McGrath focused on Fermanagh

January 29, 2016

Fermanagh manager Pete McGrath.
©INPHO/Presseye/Trevor Lucy.

Fermanagh manager Pete McGrath admits that he has heard all about Derry's free flowing style of football, but he is more concerned with how his charges play when the sides meet in the National League on Sunday.

The Oakleafers impressed throughout the McKenna Cup, eventually being beaten by Tyrone in the final after extra time, but their performances have earned rave reviews.

McGrath told the Fermanagh Herald that he has heard all about them and their manager Damien Barton, but added that the focus had to be on his charges.

"I've read a lot about Derry and the way they play over the course of the McKenna Cup in different analyses and they are playing a lot more direct than they did last year," said Barton.

"They're playing with energy, they have runners coming from the middle third of the field. They like to get the ball in early to their full forward line and support it.

"Damien Barton as a player was a centre forward and a thinker. He was the brains of the Derry attack that won the All-Ireland. He managed Burren here in Down for a couple of years. He thinks about the game and he will have his team playing a certain way and it will be planned, structured and thought out."

He added: "We have to concentrate on ourselves and our team and what we want to bring to the game on Sunday. I have no doubt that if we bring something very close to our best play to this game we have a massive opportunity to get something out of it."


Most Read Stories