Right response needed on Saturday night

Editorial Department • Published 11 Feb 2010 09:34 0 Comments

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Shane Goan in action against Roscommon when the sides met at Brewster Park in the league in 2005.<<

Fermanagh will need to bounce back on Saturday night when they take on Roscommon in a must win game under lights at Brewster Park.

Defeat in the opening league outing against Offaly in Tullamore was not the result that Malachy O'Rourke and his team required last Sunday, and if they are to have any say in the promotion race then they must claim both the points on offer on Saturday night, even if it is only early in the campaign.

With only three home games again this season winning at Brewster Park is going to be crucial for Fermanagh and O'Rourke will be looking for his side to respond in the right manner when they take on Roscommon.

Roscommon were also on the losing side in their opening game and they are sure to be keen to show improvement after being hammered by Cavan in Hyde Park. A double scores thumping, 2-20 to 1-10 was not the way that Roscommon boss Fergal O'Donnell would have wanted to commence the league and they will be aware that defeat to Fermanagh would leave them prime candidates for a relegation battle.

Therefore, for both teams, Saturday night is going to be all about winning and gaining the two points that will hopefully kick start the season.

On Sunday Fermanagh showed plenty of hard work and commitment but it was not to be enough to take them to the points.

The result could have been a different story if they did not have to play more than half the game with 14 men after Martin O'Brien was sent off but O'Rourke will acknowledge that certain areas still need a lot of work if Fermanagh are to compete at the top of this division.

Defensively, Fermanagh allowed Offaly to cut through them on too many occasions for scores and this was also a concern of the manager's after the defeat to Tyrone in the McKenna Cup. Too many times Offaly seemed to be able to find a man in space and Tom Cribben's side managed to score 1-10 of their total from play.

On a positive side, Michael Jones did a good job in coping with the threat of Offaly's main threat, Niall McNamee, while Barry Mulrone got through a lot of good work.

Fermanagh broke even around the middle of the park but they lacked the physical presence of Offaly in that department while in attack there were good performances from Mattie Keenan, Daryl Keenan and Rory Gallagher who all linked up well but the same old problems exist with wasted chances proving a decisive factor in the outcome.

O'Rourke will be forced to make changes for Saturday night with Ronan Gallagher and Rory Gallagher unavailable due to commitments with their club St. Gall's while Martin O'Brien is suspended following his sending off.

Chris Breen will come into goals and will be eager to grab his chance while Ryan Carson should return to the squad for Saturday night's game to fill the full forward slot vacated by Rory Gallagher.

The manager may choose to make one or two further switches to his attack but he will be looking for Carson and the two Keenans to do the bulk of the scoring.

At midfield it is a game too soon for Marty McGrath with the St. Joseph's player expected back for the clash with Antrim in Casement Park so he may opt to go again with Ryan Jones partnering captain James Sherry although Paul Cosgrove provides him with a further option in that sector.

Defensively, Shane Goan or Niall Bogue would be expected to fill in for the suspended O'Brien while Niall McGovern and Rory Foy will be hoping to force their way into a starting spot.

Roscommon will be hurting from the disappointing showing against Cavan and this could prove a tricky game for Fermanagh with Roscommon looking to atone for their display.

And they do have some quality performers who can give Fermanagh plenty of concern.

Against Cavan Roscommon actually more than held their own for the opening period and indeed held a five point lead after 22 minutes with Donie Shine in particular impressive in their forward line.

In fact it was only with 25 minutes to play that Cavan took the lead for the first time and after this the Roscommon challenge completely died away.

The last time Roscommon visited Brewster Park was in the league in 2005 and it was to prove a comfortable afternoon for the home side who won 4-13 to 1-12. This though is a much changed Fermanagh side and Saturday night is unlikely to be as easy. This is a crucial game in the league and could well turn into a close encounter but with home advantage Fermanagh will be hopeful of picking up their first points of the season.

This article appeared in Impartial Reporter 11 Feb 10

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