Fermanagh go into this Sunday’s final round of the league against Derry at Brewster Park knowing that defeat will leave them consigned to Division Three football in 2018.

The league campaign started on a bright note with the nine point win over Down in Pairc Esler on the opening night and optimistic talk of promotion but since then it has been disappointing with Fermanagh simply conceding far too many scores to give themselves a chance of winning games.

Victory did come over Clare which ended a run of three successive defeats but this was followed up by the worst performance of the campaign in the heavy defeat to Meath in Navan last Sunday afternoon.

It was a display that left many Fermanagh fans despondent and certainly there was little, if any, positives to take out of the game as Fermanagh were second best in all areas of the pitch.

However, Fermanagh still have a chance of survival and it will be important that the fans get right behind the team this Sunday at Brewster Park when they face a Derry side who are a point below Fermanagh in the table.

If that is to be achieved though Fermanagh are going to have to show a significant improvement in performance and they simply have to become a tougher side to breakdown. It has been all too easy for sides to cut through the defence for goals this year and before anything else that has to be stopped.

Fermanagh have conceded 10 goals already in the league this year compared to six that they shipped in last season’s campaign and that has to be a serious area for concern.

The system that Fermanagh have been playing this year has been slightly altered with manager Pete McGrath keen to make them more of a threat going forward which is understandable. However, Fermanagh have been averaging in and around the same amount of scores for as they did during last year’s league campaign as they once again struggle to score goals. Last year Fermanagh scored two goals in the league, this year they have one so far.

But, it is at the other end of the pitch that Fermanagh are suffering as they have conceded on average four points more per game. Last season they averaged 13 points against during the league but this season it is over 17. They have looked much more vulnerable and porous at the back in terms of coughing up goal chances and it may be a case of getting back to basics on Sunday and shutting up shop first and foremost.

In fairness, Fermanagh lost a lot of experienced performers at the end of last summer. Trusted and reliable defensive linchpins such as Marty O’Brien, Niall Cassidy and Damian Kelly retired from the inter-county scene and they were always going to leave a big gap in the squad.

Richie O’Callaghan and Conall Jones left on their travels and O’Callaghan’s absence has maybe been understated as he did a lot of good, unseen work in the middle third. And on top of that, Ruairi Corrigan was ruled out for the league with a shoulder injury and his ability to use the ball has been sorely missed.

Sunday though is another day and survival is still achievable although there are various permutations.

Fermanagh managed to stave off relegation last year by earning a draw against Tyrone at Brewster Park on the final day and a win on Sunday would see them finish with the same amount of points that they had at the end of last year’s league.

It will be a big day for the players and management and one that they will be keen to get right. The management will need to get the team set up right and the players will have to perform.

Let’s not forget, this is a Fermanagh team with no shortage of quality, the key on Sunday will be to show that which is something they didn’t do against Meath with the side making too many basic errors.

This team is better than they showed against Meath and if they can get the performance right against Derry then the result should look after itself. A win will hopefully be enough to stay in Division Two and would also send the players into their championship preparations on a positive note.