Carnaross could be forgiven for having nightmares at the prospect of facing Slane in the Intermediate Football Championship. They have lost to them three times in the competition in the last two years, including twice in the 2002 season, and that second play-off defeat ended their hopes of winning the championship for the first time since 1993 and bouncing back to senior football. Losing senior status is a shattering blow for any club and Carnaross desperately want to return to the top grade from where they were demoted along with Slane when the relegation system was introduced to the Senior Championship by Meath County Board in 1999. And there can be little doubt that if they have the majority of their top players available to them next year, Carnaross will be a serious force to be reckoned with in the IFC. That certainly wasn't the case during 2002 when the loss of Brian Comaskey, who departed to Australia after he had been inspirational in their three opening intermediate matches, was a particularly big blow. The highly talented Conor Woods, who will be recalled as Meath's full-back when they went under to Cork in the 1993 All-Ireland Minor Championship final on a day when they were in search of a second successive title, also went to Australia for 12 months and Stephen Yore missed the entire intermediate campaign after heading for Canada. What significant losses they undoubtedly were. Add to that the absence of attacking ace Ollie Murphy, who played in the opening three intermediate games, but then missed three on the bounce due to suspension, and it's easy to appreciate that Carnaross didn't have all the talent available to them on a consistent enough basis in the 2002 season. They were drawn in Division A of the championship in a section that also included Drumconrath, St. Colmcille's, Rathkenny, Slane, Castletown, Duleek and Curraha and all was going very much according to plan when they made the best possible start to their divisional campaign by recording three successive victories. Drumconrath were beaten by 0-11 to 0-9 in the opening round, Carnaross also had two points to spare over St. Colmcille's (1-7 to 1-5) next time out and those narrow successes were followed by a runaway 13-point (2-17 to 1-7) victory over Rathkenny to keep their qualification prospects very much alive nearing the half-way stage in the group phase of the competition. Enter Slane, who had knocked them out of the 2001 Intermediate Championship, and Carnaross, who were now without the suspended Murphy, suffered their first defeat of the competition when they went under by 0-14 to 2-6 to a side that would eventually reach the semi-finals and lose out to Ballivor. A narrow 2-8 to 1-10 victory followed against Castletown, before Carnaross suffered their heaviest loss of the championship when going under by 2-15 to 2-7 against Duleek who went on to top the group with 12 points from a possible 14, before bowing out of the title race at the penultimate hurdle against Navan O'Mahonys. That loss left Carnaross' qualification hopes hanging by the proverbial thread, but Murphy was now available to make his return after his lengthy eight-week ban imposed for allegedly abusing Cork referee Michael Collins after the All-Ireland SFC qualifier against Donegal. They successfully completed their divisional campaign with a comfortable 1-11 to 0-6 victory over Curraha to keep their title dream very much alive and secure a tie for second position in the section with who else but Slane. Carnaross certainly had every incentive to win going into that crunch play-off at Castletown after previous disappointments inflicted by their opponents. They led by four points (1-4 to 0-3) at half-time thanks to a goal from Daniel Reilly and the point-taking of Murphy, but a fair amount of damage had already been inflicted in the shape of some very poor finishing which proved disastrous in the end. "We were four points ahead at half time, but the reality was that we should probably have been eight clear," recalled club secretary Malachy Plunkett. "We missed a lot of chances in that opening period and Slane came back with 1-2 at the start of the second half and got two late points to win the match." Slane's winning margin was again two points (1-11 to 1-9), just as it had been in the divisional stages of the championship, and Carnaross were left to reflect on what might have been after wasting so much possession in the first half when they could have built up a much healthier half-time advantage. However, the fact that they came so close to reaching the semi-finals without being at full strength surely proved to Carnaross that they're not too far behind the top teams in the intermediate grade. Also, the fact that they won matches when they had to be won must be looked upon as a positive sign. But how they would dearly love to have all their top players available to them at the one time. Only then could their true strength be accurately measured. The young talent coming through also augurs well for the future and the fact that players like Paddy Nugent, who has the appearance of a highly promising player, and John L. McGee can still play at under-21 level for the next two years is certainly very encouraging. Carnaross lost seven of their 11 matches in Div. 2 of the All-County 'A' League, but their four victories meant they survived in the section quite comfortably on eight points. The Feis Cup proved a disappointment and they exited that particular competition when going under by double scores (2-14 to 1-7) against Na Fianna. Off the playing field Carnaross are all set to significantly improve the lighting system at their ground on the Kells-Virginia road which will undoubtedly make the preparation of teams that bit easier. A contract for the erection of the new lighting system, which will be similar to the highly impressive set installed by Navan O'Mahonys at their Brews Hill ground, has been signed with local firm Farrelly Brothers and the plan is to have the work completed by the end of the year. A running track around the pitch is also included in the club's ambitious improvement plans and such a facility is invaluable during bad weather when playing pitches can be very wet and uninviting. A grant of ?25,000 has been secured through the National Lottery Sports Grants to carry out the work. Tweet

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