Fermanagh Premier manager Darren Higginbotham was full of praise for his side after a penalty shoot-out defeat denied them a trophy at the Super Cup. After two defeats in the opening group games the Fermanagh side found their scoring boots and notched back to back victories, before suffering spot kick heartbreak in the final of the Premier Vase competition. Despite not returning home with a trophy, the boss was delighted with their efforts.

“Our message to the boys was to hold their heads high because they have had a fantastic week,” he said. “After two defeats in a row they could have gone into their shells but they didn’t. They stood up and were counted and were fantastic. I said to the boys that as long as you can look me in the eye and say you gave everything then I can’t complain. They could all do that. It’s never nice to lose a final but we really pulled together as a squad and to cap the week off with a final was lovely. It would have been even nicer to win it but unfortunately it wasn’t to be.”

Fermanagh missed a succession of chances in the opening game against GPS Bayern and then failed to make an impression against eventual winners Right to Dream. The manager never lost confidence in his players however, and despite falling behind to county rivals Down they recovered to finish the tournament strongly.

“I was always confident we were going to score goals and play well, and it just took one and then the goals started to come, with six in the last three games,” said Darren. “It had been a tough couple of games, and to perform in the manner they did was nothing short of fantastic. In the Right to Dream game they were a class above us but certainly in every other match we never out of it and that was never more evident than in the third game. When we were 2-1 down and there was only six minutes on the clock, the boys stepped up to the mark. It would have been easy for them to crumble but they buckled down and showed what they are about and got a 3-2 win. That is when all the fitness work they had done with Francie in the off season showed. We finished the game and the tournament in a very strong manner and we were a lot fitter than the teams we played against. That was because we prepared the right way.”

Another comeback victory in the semi-final set up a final rematch against Monday’s opponents GPS Bayern, but there were no thoughts of going in as the underdogs despite their previous defeat. “That win was down to bad finishing from us and nothing more than that,” said Darren. “We went into Friday with confidence that if we got the ball down and tried to play our football then we could win. Niall took his chance very well, but unfortunately maybe a lapse in concentration at the start of the second half cost us an equaliser, but we kept pushing. We said we were going to do that from the start, but they defended well and maybe that wee bit of luck evaded us.”

The lottery of a penalty shoot-out ended the team’s dreams of a trophy, but Darren has seen enough from his players to know that they will have plenty more opportunities to win silverware in their football careers. “There are a lot of these guys that have a big future in the game and I would have confidence in any of my 18 to go on and play at a good standard. If the boys continue to progress and take on the information their coaches are giving them and most importantly maintain their hunger to play, then the sky is the limit. I believe in every single one of them and I’m looking forward to seeing great things happen for them.”