Fermanagh manager Kieran Donnelly believes there will be much bigger challenges on the horizon before his side take on Armagh in the Ulster Championship next year.
His charges will face the Orchard County in the first round of the Ulster showpiece, but they will also encounter them before that in the National League Division 2 as well as Donegal, Cavan, Cork, Kildare, Louth and Meath.
It will be a big step up from last year’s league campaign and one Donnelly is prioritising above all else.
“To be honest, doing well in Division Two and making a good start in the league is our main focus,” he said.
“Of course, we’ll be thinking about it [the Ulster Championship], but retaining our Division Two status is our top priority.
“It’s exactly where we need to be as a team. We’re evolving.
“I thought we had a good year last year. The players have to take a massive amount of credit for how they dug out some of those results.”
An influx of new faces to the county panel will hope to give the squad an extra edge. Enniskillen Gaels’ Conor Love, John Reihill, Callum Jones and Ross Bogue have been added to the mix, along with Devenish’s JJ O’Brien and Jamie Flanagan, Paddy McGovern of Kinawley and Tempo’s Tiarnan Bogue.
“There will definitely be more competition for places. It’s an extra incentive for everyone and will freshen up the squad,” Donnelly said.
A home draw with Armagh in the Ulster Championship, with the winners taking on either Antrim or Down in the semi final, has many onlookers calling it the weak side of the draw, but Donnelly was having none of it.
“My thinking behind any championship draw is that there’s no such thing as an easy one,” he explained.
“I never get caught up in who we’re playing and what side of the draw we’re on. You’re going to play some of the top teams at some stage of the competition.
“In Armagh, there’s no doubt we’ll be facing formidable opposition. They probably should have won the Ulster title last year and had a great run in the back door where they beat a strong Galway team.
“We’re under no illusions, but it’s a home draw and one we’ll be looking forward to. We always rise to the challenge of the likes of the Armaghs and the Tyrones of this world.”
To read more.. Subscribe to current edition
Receive quality journalism wherever you are, on any device. Keep up to date from the comfort of your own home with a digital subscription.
Any time | Any place | Anywhere