Joes miss the boat again in 2004. Having left it too late to get their first points on the board in Group D, they failed to get their SFC challenge off the ground. Pipped in their first two championship games, the Dromiskin men struck with a comfortable victory over Kilkerley in their final group outing. But a surprise result elsewhere that same evening meant the Joes would play no further part in the 2004 race for Joe Ward glory. Yet again, the Green, White and Gold had underachieved; much to the disappointment of centre half back Aidan Maguire. St Josephs' potential is beyond question. Their inability to fulfil that latent potential is one of the great mysteries of Louth GAA. With proven players of the calibre of Ollie McDonnell, David Reilly, Declan O'Sullivan, Stephen Melia and Martin Farrelly at their disposal and an impressive core of lesser-sung clubmen providing a solid spine, the Joes should surely be rated as genuine senior championship contenders. However, 2004 will be remembered as yet another year that slipped through the net of time as, for some reason or another, the Joes failed to make an impact in the premier competition. Indeed, their ongoing failure to progress to the knock-out stage of the competition borders on the unfathomable. Not that the Joes played badly in the '04 SFC. They performed reasonably well, but things went against them. Still, they know they are capable of much better. Good enough to make their own luck. They were in Group D of the senior championship, up against 2003 finalists St Marys, senior rookies O'Connells and unfancied Kilkerley Emmets. The first outing was against the Ardee men at Haggardstown on May 22. It was a nip and tuck affair but the Joes went down narrowly, despite scoring thirteen times, 0-15 to 0-13. It wasn't an ideal start but most observers still expected the Dromiskin/Darver combination to progress by winning their next two matches. Next up was the local derby against O'Connells, who were playing senior football for the first time in 75 years. Joes held most of the aces in terms of overall experience, but the Castlebellingham crew boasted match-winners Mark Stanfield and Stefan White in their ranks. They also had nothing to lose and were ravenously hungry for a famous win. This appetite proved decisive at Knockbridge on June 18, as the Joes succumbed by three points, 1-12 to 1-9. Amazingly, there was still hope. Victory over Kilkerley in their last group game coupled with the expected St Marys win over O'Connells on the same day (July 9) would guarantee the Joes a three-way play-off for second place in the group and a path to the quarter-finals. St Josephs kept their part of the bargain, comprehensively defeating Kilkerley by 2-12 to 2-5 at Knockbridge, but it was a hallow victory as O'Connells recorded an unlikely 0-11 to 0-10 win over the Deesiders that same evening. Thus, St Marys and O'Connells progressed from Group D to face Clan na Gael and St Patrick's respectively. The Joes were out. It was thoroughly disappointing. Aidan Maguire nods his head in response to the suggestion that the Joes are selling themselves short. Does he accept that they are under achieving, then? "I'd have to agree with that. In fairness, 2004 was one of our worst years in the championship since we won the Joe Ward in 1996. We're all very disappointed. Another year has passed where we've failed to get past the group stages, and that's disappointing. We're kicking ourselves. "The backbone of this team has come through together and we've been together since '96. We're not getting any younger, so we can't afford too many more years like that." Of course, there were mitigating circumstances. The Joes never quite had a full complement at their disposal, which made it difficult to hit top form. Aidan notes: "Some of the key players had injuries at the start of the year and we missed those players. There was always somebody missing and we never managed to get into our rhythm. Because of the injuries, some new lads came in and played senior football for the first time. Those lads got to experience senior football and that will stand us in good stead in future campaigns, but they're still relatively young and we probably needed our full team out in 2004." Since famously capturing the SFC for the first and only time in '96, St Josephs have gone eight years without making a major impact in the premier competition. Is there any sign of panic starting to set in? "Not really," says Aidan. "We're not that happy with our performances but we're not exactly panicking either. We'd be more disappointed in ourselves, because we know our ability. We have a small enough squad. Even though we could have 25 or 30 lads on the sideline sometimes, there are really only 19 or 20 players in contention for first-team places. It'll take another four years before the rest of the younger lads are challenging, so we have to be patient. The talent is there so hopefully, if we keep working hard and trying, we can make an impression again. "Next year we're going to knuckle down and put the effort in again. We know we didn't do ourselves justice on the field in '04. Okay, it could have been different if we'd had our full team available for every game, but we hadn't and we have to move on now. We're not panicking - but we're definitely disappointed." Most people would have expected the Joes to emerge from Group D. What did they think themselves when the draw was made? "I have to admit we fancied our chances of getting out of it. We haven't been in the strongest groups for the past two or three years and it was the same again in 2004. At the same time, however, we knew we had to be careful because championship football is funny and it's all on the day." The opener was against St Marys, who had reached the county final the previous September only to lose out after a replay. It was a big test, as Aidan recalls: "We knew it would be tough going in against the Marys. But we also knew that if we played to our own strengths and ability that there was no reason why we couldn't win. We played well but missed some chances at important stages in the game, while St Marys got their scores when they really needed them. That was the difference between winning and losing." However, the Joes still had two games to go and - with the group favourites already played - they knew they could do it. The clash with neighbours O'Connells provided the key to their season: "Apart from the pressure of a game that both teams had to win to remain in control of their destiny, there was the added pressure of a local derby. O'Connells probably weren't under as much pressure as we were because there's not as much expected of them, but they had to win too and fair play to them. They did what they had to do. They stuck to their game plan. They have a lot of young players who are well capable of playing football. When we were on top, we couldn't pull away from them. We allowed them back into the game and they edged us out. We couldn't complain, because the best team won on the day." A three-way play-off remained a possibility, but things were now out of the Joes' own hands. They needed St Marys to record an unnecessary but nonetheless widely anticipated (as the Ardee men had a 100% record in both league and championship up until that point) victory over O'Connells to throw them a lifeline. Meanwhile, they themselves had to see off Kilkerley. Aidan takes the story up: "We still had a chance and we still thought something might happen for us. Again, it was a must-win game against Kilkerley and the Marys were playing good football so we expected them to beat O'Connells. All we could do was go out and play our own game and forget about the other match. We played well and won, but it was a surprise when word filtered through that O'Connells had got the win they needed. That's championship football for you." It was a cruel irony, as things had just started to fall into place for the Joes. They had a few players back and could still have made an impact in the SFC. Aidan Maguire, who missed the O'Connells game himself through injury, notes ruefully: "We had all our players in the positions where we wanted them and we changed our tactics slightly. Things started to work for us and there was a flow in our game for the first time. It would've been interesting to see how we'd have done if we'd got back in, but it wasn't to be. We had no excuse, though, because we'd lost twice." Can the Joes set the record straight next year? "You are always hoping. When we see the draw every year, we think we can progress. You concentrate on getting your own form right and you work on your own strategy and make sure your own game is right. If we get a few wins under our belt in the league and get everybody playing well, then the Joes will always feel they have a chance in the championship. "So, yes, I think we can challenge in 2005. Hopefully we won't have as many injuries - and the younger players will all have an extra year's experience." It's been eight years since the Joe Ward Cup was paraded around Dromiskin and Darver. It's taking longer than expected to win a second SFC. Why? "Since we won it, we've been close once or twice but the past few years have been hard. We set a standard for ourselves and we haven't been living up to it. Hopefully, next year will be our year. We didn't slacken off at all in 2004 - we put in a massive effort and worked very hard but didn't produce our form on the pitch. If we put the same effort in next year and make it through to the knock-out stages, then anything can happen. "There's very little between any of the senior teams in the county. If you play to your ability and get a bit of luck, then everything is possible. "We're not at all disheartened by the events of last season. We're just disappointed. But the belief is still there and the effort will be invested again next season. We know we can do it. We're not a million miles away - we're there or thereabouts. We just have to play to our strengths and find some consistency, then we should be up there fighting for a senior championship again." For the record, the St Josephs team that beat Kilkerley Emmets in the SFC at Knockbridge on July 9 2004 was: Paidi McEnteggart; Brian Campbell, Enda McKeown, Jason McCourt; David O'Donoghue, Aidan Maguire, Declan O'Sullivan; Martin Farrelly, Stephen Melia; Michael McArdle, John Fox, Brendan O'Donoghue; David Reilly, Ollie McDonnell, Conor Murtagh. Subs: Paul Drumgoole, Thomas Yore, Stephen Quigley. Tweet

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