When you hear football games recounted by enthusiastic fans, we are reminded of the great goals scored, the wonderful fielding of the midfielders, the commitment and tenacity of defenders. Rarely are we informed of the wonderful work carried out by the lone and solitary member of the team, the goalkeeper, who is usually only remembered for his mistakes. The goalkeeper, the last line of defence, all too often has to carry the blame for mistakes made further outfield and is culpable for all manner of errors not directly related to him. When his career ends he will always be remembered grudingly no matter how good he was, with many looking for the flaws that cost their side a much needed victory or trophy destination. It is from this perilous position that the custodian of the 'sticks' has the greatest vantage point of how his team-mates are performing, viewing their strengths and weaknesses as the game unfolds. An astute keeper will be more capable of assessing the progress and potential of his side than most others on the playing field. It was from this point of view that Breffni Blue decided to talk to and get the views of Belturbet goalkeeper, Aaron Donohoe. Aaron who has been the club's safe pair of hands for the past fourteen years, is in an ideal position to gauge the progress made by his club, The Rory O'Moores, over the past twelve months and what the aspirations are for the incoming season. Aaron's track record as a goalkeeper is second to none in the Breffni County, having played and excelled as a goalkeeper both at inter-county and club level. Aaron made his debut for the Rorys at the tender age of seventeen and since that auspicious debut has held onto the number one jersey to this day. Indeed, when pressed about his future ambitions, Aaron is quick to point out: "goalkeepers are like wine, they mature with age and the longer they can stay in focus they better they become". This is certainly true for the Rory's man who throughout his long career has amassed many top class performances at both club and county level. When you talk to Aaron Donohoe about his football career the one dominant point throughout his entire conversation is not about his career but about his club, The Rory O'Moores. He sees the club as part of the fabric of his life and with many of his friends involved in the structure, both playing and at committee level, he feels that it has had a great and beneficial influence on his life. "I have played all the grades with the club and have benefitted immensely from the coaching put in over those many years from so many people. Not only did those coaches over the years impart coaching techniques but they also more importantly gave us a sense of being and belonging. That is why the club in Belturbet or the 'Rories' as they are commonly called means so much to us," stated Aaron. In an age when most people take personal time out for holidays very few will allow themselves to be put upon to interrupt their vacation. This was not the case for the Rory's goalkeeper, who last summer made a tremendous sacrifice by returning home for the senior championship quarter-final game while in England on a family holiday. Not many players would make that sacrifice. When Aaron looks back on the 2007 season, he feels that their exit in the senior football championship semi-final against eventual winners, Cavan Gaels, was a severe blow as they had to play some forty minutes with foutreen men. "I felt that the preparation for the 2007 championship was of the highest calibre. Our manager, Mark Lawlor and coach, Declan Beatty had approached the championship with a fresh outlook. While we worked on all the basic physical training we also elevated our approach on a more professional level with nutrition and hydration being taken seriously by all the panel. This helped give us an added psychological and physiological edge which we took into our games. We were fortunate also that a number of talented younger players were now coming on stream and we had Mark Teevan making his first championship appearance in 2007 while Bud Fitzpatrick and Damien Reilly had already experienced championship fare from the previous year. The entire squad was giving a big commitment and we had older players like Conor Walsh and Ronan Reilly making long trips and enduring traffic delays from Dublin and Galway to help keep the momentum going. "We beat Lacken in the first round and Killygarry in the quarter-final to set us up for a semi-final clash against Cavan Gaels. Such is the outlook of the players at the club that we really had no fear of the Gaels as we had beaten them on a number of occasions during the league over the past four to five years. As a game, it was closely contested but the sending of, of Eoin McGuigan set us back and against a team like the Gaels, the loss of a man was a major blow. The introduction of Gareth Fitzpatrick during the second half, helped lift our tempo and with a superbly struck goal, we were back in contention. However, the extra man was to have the final say as the Gaels ran out winners. This was a huge disappointment to all the players, especially team captain Rory Donohoe who had an excellent season and for our team management who tried to push us to move onto another level. I genuinely believe that if we had not lost Eoin McGuigan we could have shaded that game and made it into the final," stated the Rory's goalkeeper. While Aaron feels that Belturbet are capable of holding their own in the senior league, he regrets that as a player he has failed to win a medal of any sort at senior level. "We won the Intermediate championship back in 1996 and since then we have not won anything at senior level. This has been a disappointment not only to me but also to many of the senior panel. When we won the Intermediate championship in 1996 we had an excellent squad of young players, some of whom are still playing today, Paul Murphy, Jason Reilly, and Ronan O'Reilly. In 2006 two members of that squad retired and the loss of Benny Mulvanny and Killian McDwyer was a great blow. While we lost a number of players over the years, we have been very fortunate to have acquired the services of a number of minor squad players of the past two years. Two years ago, as sixteen year olds, many of these young lads could deem themselves unlucky to loose out to a much more experienced Kingscourt Stars in the semi-final of the Division 4 championship. Two years on, we have players like Bud Fitzpatrick, Mark Teevan, Conor Vaughan, Johnny Klush, Enda Henry, Peter Shannon, Daryl Dolan and Danny Anscombe all vying for places on the senior team. All of them have come on throughout the league campaign of 2007 at some stage or other and have acquitted themselves very well. Now with a new influx of blood, and a fresh outlook, we as older players should be able to regain our self-belief. That is an extremely important factor in competing and winning games and I feel that as a team over the years we had lost some of that self belief." "When we look at the league at the end of the year we would never be more than a few points away from making it into a semi-final. Maybe this is something that we should look at for the future and try to focus our attention at what is emminently winnable. While we have a small squad of players, the revitalisation of the junior team has ensured that we now have the availability of players who are playing football on a weekly basis and can contribute to the senior squad when called upon. This was evident in 2007 when players like, Conor Vaughan, Peter Shannon, Enda Henry and Danny Anscombe were needed to fill the void on the senior team through absence and injury and this they did with great effect. If we could maintain our focus and get the same kind of commitment for the early rounds of the league, we are capable of amassing enough points early on to ensure that we would be there at the latter end of the league campaign. If you look at the most successful teams in the county in 2007, Gowna and Cavan Gaels, they contested both the championship and league finals. So a good league campaign would ensure a competitive edge coming into the championship," stated Aaron. Junior Team The composition of the junior team with so many young talented players excelled this year. A gritty league campaign saw them end third in the table and only that the new league structures were place they would have been in line for a semi-final placing. They ended their campaign on nineteen points just two behind second place Mullahoran. "While this team is primarily made up of younger players and captained by Donald Magee, it is important to point out the contribution of one of the club's retired senior members, Don McDonald. In my opinion, Don was probably the best player that I have witnessed play with the Rorys. Don who came back to play with the junior team when he was acting as selector back in 2005 immediately made a huge impact using his football skills to great effect. His presence in the side helped bring on many of the talented youngsters now making it on to the senior panel. His easy going manner and football acumen made him instantly acceptable to the younger players. No doubt the club will be hoping to keep him in the frame for the 2008 season," stated Aaron. Commitment for new season Aaron who is acknowledged as one of the county's top goalkeeping coaches is adamant that there is still 'life left in the old dog yet'. As a goalkeeping coach, he has worked extensively with the Cavan senior, U-21 and minor squads. He was also actively involved with the successful Killygarry team that won the Division 2 title and with Ballinagh who won both the Intermediate football championship and the Ulster Junior Club Championship. While he sees his long term future in football as a coach, he is determined to give his club another few years of commitment as he chases that elusive senior medal. Aaron's passion for the Rory's is obviously evident and his drive to win at senior level should be a catalyst for the younger members of the squad. His infectious enthusiasm and drive to win should help exorcise the ghosts of the past and place the Rory's in a position that they can compete and win titles. "We will be hoping to keep the same management structure in place and I hope that we will get the same commitment again for the 2008 season. If we have that little bit of luck, stay injury free and develop a more clinical winning ethic, then I have no doubt that, the Rory's can be a force in any competition" stated Aaron. "While clubs primarily focus on their senior teams it should not be forotten the great work put in at juvenile level. Over many years, a vast array of people have worked with great commitment and presently the juvenile structure at the club is both healthy and encouraging. Like all clubs it is the vital life-line for the future and we have been fortunate to have acquired the present crop of young talent who have emerged from this juvenile structure. "As a club we were very fortunate during 2007 to have the services of Mal O'Keeffe who acted as secretary. His work throughout the year was recognised as invaluable," stated Aaron. Tweet

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