Which would be a shame really, because the current crop of players, with perhaps a few additions and a bit of fine-tuning, have the ability to compete with the best in Ulster and the hard knocks taken in league and championship will undoubtedly stand to them. It’s often said of Ulster finals that you have to lose one before you win one and the same might be said of semi-finals. The Ulster Championship, beyond the first round, is relatively uncharted territory for Fermanagh and given their lack of experience at this level, the county men can’t be too disheartened - nearly snatching a draw against one of the favourites for the All-Ireland is a worthy achievement.

    Think back to this time last year and it’s clear Fermanagh have made immense progress under the tutelage of Pat King. Things looked bleak after a particularly spiritless collapse to a very limited Tyrone side, but Fermanagh regrouped and fared much better than expected in their first year in Division One of the League.

    Charting Fermanagh’s progress over the year Pat King’s emphasis on putting in a lot of effort for the league was fully vindicated. Unlike some of the bigger counties who can afford not to take the league too seriously, this Fermanagh team needed the experience of playing the best teams in the country and undoubtedly the experience stood them in good stead for the summer campaign.

    Contrary to the received wisdom, teams that do well in the league usually figure in the summer reckoning, and although the county players will be now turning their attentions to club football, it is of crucial importance that Fermanagh sustains its level of commitment to the NFL when it resumes in the autumn.

    Playing Division One football is a massive bonus and the benefits of games against the likes of Kildare, Meath and Derry have been very evident this summer, not least in terms of mental toughness and fitness levels.

    Similarly Fermanagh’s extended run in the championship tells a lot about the strengths and weaknesses of the team - and it’s a shame that it now looks like the county will have to do without the services of the man best qualified to oversee the necessary improvements. The danger is that with a new management the county team could loose the momentum and continuity built up over the past four years.

    Reflecting on the three games this summer can be most instructive in identifying where Fermanagh can improve their game and indeed whether or not they have the resources and overall ability to go one step further in 2001.

    Against Monaghan, Fermanagh mixed the good with the indifferent: Stephen Maguire showed there was more to the Fermanagh attack than the Gallaghers with an outstanding display at full-forward, while throughout the field the team showed impressive coherence mixing the long ball with the short, running game. In previous campaigns Fermanagh have often looked disjointed but the team that appeared in Brewster Park in May looked both organised and integrated, most of the starting 15 had wintered together and were well aware of each other’s game.

    On the downside, however, Fermanagh were unable to put away a poor Monaghan side until the dying minutes and for a period in the middle of the game faded badly, failing to score for over 20 minutes. Defensive frailties were also exposed, although with only Declan Smyth consistently dangerous, Monaghan didn’t have the personnel to exploit the opportunities that came their way.

    That said, this was a very tricky game - very little was known about Monaghan except that they had apparently performed well in challenge games against some formidable opposition. Fermanagh, saddled with the favourites tag and playing their first game in a new-look Brewster Park in front of an expectant home crowd, were ‘there for the taking’. But after Monaghan cut the deficit to one point in the second half King’s men showed the maturity and stamina to up a gear and finish the game pulling up.

    Highlight of the championship campaign was without question, Fermanagh’s famous win over Donegal in Ballybofey and again, when questions were asked of Pat King’s team it responded positively. Granted, Fermanagh needed a lucky break with the penalty incident halting Donegal’s momentum at a crucial stage, but the game still had to be won and in terms of heart and commitment the team performed magnificently. It was close in the end but over the 70 minutes there was no doubt that Fermanagh played the better football, although again the limitations were at times all too evident.

    While there is no doubting the scoring potential of Fermanagh’s attack, the full-forward line in particular, all too often that potential simply hasn’t been realised simply because the supply has been irregular and erratic.

    That was certainly the case in the second half of the Donegal game when the sending off forced Fermanagh to change their game, pulling 13 men behind the ball but failing to get the right sort of ball into Maguire and Raymond Gallagher.

    However, Ballybofey was a milestone: not only did Rory Gallagher establish himself as one of the most prolific forwards to emerge in recent years, but the midfield partnership of Brewster and McBarron worked well together and was ably supported by half-backs and half-forwards even if the latter played dangerously deep.

    Sunday’s defeat against Armagh might be seen in a positive light - Fermanagh made life very difficult for the best football team in Ulster and in the end-up could have snatched a draw. Defensively, Fermanagh toiled like Trojans and the all-Devenish full-back line deserved great credit considering this was its first championship outing.

    All in all, however, it was a very disappointing performance and although it may seem harsh and uncharitable to say so, a draw would not have been a fair result. Fermanagh did work exceptionally hard but it has to be said that most of the football was played by Armagh, showing much greater penetration and attacking creativity. Granted the Fermanagh backs can take some of the credit for Armagh’s wastefulness up front but the fact remains that the Orchardmen created almost 30 scoring chances, nearly all of which were from play. In contrast Fermanagh had relatively few wides which was an indication not only of Rory Gallagher’s accuracy from frees but also of a team totally bereft of imagination up front.

    Despite the worst efforts of their errant forwards, Armagh won this game simply because of the control they exerted over the middle third of the field. Obviously John McEntee and Paul McGrane were in exceptional form, but the wing-backs, Kieran Hughes and Andrew McCann, were totally on top of their opposite numbers and Cathal O’Rourke and Tony McEntee also helped disrupt the supply line to the Fermanagh forwards.

    Two scores from play and only a handful of scoring chances tells their own story. Obviously had Stephen Maguire seen more of the ball, the outcome could have been very different, but the truth is that Armagh totally dominated this game in terms of possession and with the orangemen well on top outfield there wasn’t much opportunity to supply the man in form.

    Fermanagh football can delude itself and spend the winter telling itself how close it was to causing an upset, it can wonder about what would have happened had McDermott’s perfectly valid point been allowed or had either of the Gallaghers late, late frees gone over.

    If this mentality is allowed to prevail progress will not be made: in order to build on this year’s achievements the county team will have to acknowledge that it simply wasn’t good enough

    Whether or not it will ever be good enough to win an Ulster title is debatable, but assuming the potential is there Fermanagh must find - or create - more ball winners and more footballers with the ability and composure to keep possession and move the ball forward with speed and accuracy.