan’s clubwoman agreed that she and her team-mates had “saved the best for last,” adding: “It was a great performance.
“We had a rocky start to the championship… but we really proved ourselves against Cavan, although we came up short.
“We took a lot of learning from that game and pushed on, and we went from strength to strength from game to game.”
Roscommon had seemed in disarray in early May when they lost the Connacht Intermediate decider by an astonishing 22 points against Leitrim.
Yet they bounced back from that, and that three-point defeat by Cavan she mentioned, to overcome Down, Leitrim (a remarkable 26-point turnaround from the first meeting), Westmeath, and now Fermanagh.
“It’s unbelievable,” said Thompson. “We’re such a close group of girls. We’ve had a small panel on here, and I think that’s what’s stuck to us.
“You know, everyone is friends. We all work so well together, play together. And to be here with that group of girls….”
Croke Park was a place of final redemption for Roscommon – and Erne County captain McQuade believes it can be such for Fermanagh too.
She acknowledged that getting to HQ on Finals Day was an achievement, and a sign of the progress Fermanagh Ladies football has made:
“Definitely. I suppose a few years ago when we were fighting or battling Junior would we have thought that we were going to be in the Intermediate Final only two years later? I don’t think so.
“So this is massive steps for Fermanagh. We didn’t get here by chance, we worked hard and it just wasn’t our day today.”
