Intermediate semi-finalists in their second year in the grade, Drumree are pushing hard as forward Jimmy Walsh explains. When the time comes around again next spring to start predicting and speculating and wondering who's going to win this, that and the other in Meath, there won't be too many pundits or people out there who'll contemplate the Intermediate championship and ignore the name of Drumree. As progressions go, Drumree's has been impressively natural since the club captured the Junior title in 1998. Their first year at Intermediate level was guided more by circumstance than commitment, application or talent. They had no influence at the business end of the championship and while some observers showcased that failure to scoff at the club credentials more astute ones could see that the previous seasons exertions had taken a substantial toll. A wonderful 1998 campaign ended in the middle of December with Drumree capturing the Leinster Junior club title with victory over Laois' Ballyroan. Five weeks of so-called rest ensued before the players regrouped, still hungover on success and what-have-ye, to prepare for their first season in the middle grade. Their minimal impact was noted and as the time came round to assess the contenders for the 2000 Intermediate title Drumree were almost universally overlooked. As it happened, they didn't win what St Patricks won but they weren't all that far away either. All of which brings us up to the present and the common belief that Drumree are one of the strongest teams not playing in the senior grade. As their forward Jimmy Walsh sums it up: "The honeymoon period is over for us now. We're now going to be regarded as serious contenders which put a bit of pressure on us." It's just the latest about-turn in people's perception of Drumree. In the limelight again. They're back there having performed so consistently last season and, at times, so marvellously. They began as they would go on, until injuries and St Pats got in their way in the semi-final: that is, they began with fierce conviction, recording victories over St Michaels and Duleek, and then drawing with Castletown. "It made such a change from the season before, when we started poorly" avers Walsh. "The start is so important. It shapes the rest of the season. If you start well the confidence will flow." Besides good starts and bad starts, the 25 year old half forward has witnessed numerous changes in his eight seasons on the Drumree team. Old impediments have been replaced by a quasi-professional approach. "Commitment and fitness levels have gone right up. There aren't as many old lads playing now, holding on to your jersey, trying to get a clout at you," he says mischievously. Changes can even be noted since the beginning of the 2000 campaign when Philip Behan was introduced as trainer. A particular insistence was among them: that the body by treated as a temple. "This time last year we were having tea and biscuits after training," recalls Jimmy. "Now its water and bananas. We have to be very careful now what we eat, especially in the lead up to a championship match. Fries are out the window." Behan is a former trainer with UCD soccer team, Louth seniors and Dunshaughlin when they won the intermediate title in 1997. "Philip came in when we had about a months training done," says Walsh. "It would've been nice to have him from the very start but he made a big difference all the same." That 'big difference' would not go unnoticed as the south Meath side continued their fine early season form. Victories were recorded against Carnaross, Moynalty and Drumconrath, making their position at the top of their group an irreversible one. According to Walsh, the Carnaross win was the one that copperfastened the team's confidence. "It was a turning-point for us, definitely our best performance of the season," he says. "We were very wary of Carnaross; they had just been relegated so we didn't really know what to expect. But we beat them by seven points and I think David Troy, our full back, held Ollie Murphy to a point." Before they drew their final group game with eventual finalists Ballivor, Drumree knew their automatic semi-final spot was already assured. While Drumree's first year at intermediate led their players to the standard conclusions that they were now playing a faster game against more physical players, that knowledge still couldn't prepare them, says Walsh, for what they faced in the semi-final against those perennial nearly men, St Pats. "Their physical size overwhelmed us. I didn't think they'd be half as big as they were - all over the field." Pat's were deserving and convincing winners 0-15 to 1-8 but mitigating circumstances existed for the vanquished. Midfielder Aaron Fitzpatrick was forced out of the fray after 15 minutes with a recurrence of a knee injury. Soon after Evan Kelly, who was the main architect of Drumree's good start to the game, broke a bone in his foot. He stayed on but his influence was unsuprisingly curtailed. "St Pat's deserved to win the Intermediate championship," says Walsh. "We were glad to see them win it. And I think now that they've finally made it, they'll do well at senior level." It's no secret that Drumree believed in their own ability to win the intermediate championship in 2000. Indeed, with a handful of county-quality players in the ranks, backed up by a solid core of footballers whose abilities would not be disparaged by senior level fare, they believe in themselves, full stop. "We've never had a stronger panel," attests Walsh. "We went out against Ballivor short four first teamers, Ballivor who were pushing for victory that day, and we got a draw which was a great result. "But you can never presume anything in championship football. A lot, for example, will depend on which two teams come down from senior level; a lot depends on the start you get." Much will depend on many things in next season's Intermediate championship. Much, no doubt, will depend on how Drumree play. Tweet

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