Fermanagh manager Kieran Donnelly is likely to be without full back Che Cullen for this weekend’s trip to Tullamore to face Offaly after the Belnaleck man picked up a hamstring injury during last Saturday’s win over Longford in Ederney.

Cullen had been very impressive in the game, but Donnelly feels that he is unlikely to be available for the Offaly encounter.

“Che Cullen is extremely doubtful – it is very unlikely that he will make it,” said Donnelly, who believes Cullen has been excellent since returning to the county colours.

“He is everything that we have been missing. He brings that wee bit of presence, he is aggressive when you need him to be, and any high ball that went in, you felt very safe with him. He dealt with McGivney exceptionally well.”

Other than that though, the Erne boss expects a clean bill of health for Sunday’s clash.

“We have a few wee niggles but they should be all right, and we hope to have Declan McCusker next weekend,” he added.

Offaly also began their campaign on a winning note with victory over Antrim in Corrigan Park, and Donnelly knows that his side face a stern test in Tullamore.

“Offaly are a very youthful side, back-boned by a few of those U20s and they have a new manager, and the bounce you get from that.

“They will also be buoyed by the win over Antrim, because Corrigan Park is not an easy place to go and get a result.

“One thing that was very evident against Antrim last week was that they are a pacey team. They have runners and are mobile, so it is going to be a different game with a different dynamic and different match-ups,” he said.

Fermanagh though will travel with confidence themselves for the game, and Donnelly wants his side to go out and build on the performance against Longford.

“It is about building on it and gaining the confidence from that win last week, and carrying it into this weekend.

“I was happy with a lot of areas of our game, but like every game, there are areas that we need to tidy up, going into this weekend.

“But you want to back it up, that’s the next stage for any team, you want to put two wins back to back and be consistent in our performances,” he commented.

So, what pleased the Erne manager most about the display against Longford?

“It was just the pace that we played at; we had runners behind, we had options on the ball, and I just felt that we controlled the game well, possession wise.

“We were smart on the ball, especially in that key period in the first half when we were on top, and we maximised our chances, which is one thing that we hadn’t done in the McKenna Cup,” he explained.

Central to the attacking play was the return to action of Sean Quigley, Darragh McGurn and Sean Cassidy, and Donnelly hopes to see them push on further in the weeks ahead.

“They are scoring forwards and we need scoring forwards.

“It is another game under their belts, and it is something they can build on over the next two or three weeks.”