Two-thousand-and-three was no picnic for Eire Og but the club preserved its intermediate status in dramatic fashion and there's no reason why the irrepressible Smithboro men can't challenge for major honours during the coming season. Eire Og's 2003 season went right down to the wire. Literally. In the end, their escape act was one of the most dramatic witnessed in Monaghan GAA circles in many's the long year. Indeed, had Harry Houdini been able to engineer something this remarkable, he'd probably have lived a lot longer! Dogged by injury and suspension, Eire Og never clicked into gear in 2003. To the contrary, they were pushed to the pin of their collective collar to maintain their intermediate standing. When time came to stand up and be counted, however, Eire Og demonstrated their true mettle with some rousing displays. After a promising start, the team lost its way in Division Two and an inglorious early championship exit (inflicted by Rockcorry and then Aghabog) didn't do much to lift morale. To all the world, the Blue and Golds looked headed for the basement division and junior football. Amazingly, they dug deep to win their final two league games of the year - against IFC finalists Aghabog and Doohamlet! - and force a three-way relegation play-off. With Corduff already gone, Eire Og, Rockcorry and Oram were all locked on the same number of points second from bottom. One of the three would be demoted. The first play-off pitted Eire Og against Rockcorry and they were well beaten, 2-12 to 1-5, on October 25th. Second chance: intermediate status would still be retained if Eire Og could overcome Oram. Incredibly, they came through with one of the most dramatic finales of the year. The game took place on Sunday November 2nd and Smithboro stole the day with a late goal from Paddy Croarkin, which secured an unbelievable 4-6 to 1-13 win. While it was tough luck on Oram, Eire Og can be forgiven for celebrating such a dramatic win. That result provided an upbeat climax to the year and, having got out of jail, Eire Og will be hoping to take full advantage of their good fortune by putting together a more concerted push for honours in 2004. Looking back on the events of '03, club chairman Raymond Leonard is painfully honest in his assessment: "It was a poor year for the club ... there's no getting away from that. The senior team started well, winning their first two games. But those were probably the only two games all year when we were actually at full strength. We drew our third game but then the wheels started to come off the wagon. "Between injuries and suspensions we were missing five or six players for most of the year, while Padraig McKenna took a year our to travel. Winning our last league game against Doohamlet - who had qualified for the championship final - was a big boost. "That was definitely one of our top three performances of the year. Padraig was missing and Damien Mullen broke a finger in the Aghabog match a week earlier, while Gary McDonald fractured his jaw against Aghabog. We did very well in the end to force the relegation play-off. "Rockcorry beat us well but we got a last-minute goal against Oram to stay up. It was a close call - the last kick of the last game! But we managed to stay up and at least you could say the year ended on a bit of a high... "John McEniff was in charge of the team and he put in tremendous effort all year but the cards were stacked against him. We paid a big price for a few moments of indiscipline. Due to all the injuries and suspensions, we had to draw from a bare panel of 18 for most of the year. And there aren't many clubs in the country who could afford to be missing a player of Padraig McKenna's calibre..." Given the turmoil that was omnipresent, the events of the summer were understandable. A veritable summer of discontentment: poor league form quickly manifested itself into a rut and Eire Og's intermediate championship campaign was a non-event. In early July, they were beaten by Rockcorry in the first round. Smithboro' were reduced to 14 men after 20 minutes and Rock' made their numerical superiority tell. Would-be intermediate champions Aghabog provided the opposition in the 'back door' section ... depleted and demoralised Eire Og exited after a dismal display in Scotshouse. Eire Og's year started on a tragic note. The entire local community was left stunned by the untimely death of Kieran McCarey - the club's outstanding prospect. The loss knocked the wind out of everybody's sails and put gaelic football firmly into perspective. At the end of the day, it's only a game ... there are much more important things happening every minute of every day in every parish in Ireland. "Losing Kieran was a tragic loss for the club, but much more so to his family and friends. It left everybody in a deep sense of shock. Kieran was our brightest prospect and he was showing up extremely well for the county minors. He was going to be a big player for Eire Og and had his whole life in front of him. "He starred on the team that won the minor double in 2002 and was an excellent little footballer. His death knocked the bottom out of the club and was a terrible blow to his family and the community. "Kieran's father Gerard is manager of our minor team [amalgamated with Aghabog] and is a great clubman. It was just devastating. After that, everything else that happened in 2003 was always going to pale into complete insignificance in the greater scheme of things. We'll always remember it as the year we lost Kieran and we'll certainly never forget him. He was one of the brightest shining lights in the club - and always will be." The U21 team reached the Division Three final, wherein they were unluckily beaten by Corduff after a replay. The team had shown extremely well all year and as many as nine under 21s featured on the first team, along with three minors, so Eire Og currently have youth very much on their side. The club's U16s reached the semi-final stage of their championship, while the U13s went unbeaten all year up until the county final clash with Blackhill, which they lost by a point. The rest of the juvenile teams also performed well over the course of the year, without actually winning any silverware. Indeed, enormous effort is being invested into nurturing the available underage talent. As the club chairman explains: "Michael Tierney, Ciaran Sheridan, Colm McMahon, Margo Sherlock and Joe Leonard are putting in a serious amount of work. They take youngsters from the age of four up to 13 on Sunday mornings and there could be up to 35 out training on the pitch each weekend. There are some great wee footballers in the pipeline and we're offering them coaching, organising games and keeping them interested." Eire Og also carried out a lot of work on their Railway Park home during the year. The pitch was drained and new dressing-rooms have been built. The final phase of the re-development will be carried out once finances have been arranged. On the field of play, what was Eire Og's target at the start of the year? "This is the best blend of players we've had in a number of years, and it's a very fit bunch of players as well, so hopes were high. Paddy Croarkin and Ronan Cassidy are two excellent prospects coming through and we hoped to do well. We managed to beat all the top teams when we had our full complement but we had 13 suspensions over the year and just couldn't cope with that. "Our three referees - Brendan McMahon, Jim O'Rourke and Danny Meehan - have given invaluable service to the club and the GAA. Jim was in charge of the senior county final in 2002, while Danny handled the junior decider." What are Eire Og's hopes for 2004? "I would be hoping that if the boys take the right approach then there's no reason why we can't challenge for intermediate honours. It only takes a little extra effort and concentration to be winning rather than struggling. An extra 10% would make a massive difference and Eire Og would be good enough to win major competitions. "We're encouraged by the wins we had over Aghabog and Doohamlet towards the end of the season and we know we can beat the top teams when we're at full strength. We also have a lot of good prospects coming through, particularly from the U21 team, so we have every reason for optimism. I believe we're good enough to turn our lucky escape around and make the most of it next year. We can definitely win intermediate honours in 2004. "Grainne McKenna and the McKenna family of The Skull Inn once again gave us valuable sponsorship and support during the year and we're very appreciative of that. Also, our girls U14s and U16s gave a good account of themselves under Una Johnson and Gerard Treanor. "Between training and matches, our pitch was used something like 340 times this year, so there's no shortage of activity in the club. We'd like to purchase some additional land, but the County Board levies make it very difficult for a small club like ourselves to move forward. "All in all, however, the club is developing, the grounds are developing, and the players are there. So we're in quite a healthy position and we're going to soldier on..." Tweet

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