A learning process
December 30, 2009After earning promotion in a dramatic league finale at the end of 2008, the Ballygassan outfit were hoping to build on that achievement as they moved up to Division 2. It was also hoped that playing at the higher level would assist in their efforts to make a serious assault on the Junior Championship, a competition that saw them start among the favourites once again.
However, despite being competitive throughout the league campaign, it proved to be a year of 'ifs and buts' for Naomh Fionnbarra whose performances were not rewarded in terms of victories and they ended the year facing the dreaded relegation play-off.
For the players, it was a very frustrating season as they know that, while they simply didn't perform in the Junior Championship, things could have been so much different in the league had they enjoyed a little more fortune.
One of their more experienced players, Martin Crosbie, points out that while it was ultimately a very disappointing year, there is a feeling that they were not far away from securing a comfortable league position.
"Last year we won the Division 3 league and our aim was to build on those performances this time out. I think we achieved that to an extent as we were very competitive in most games, but just didn't get the results we perhaps deserved.
"I would say that with the exception of the game against the O'Connells, we were never out-played in any match. Even in that game we had a great ten minute spell when we just failed to score and when they had a similar spell of dominance they scored 2-3 or 2-4 to effectively kill the game.
"In a number of games we were very unlucky and just lost out by a point or two. I suppose some might say that luck didn't go our way, but in all matches we did create enough chances to win but just couldn't get the scores on the board.
"One game that sums is all up was the match against the Clans when we hit the woodwork three times when we looked to have certain goals. They went on to win the game narrowly and I suppose it is when things are going against you that you need a bit of luck.
"It just proves that there is very little margin between having a satisfactory season and having a poor season, so instead of finishing in a comfortable mid-table position, we were left battling to preserve our Division 2 status," explained Crosbie.
While Martin and his colleagues may feel a bit hard done by in terms of their efforts in the league, he admits that there was no such hard luck story in terms of the Junior Championship as they simply didn't play to the level required and failed to make it into the knock-out stages.
It had been felt by many that the experience of Division 2 football would help the Finbarrs mount a serious challenge for the Christy Bellew Cup, but according to Crosbie it is impossible to identify a reason as to why they played so poorly in the competition.
"When you go up to a higher league there is a great incentive to compete at that level and cope with a different type of football and I think we did pretty well. Everyone at the club was hoping that this would stand to us when it came to the championship but that turned out to be a real disaster for us.
"Once again we started that year among the favourites and we felt that over all we did have a decent squad, but when it came to the action on the field we just didn't compete. It is hard for anyone to put their finger on the reason for our failure but we just didn't do ourselves justice."
Naomh Fionnbarra found themselves under pressure after the opening game when they lost out by two points to Stabannon Parnells in April and a month later came out on the wrong end of a 0-13 to 0-7 scoreline against an emerging young St Fechins side.
Despite those losses, the Ballygassan side were not out of the competition and with three games remaining still had the opportunity to claim a place in the quarter-final.
They went into their third game in Group B against St Kevins knowing that they had to raise their performance and claim both points if they were to retain an interest in the competition. However, according to Martin that proved to be one of the most disappointing nights of the season as they lost out by three points.
"I would say that that was probably the worst experience of the whole season for us as we owned the ball for much of the game but again just didn't take our scores and they won by 1-8 to 1-5.
"We went on then to beat John Mitchels and Dowdallshill in our remaining two games and the most frustrating thing is knowing that had we beaten St Kevins, we would have gone through to the knock-out stages, but it was the Kevins who went through instead."
Despite the disappointments suffered this year, Martin feels there are enough positives to bring into the 2010 campaign to suggest that they can compete for the major honours once again.
"It is always hard to know what the future holds, but like any team we will start the new year with optimism. We know that we have a good squad, although you always lose players for a variety of reasons throughout the year.
"There is no doubt that we are good enough to win a Junior Championship but it is all about proving that on the field. I think with St Mochtas going up to Intermediate it is going to be a very even competition next year and we will be one of a number of teams who have the ability to come out on top but that will depend on a number of factors.
"The one thing I will say is that we have a very honest bunch of lads who, in the main, will give you everything. That is an important quality as you have to put in the effort to achieve anything in sport.
"We would all love to be competing at a higher level and if we get things right on the pitch then we are capable of going up. The crucial thing for us next year is to take each game as if comes and get into the habit of winning. We didn't have that winning habit this year which meant that in many cases we didn't have the confidence to go on and win games that were within our grasp."
For Martin and his colleagues the focus will be on taking encouragement from their displays this year and if they put in the hard work required they have every chance of securing a place at a higher grade. Tweet
