'The boys went out with the right attitude'
Editorial Department • Published 12 Jan 2012 13:00
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Peter Canavan has been there and done it all as a footballer, so a victory over Antrim in an opening McKenna Cup game is not going to see the former Tyrone star lose the run of himself.
He did though allow himself half a smile when questioned on the performance of full forward Seamus Quigley who finished the day with a personal tally of 1-08.
"Not bad," said Canavan of the Roslea man's display. The new Fermanagh manager does feel there are areas that Quigley can improve on but he knows a thing or two about quality forwards and the finish for the goal certainly caught the eye.
"There's areas of his play he will look at too I'm sure. He possibly got caught up in a few things. But certainly, the goal was a fantastic finish and not too many could have buried it the way Seamie did."
There has been question marks over Quigley's commitment to the Fermanagh cause in the past but Canavan says that the free scoring forward has been putting in a great effort to date, just like the rest of the panel.
"I can only judge him [Quigley] on this past couple of weeks and I must say he has been as dedicated as any player that has come to training. He's been dedicated, he hasn't missed anything, he's putting in maximum effort and that's what I am judging him on so far. He's no different than the other 30 boys on the panel; they know they have a long way to go and I don't think they are getting carried away with anything. I made them aware that Antrim had a very tough training session yesterday, so that would indicate that they are not focused so much on the McKenna Cup, hence they tired somewhat in the second half," he said.
Fermanagh went into the game with Canavan having concerns over the squads fitness and while he was delighted with the victory, what was more pleasing was the work rate and effort shown by the players.
"There was 20 players used today and they displayed great hunger and commitment and that was very pleasing to see," he said.
"It was a good way to get started. I was a bit wary coming into it as our standard of fitness would leave a lot to be desired yet. Likewise with strength and conditioning work, the boys are a long way behind other counties at the minute. But I must say I have been impressed with their attitude in training and that was very much displayed here. They led here in the match from the start, there was commitment, boys went out with the right attitude and that pleased me more than anything."
Canavan admits that he is still getting used to his new role.
"It's different. It's not something I am used to, but you get to know the players over a short period of time and when you work with players who give you full commitment and are dedicated, then a relationship soon develops. There's a bond developing among the squad of players and I'm pleased with that. They are realistic enough to know they are in Division Four for a reason, and they are going to fight to dig themselves out of it. But it's definitely different," commented Canavan.
And he is also pleased with the response of people within the county.
"I must say I was delighted with the reception the players got today and I think we sent the supporters home happy," stated Canavan.
He added: "Every night we have been training it's been positive and we've been getting great encouragement and support from the people down here. That's fantastic and it's very much appreciated by the management. All we can do is get these boys to go out and wear their heart on their sleeve, give full commitment. The Fermanagh supporters would certainly agree they did that today."
This article appeared in Impartial Reporter 12 Jan 12
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