It may have been a disappointing year for the St. Mary's first team but the future could still have a silver lining according to Pat Lenehan, junior selector and manager of the club's highly-rated under 17 team. For the first time since 1996, St. Mary's failed to qualify for the knock-out stages of the Junior 'A' Football Championship. In 1997, the east Meath club were defeated in the semi-final by eventual winners Bective. The following year, it was Drumree who denied them in the final. In 1999 and 2000, they succumbed to St. Paul's and Dunboyne respectively at the quarter-final stage. "Having been there or thereabouts over the past number of years, it was disappointing not to get beyond the group stages of the championship this year," says team selector Pat Lenehan. "We felt we had a good chance of winning the championship at the start of the year and the signs were very encouraging after our first couple of league matches. "But then the foot-and-mouth outbreak occurred and we seemed to lose our form after that. We had our fair share of injuries throughout the year but I wouldn't be inclined to use that as an excuse for our disappointing form," he adds. The Donore/Lougher outfit faced an uphill battle after they lost their opening game of the championship to Navan O'Mahony's. Played at Seneschalstown, it was a game that St. Mary's dominated for long periods but still ended up losing it by a point. St. Mary's misery was compounded by the fact that they kicked 16 wides. In their next outing, the green and reds lost to Ballinabrackey. They recovered to beat both Skryne and Moylagh but any hopes of qualification for the latter stages were dashed by Dunsany in their final group game. In the league St. Mary's topped Division 4 early on in the year and looked like a good bet for promotion. Then a narrow one-point loss away to Bective started a slide that saw them slip down the table, and at the end of the season they were glad of their early form or else they could have been dragged into a relegation battle. "It was our poorest year in a long time. We never got out of the traps. After losing to O'Mahony's in the first round, we really had our work cut out. Hopefully, we'll be in a better state next year," offers Pat. It's not all doom and gloom for St. Mary's at the moment, however. The club's under 17 team that went all the way to the league final only to lose out to Longwood, which Pat was in charge of, is highly-rated and is tipped to have a bright future. "They are as good a bunch of players as I've seen in the club. It's an absolute pleasure to work with them because, not only are they talented, they also have the right attitude and are very enthusiastic." Pat took over the management of the under 17s this year. Last season, the same team lost the under 16 championship final to Oldcastle but he is hopeful that success will come their way in the near future. "This team hasn't achieved the success it has deserved but if they can keep at it, I'm sure they will get their just rewards. They've lost semi-finals and finals since they were under 12s but I expect that trend to soon change. We had both Stephen Bishop and Jack English on the county under 16 team this year which gives you an indication of the talent that's there." Pat Lenehan's involvement with St. Mary's dates back to 1969 when, at the age of 19, he helped to form the club. He believes the amalgamation of the old Lougher and Donore clubs has proven to be a resounding success, the culmination of which was the opening of St. Mary's impressive playing facilities in 1988. "It made an awful lot of sense to make the two clubs into one," he recalls. "Both Lougher, who I had played underage with myself, and Donore were struggling at the time and it was only right that we joined forces." Lenehan donned the St. Mary's jersey for a number of years and doesn't hesitate in citing the 1979 junior championship success at the highlight of his playing career. "This was a wonderful occasion for the club. We had lost the previous year's final to Walterstown and there was a fierce determination among all the players to make amends which, thankfully, we did in the '79 final against Meath Hill." Pat had brought the curtain down on his playing days when St. Mary's were defeated in two intermediate finals and an intermediate semi-final in the 1980s. Not surprisingly, he regards those losses as his biggest disappointments in football. The minibus company owner has served as secretary, treasurer and chairman of the club at different stages over the past 30 years. He was secretary during the 1970s and took up the position of treasurer in 1988. In 1993, he became chairman and only stepped down two years ago. Still as involved as ever, Lenehan is confident that St. Mary's will continue to develop and proper in the coming years. "There are a lot of dedicated people in this club who make sure everything runs smoothly. Our underage is in a healthy enough state and, with a bit of luck, we might make a breakthrough at junior level in the next year or two. "What should benefit us over the coming years is the number of new families that have moved into the area. We also have plans to develop our pitch further and to make sure our members have the best facilities possible," he concludes. Tweet

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