Swanlinbar GAA had an indifferent season at all levels in 2003 but the local faithful are determined to remain positive as former star Padraig Gilheany explains. Work-in-progress is the name of the game way out west in Swanlinbar, it would appear. Silverware was conspicuous by its absence in Swad last year but all belonging to the club are certain that progress is being made, on and off the field. Their day will eventually come at senior level, local gaels concur. And when an emotional coming-together with some of Cavan's most glittering prizes on offer at adult level does materialise, bet on the west Cavan faithful to have in place one of the tidiest and most scenic homes in place to welcome home that self-same cup of joy. For as those au fait with the terrain around picturesque Swad will verify, the quality and volume of work which has taken place at the local GAA headquarters over the past year has been something to behold. The re-development of the dressing-rooms and the playing area during 2003 - ten years on after a similar investment took place - concentrated the minds and hearts of a lot of those at the coalface of affairs at Swanlinbar GAA. "We didn't manage to have any games on our own pitch in 2003 because of the laying of a new surface there but with the good summer we had, a lot of progress was made and we're hoping that by next September we can host an inter-county game involving Cavan to officially open the new facilities," club secretary Padraig Gilheany confirms. Thanks to the goodwill and generosity of their fellow gaels in Kinawley, the Swanlinbar football teams were actually homeless in 2003 but the blue and whites will, nonetheless, be anxious to get back playing on more familiar ground. "We very much appreciated Kinawley's help but last year was still a case of us playing our home games away from home. And without any relegation or promotion system in place, the league was made a bit redundant and didn't really serve any purpose. I don't remember us being engaged in any real full-blooded games in the league," Padraig adds. Of course, with the relegation/promotion format restored for 2004, Swad and the rest of the clubs will have more incentive to do well in the all county leagues. For his part, Padraig is only too pleased to see the old system getting the nod again. The pressure will be back on the club's adult players to work towards achieving tangible success in the forthcoming league but "unfortunately we still won't have use of our pitch for at least most of the year." The former Swad star likes to remain focussed on the brightness of the future rather than the grey times of yesteryear and the fact that the club competed at Roinn A at Under 14 in 2003 for the first time in the club's history is of great inspiration to him . . .and to his fellow clubmen, he argues. "Despite the fact that the under 14s were up against big-hitters like Cavan Gaels and Kingscourt, they did very well and very few teams got the better of them. The club's appearance in the top grade would have to be seen as a milestone in the club's history but it's no more than the underage coaches deserve considering all the work that has been done over the last ten years or so by the juvenile committee." And despite being happy with the arrangement which has seen the best of young Swad talent link up with their nearest neighbours to form Dernacrieve Gaels, Padraig expresses the hope that his beloved club can compete of its own bat more often than not in the future at under 16 and minor levels. "The really hard work comes along at around under 16 and minor level when it becomes more difficult to keep the fellas really interested and committed. Traditionally it's been make or break time for lads here when they reach the age of around sixteen. We either lose them or they keep at it and go on to stick with it up to senior level. We're only a half-a-parish along with Kinawley and the numbers available to us have always been low so we have to make the best of all the young talent that comes along and try and hold onto them. Mostly, its outside of the club's control when a fella decides that he wants to stop playing after his underage days come to an end." On a more positive note, Padraig feels that with the ongoing improvement in the local infrastructure and heightened job prospects, more and more teenagers will be encouraged enough to want to remain in west Cavan, or at least the wider county, which should mean a boost to the club's playing numbers in the coming years. But will that intangible umbilical chord which tied players to the Swad club remain in place in the future. "It's hard to know. Years ago fellas went away but they nearly always came back to play the matches for the club. It's up to everyone at the club to work hard to try and encourage fellas to stay loyal to the club even if they leave the area to go to college or to look for work. But we have to recognise that there are a lot more distractions in place now and lads have other priorities other than football." Reflecting on the club's on-field travails at senior level in 2003, Padraig accepts that things didn't exactly go swimmingly for the blue and whites. He explains, however, that expectations among club members at the start of the year weren't that high. "It was hard for the lads to get excited about the league but the championship was definitely disappointing. It (championship) was frustrating because of the four or five week gap that was between the games. We had no excuses in any of the games though. Against Drumalee, we weren't nearly as sharp as them but having to wait for so long after that game for our next match did take the edge off the lads. We had a good win in the league though against Drung shortly after the Drumalee defeat and the lads seemed to have gotten their confidence back. They played well again the next day against Ballinagh in Killeshandra in what a lot of people felt was one of the best games of the year. Ballinagh and Drumalee would have been favourites to go through from our group so it probably wasn't much of a surprise when we had to go into a relegation play-off," Padraig recalls. But victory over Butlersbridge in the subsequent do-or-die match saw Swad pull a potentially disastrous season out of the fire. "The players showed a lot of character and pride to escape relegation. It was a one-off match and our lads got it right tactically. It was a really vital win for the club because 2004 is the centenary year of the club and playing intermediate championship football is the very least we want to be at. The players know themselves that they weren't at their best last year but with the bite now certain to be back in the league and with their eyes focussed on the championship during the summer, we're hopeful of having a lot more joy in the coming year," says Padraig, brother of former county star Sean. Winner of junior leagues in 1981 and '84 plus blue riband championships in '85 and 98, Padraig spent a time working and living in Dublin where he fielded with northside outfit St. Peregrins (where he won two junior league medals). Proud father of Aidan (14) and Declan (11), Padraig is glad to be back ensconced on home ground and he is pleased to say that Swanlinbar is as vibrant a club as it was when he left at 18 years of age to work in the big smoke. So can that vibrant heart generate a vibrant attack on some major honours in the coming year? "I think the players realise that a greater effort will be needed to make things happen for them and I think that will be forthcoming. Confidence is a big thing for our fellas and self-belief too but if they can get off to a good start to the year and keep at it, I wouldn't be surprised if they did go on and hit the jackpot." Tweet

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