Ian McManus has represented the county at minor, U21, junior and senior levels. Needless to say the Curraha club are proud of his achievements to date. It's players like him who provide much optimism for the club's future. Curraha's march to the final of the U21 'Special' Div. 2 competition would suggest that the club's future is very much in safe hands. Since making the Junior 'B' breakthrough in 1997 they've made steady progress and it may not be too long before they're ready to take their place amongst the Intermediate clubs. Ian McManus epitomises the fresh blood which has injected a new lease of life into Curraha. A former Meath minor, current county U21 and senior, he, along with the likes of Daragh Farrell, Robbie Hetherton, Eoin and Alan Carroll and Shane and Loughlin Keogh, form the backbone of the present Curraha set-up. "We were confident going into the U21 final because we beat Longwood, after a replay, in the semi-final and they fancied their chances, but unfortunately things did not go our way in the final," remarked Ian. On their big day in Bective, St. Brigids proved to be their masters. As regards the junior team, they were involved in the infamous three match saga with Meath Hill at the preliminary quarter final stage. Unfortunately, for them, it was the north Meath team which prevailed by the minimum of margins at the end of three enthralling encounters. "It wasn't too bad a year for us," opines Ian. "We were unlucky not to beat Meath Hill. Brian Stafford was training the team and he had us fairly fit. His training was very good, he brought a lot of variety to training which made it more enjoyable and his experience, of course, was a big bonus." When Ian was progressing up through the ranks, Michael Weldon and Martin Hicky were the main influences. The nearest he came to collecting a medal was in an U16 League final. Wolfe Tones denied him and his colleagues the silverware on that occasion. Junior 'B' honours arrived in 1997 when McManus was midfield on the Curraha team which defeated Castletown in the decider at Navan. Ian's, father Pat, wore the bainisteoir bib on that historic occasion for the club. Indeed, Ian boasts an impressive family GAA pedigree. Pat is, of course, a former Roscommon and Meath player and brother of Tony and Eamonn Jnr. of Clann na Gael and Roscommon fame. His mother Geraldine hails from Clare, while his brother Colm is following in his footsteps, he was involved with the Meath U16s this year. Sister Ruth makes up the remainder of the McManus clan. Also in 1997, Ian played a major role in St. Pat's, Navan march to Leinster Colleges glory. He was a half forward on the XV which defeated St. Mels of Longford in the provincial decider at Mullingar. His performances with the local club and St. Pats attracted the attention of the county minor selectors and he was chosen to don the green and gold in '97. Eventual All-Ireland champions, Laois, proved to be the rock on which Meath's All-Ireland minor hopes perished that year. Incidentally, current senior star Nigel Crawford also lined out that day. Ian was left half forward This year he figured on the Meath U21s which lost out to the same opposition in opening round of the Leinster championship after a replay. "Losing to Laois in the U21 was very disappointing. We had our chances the first day to win it but we threw it away. Laois improved the second day and were much stronger. The game in Navan was the one we should have won." Eligible again for next year, Ian will be keeping his fingers crossed for better luck. The kind of luck he enjoyed with the county juniors this year. The Curraha man was midfield for Leinster final day against the Dubs. The match was played as the curtain raiser to the Dublin/Laois Leinster championship semi-final replay. "The atmosphere in Croke Park that day brought a lot of pressure. The Hill had filled up by the end of the game and, as always, they gave their team great support. Most of them applauded for the lap of honour but there was the odd bottle thrown in our direction! "The game itself was a very tough one. We were losing for most of the match until John Carey's goal brought us back into it and we went on to win from there." 1-9 to 1-6 was the final scoreline in Croke Park and a facile victory over Warwickshire at the penultimate stage set up an All-Ireland final date with Waterford at Portlaoise. A broken wrist, sustained in a championship clash with Skryne the week prior to the final, prevented Ian from lining out against the Decies. His presence was sorely missed as the Royals went under by 2-12 to 2-11. "It was very disappointing because I thought we should have won that game. We made a couple of silly mistakes and they cost us dearly in the end. Fair play to Waterford though, they had a brilliant support at the game and were mad to win it. We have only ourselves to blame for losing it though." The next step in the natural progression of Ian's county career arrived when the 20 year old received a phone call from Sean Boylan inviting him onto the senior panel for the NFL. He lined out at left-half-back against Clare and Fermanagh. Reflecting back on the the county's seventh All-Ireland success, Ian says: "It was a brilliant year for the seniors, they did very well. At the start of the year I knew they'd do well enough because they're a very good team. John McDermott and Trevor Giles are class acts. It might not have looked good when Trevor missed the penalty against Cork but Graham Geraghty kicked three lovely points after that to make sure of the win. There can be no doubting that the best team on the day won. They fully deserved it." Tweet

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