Disappointing season but not ‘all doom and gloom’ - Duffy

Fermanagh crashed out of the Lory Meagher Cup and in so doing brought the curtain down on what has been a difficult 2018 season. With seven losses and just one draw from eight games the bald facts do not make for pleasant reading but that doesn’t tell the whole story. 
On Saturday against Lancashire we saw a perfect microcosm for the season. A very young Fermanagh side battling hard against an experienced side. 
The early stages were nip and tuck with the Erne men holding their own but a goal on the 25 minute mark from Edmond Kenny saw Lancashire grab a five point advantage and from that point there was only going to be one winner, despite the best efforts of the home side. 
At the final whistle Sean Duffy, Fermanagh manager, was a mixture of pragmatism, realism and pride. 
“Look, we are not trying to get away from the fact that in terms of results it was a disappointing season, but we would take a lot of positives from it too and it is not all doom and gloom. 
“We lost a lot of players, that no team would be able to cope with all at one go, and we had to blood a lot of young players and that will really stand to them in years to come.”
In the game against Lancashire Fermanagh were right with the visitors early on. Shea Curran was accurate from frees while Conor McShea picked off a super point from play. 
At the other end Ronan Crowley was in scintillating form for Lancashire. The Cork man was cut above anything else on the pitch and he accounted for 11 points over the course of the 70 minutes with five points coming from open play. 
Tommy Duane was also in good form early on for the exiles, hitting two points from play with Kenny adding to a point immediately following his crucial goal. 
By half time a six point margin had been opened up and that trend was continued into the second half, despite the best efforts of the Fermanagh men. Dylan Bannon, Ryan Bogue and the McShea brothers, Conor and Adam, all battled hard with Bannon hitting two neat points from play. 
“We couldn’t fault the work rate of the players at all. The Lancashire team are a really hardened experienced team. They are all men who are working in England and who come from hurling counties. They know what they are about.”
For Fermanagh there will of course be the initial disappointment when reflecting on the 2018 season. But things could have been different had a few things gone their way. 
They were the better team against Cavan in the first round of the Lory Meagher Cup and could well have beaten Sligo in round two. They were beaten by the better team at the weekend but this season has been a steep learning curve. 
The difference in the first touch and general play in some of the younger players, such as the McShea brothers, Barry McPhillips, Ciaran Rafferty and Dylan Bannon was clearly evident and in terms of Fermanagh hurling they have been learning their trade in a very tough environment. 
Considering the host of players lost through retirement, travelling and other commitments and also the injuries to key players and key times there was something of a perfect storm of disadvantage for Duffy and his side this year. However, the experience that the players picked up this season will stand to them in years to come.