Since winning the 'intermediate double' in 1998, Killygarry have made a habit of reaching the latter stages of the senior championship. And, true to form, they did it again in 2002. Inspirational midfielder Hugo Smith insists there's no reason why the Cavan town satellite club can't take it a step further this season. When it came to sorting out the men from the boys in the 2002 Cavan SFC, ever-improving Killygarry were certainly in the shake-up. The Red & Blacks played some super football en route to the quarter-finals and were decidedly unfortunate to come unstuck therein (at the hands of Kingscourt). At midfield, Hugo Smith was back to his brilliant best, so much so that the capital-based powerhouse forced his way into the senior county panel. Unfortunately for Hugo (and the club), his stunning progress was halted abruptly at the turn of the calendar year by a couple of niggling injuries, both of which required surgery to rectify. Thus, the Killygarry man had to drop off the Breffni County panel and was left in a race against time to be fit for the impending club championship season. When I caught up with the player in early February, he'd just had the first procedure completed and was waiting to go under the knife for a second time. He was in an encouragingly philosophical mood, expressing optimism that he'll return to action in time to participate in the 2003 club season - and that Killygarry could make a major impression despite the cruel factors (injuries, emigration) working against them. Hugo finished '02 on a real high, having consistently reproduced the sort of form we all knew him capable of and propelled himself into Mattie Kerrigan's plans. Then the hiccups commenced and the momentum was broken up, much to the obvious disdain of player, club and county alike. He had a knee scope on February 1st and was due to undergo a hernia operation later that month. He has set himself a target of returning to action in time for the club championships, circa May/June. With Smith firing on all cylinders, Killygarry could prove a forced to be reckoned with. Without him, their prospects would be diminished... "My main aim is to get back in time for the club championships," the player confirms. "I've already resigned myself to the fact that I'll probably miss the Ulster championship with Cavan, which is a bit of a blow after my first year on the panel, but I'm still only 23 and there's a long road ahead of me. "I can't wait to get back into action. Things went really well for me last year and I was going well ... now I'm just looking forward to kicking a ball again." Based in Dublin as a mortgage underwriter with Permanent TSB in St Stephens' Green, Hugo is making tremendous strides both on the playing field and career-wise. He is confident that Killygarry can make their mark in 2003 under new manager Gerry Brady: "Gerry was actually in charge of the county minors when I was with them and I'm looking forward to working under him again. He's a good manager and he'll get the best out of the lads. "We made it through to the quarter-finals again last year and now it's time for some of the younger players to step up - Gerry is the right man to help them do so. We have been doing well at minor and under 21 level [Killygarry won the Cavan minor B championship in 2002] and generally have a very young senior team. "There were six or seven U21s on the senior panel last year and I hope to see them coming through in a big way this year. It looks like they'll certainly be afforded the opportunity. There are going to be a few key men missing and that'll give the younger lads a chance to step into the breach." Reaching the knock-out stages of the county SFC is a fair feat in itself - and Killygarry have become pretty accomplished at achieving that target - but Hugo says he'd like to see them begin to move beyond that level and perhaps challenge for a county title: "In 2003, I'd love to see us go one better than we have done in each of the past three seasons. We've reached three successive quarter-finals but have lost twice to Bailieboro and then to Kingscourt ... we now need to find that bit extra. "Killygarry have more than held their own since winning the intermediate championship and league double in '98 - now we want to prove that we are capable of even more. We have managed to beat all the top teams in the county in the league - the next challenge is to bring that form into the championship." Hugo Smith is supremely confident they can do precisely that: "To be totally honest," he says, "I think it's only a matter of time before we make the breakthrough. Hopefully, we'll be competing at that level this year. And, if we can get our full team back with no injuries for the 2004 season, then we'll be even stronger again..." The club has suffered difficulties on the management side of things in recent years but the appointment of Gerry Brady has hopefully resolved these issues. "Hopefully it's sorted out now," says Hugo. "If Gerry sticks with us and we can get a bit of consistency and continuity going, then we will definitely be championship material very, very soon." And exactly how high will they be aiming in '03? "We'll have to throw in a couple of young lads for the early stages of the league and a lot will depend on how they cope. There's no reason why they can't prove themselves, though, and we should do at least as well in the championship as we did last year. We're expecting to reach the knock-out stages at least." The key factor working against Killygarry is that, for the most part, they're going to have to make do without a trio of top class players, all of whom boast senior intercounty experience: Jamie Coffey is in England, while Raymond Galligan and Damien Keaney are in Australia. Another key player - Gary Brides - is also in the Land of Oz. Throw in the short-term unavailability of Hugo Smith and the Red & Blacks are quite clearly up against it... On the positive side: "There are plenty of good young lads coming through and we'll be disappointed if we don't still get to the quarter-finals. Once you get there, it's anyone's game. Hopefully I'll be back in full swing by then myself." With so many players missing, there's extra pressure on Hugo to get back into his stride ASAP: "That's true. We'll probably be lacking a bit of physical presence around the middle of the field, with all our first-choice midfielders missing. Prior to the injuries, I had marked this year down as the one to really prove myself and get back on top form, to fulfil the potential of 1998/99. That was the plan. The injury is a setback, but I can pick it up again and time is on my side." One of the most disappointing facets of 2002 was the SFC quarter-final defeat to Kingscourt. It was a game Killygarry could and should have won but the concession of two soft goals cost them dearly. Afterwards, the Kingscourt players were the first to admit that they'd got out of jail. In the group stage, Killygarry were in Section 3 with Bailieboro, Ballymachugh and Ramor. After starting slowly with a defeat to the Shamrocks and a draw with Ballymachugh, they hit the ground running and recorded two high-scoring victories over Ramor and Ballymachugh (the latter in a play-off). But some sloppy defending against the Stars ruined their year: "The two goals were gifts and knocked the stuffing out of us. We came back at them and were all over them at the end but ran out of time. Hopefully we'll go one better this year and won't be as prone to lapses in concentration. "Our aim is to keep improving and some of the younger lads - the likes of Andrew McGovern and Owen Smith - really came into their own last year, so there's a lot of room for optimism." Hugo made his first appearance for the seniors when he was 16 and became a regular the following year. He has been a permanent fixture at centrefield since he was 18. Interestingly, 1998 was his first year in the middle of the field and Killygarry won the intermediate double. The talented Killygarry clubman has played U16, minor, U21 and senior football with Cavan. He admits he was thrilled to receive the call-up to join the county seniors last year: "It's the goal of every club player and I'm no different in that respect. Having to undergo the operations is a setback, but there's plenty of time for me yet and the manager has told me to think long-term and has assured me that I'll be part of his plans again in the future, which is re-assuring. I still have everything to fight for, both at club and county level." Regarding Cavan, Hugo points out that reaching the 2002 national league final may not necessarily have been of any immense benefit to them, in that defeat to Tyrone put a real dampener on their preparations for the premier competition. "The championship was a bit of a disaster," he admits. "We were caught asleep in both games and there's no way we're as bad as some people made out. "There has been no stone left unturned this year, however. The players are putting in the work and the support from behind the scenes is nothing short of phenomenal. "The trip to the Canaries was the first time a Cavan team was brought away on a holiday and the County Board is going all out to make things happen. It could be a good year for Cavan because the element of surprise is back and expectations won't be as high as they had been since 1998. "Cavan could make a breakthrough in Ulster this year. Antrim in the first round is a very difficult game, but if we can get through that there's no reason why we can't go on to contest an Ulster final. With the calibre of forwards we have at our disposal, Cavan are always capable of getting goals and that's a huge advantage when it comes to the championship. "Don't write us off!" Hugo Smith is a determined young man with the bit firmly between his teeth. Once he shakes off his current injury woes, the Killygarry man can become a dominant figure in Cavan football ... and beyond. Tweet

Most Read Stories