Plenty more in the tank for St Pat's
December 30, 2010Boasting a panel that contained a considerable number of players who had represented Louth at both senior and junior inter-county level, the Pats also had some quality players coming through the underage ranks.
With a third title in five seasons under their belts, the Lordship club had serious designs on adding to their impressive collection of silverware and few would argue that the Pats would be among the main contenders for the foreseeable future.
Despite losing their crown in disappointing fashion in 2008, St Pats came out the following season determined to make up for that and looked set for victory until a lapse in concentration allowed Mattock Rangers to snatch semi-final victory from their grasp.
The manner of that defeat was the motivation for this season's Senior Championship but again it ended in defeat in the last four to a Mattock Rangers side who went onto successfully defend their title.
Although St Patricks forward, Karl White, admits it was a major blow not to go all the way this year, he believes that there is still plenty more in this squad and feels the experiences of the past two years will stand to them for the 2011 campaign.
"I think losing the semi-final in 2009 was a very big disappointment for all involved, particularly as we were well in control of the game coming towards the end. Unfortunately we just didn't take the chances to finish it off and Mattock kept going until the end. They got a goal near the finish and we weren't able to recover from that.
"It was even more disappointing when they went on to win the final by a very comfortable margin, so we felt that was one championship that got away from us.
"At the start of the year that was very much on our minds and our intention was to make up for missing out on the title," revealed Karl who pointed out that the season was going according to plan for much of the campaign.
"We began our campaign against St Marys and to be honest we were a bit apprehensive going into that game as we were the last team to play and we had been waiting a long time for the match. Normally the championship season would start in April but for various reasons that game wasn't played until August so we weren't sure how it would go.
"However, once we got going we settled very quickly and got the goals that mattered. That put us through to the knock-out stages even before we had to play Cooley in the final group game.
"That was a bit of a dead rubber as nobody wanted to reveal their hand at that point in the year, and to be honest we were lucky not to be beaten that day.
"That qualified us for a game against Dreadnots and it is another game that we were very wary about. They have some good young players coming through and in Paddy Clarke they have an excellent manager, so many people were predicting an upset.
"However, we went out with the right attitude and with Paddy Keenan having a brilliant game we were well in control at the break, while a goal early in the second half effectively sealed the victory," explained Karl.
That set up a mouth-watering clash with Mattock Rangers in the semi-final, but unfortunately for the Pats they were not able to build on their promising form and again lost out after a below-par performance at Dromiskin.
"I suppose that was the game everyone wanted to see and we were keen to test ourselves against Mattock but unfortunately we only really played to our ability for ten minutes in that game.
"Some people blame the delay caused by extra-time in the Minor Championship semi-final but the reality is that it was the same for both teams so I don't think that was a factor.
"The simple fact is that Mattock were the best team on the night and we just didn't get going in the first half," he added.
Despite the poor display in the opening period, it looked as if the Pats had found their form with an excellent start to the second half but White believes that they didn't get the rub of the green required to press home their advantage.
"Although we had played poorly in the first half, we were boosted by the fact that we were only three points behind at the break. We came out in the second half and really played well for ten minutes and managed to take the lead so it was looking good for us at that stage.
"I had a chance of a goal and it was well saved before a brilliant block stopped the rebound from going into the net. Mattock then went up and got the decisive goal when the ball came back off the post and straight to their player.
"That is the nature of football as is tight games the result can turn on incidents like that."
Although it was bitterly disappointing to miss out on a place in the final for a second successive year, Karl takes some comfort from the fact that they have lost to the eventual champions and is optimistic that his team can recapture the Joe Ward Cup.
"We all know that it is still within our capability to win a Senior Championship as we still have a good strong squad and a number of young players coming through.
"Perhaps seeing the disappointment of losing two semi-finals will make us stronger as we will come out next year determined to set the record straight.
"Although we have been competing well in the league, it really is all about how you perform in the championship and despite winning three titles over the last few years we are determined to get as many as we can. There is no doubt that Mattock Rangers will be going all out to win a three-in-a-row but we would love to be the team that stops them," added Karl.
Despite failing to claim the Joe Ward Cup this year, Karl is a fan of the new championship structure.
"I think last year our complaint was that we were so comfortable in our group games that it affected us when it came to the knock-out stages as we got straight through to the semi-final and hadn't been tested before we had to play Mattock Rangers.
"This year it was different because the pressure is on to perform in each match and I think that can only benefit football. It also meant the season was more compact and hopefully it will continue," he continued. Tweet
