St Patricks relinquished their county crown in frustrating fashion in 2008 but centre forward Eamon Carroll believes they can bounce back in style next year - just as they did when last they suffered a major disappointment. Still boasting the same core of players that brought Joe Ward to Lordship on three occasions in the recent past, the Pats will pose a real threat to all-comers if they get the bit between their teeth in '09. At Clan na Gael Park on the evening of August 30 2008, defending champions St Patricks completely misfired as they slumped to a disheartening 0-13 to 1-3 Louth SFC quarter-final defeat to St Brides. It was a tame and inglorious exit for the Lordship men, who had recaptured the Joe Ward Cup in such impressive fashion twelve months earlier. Normally, the Pats move up a gear in the business end of the championship; this time, they failed to ignite and weren't truly at the races. In the group stage, they hit the ground running with a crushing 4-14 to 0-6 defeat of Naomh Mairtin at the same venue in early May, before easing past Glyde - also at the Clans - on May 11, 1-9 to 0-9. As Louth's dismal season took centre stage and meaningful club football in the county was put on hold, the Pats played only one championship game in the next three months - a four-point defeat to Mattock at Louth village on Thursday June 19. Routine victories over town pair Dundalk Gaels and Sean O'Mahonys confirmed the holders' passage to the knockout stage of the premier competition as group runners-up. But that was as good as it got: a rudderless St Patricks side came unstuck in their first proper knockout assignment, thus failing in their bid to retain the county championship. "It was disappointing to be out of contention so early," says Eamon Carroll. "We have often been slow starters in the group stage but we always seemed to be able to come good in the big games. Maybe we were relying on that happening again. It was almost as if we were waiting for something to happen" The Pats had welcomed back Eamon (injured on duty for the Louth juniors in late May) and Colin Goss for the final group match, so they looked capable of making the necessary improvement to get their title defence on track. "The start of the year was tough with so many players out injured, but we then got Paddy Bates in as coach and things were ticking along nicely. The buzz was back and we felt that we had every chance, but we were really disappointed with the display against the Brides. The manner of the defeat was really disappointing. It would have to be up there as one of our worst performances. There were shades of the 2006 SFC final defeat to the Joes, so hopefully we can find the same response" With three county medals in the bag, would Eamon accept that perhaps some of the players on the current team have lost a bit of their hunger? "No, I don't think so. From an early stage, since this team started to emerge, it was drilled into us to be as greedy as possible and to go for every title. That hunger is still there. We responded in 2007 and we can do the same in 2009. I can't see any guys retiring or anything, so we should have the same group available again. This is still a young team and we'll give it a go again next year." Does the mantle of favouritism add extra pressure? Does it perhaps make things more difficult? "We're used to it at this stage. I don't think there is any valid excuse apart from the fact that we haven't been performing at the level we should. We were comfortable in the group. We lost to Mattock but we were never in serious trouble in any of the other matches and we felt we had enough in reserve to move up another gear." How big a loss was the suspended Paddy Keenan for the quarter-final? "A player of Paddy's status will always be missed by any team because he's one of the most influential players in the county. Obviously he gives us an extra dimension, but it's a team game and we have a strong panel. We should be more than capable of dealing with the loss of one player." Isn't it amazing how things have changed, how success has raised expectations to a new level? A decade ago, reaching a SFC quarter-final would have represented a credible year for the Pats, but now they demand much more. Only the ultimate prize will suffice "Once you start winning championships, the only way you can go is down," Eamon agrees. "When you don't win it, you are seen as a failure. And that's how we look back on 2008. The league is a bit of a non-event for the Pats because we have so many players on county duty, so our whole year depends on the championship. In that respect, the season was a total failure." Players with the top clubs have their eyes on county semi-finals and finals. When their season ends abruptly before September, it can be a kick in the teeth. Suddenly, the journey they had been planning all year has been called off. "You put so much time and effort in from early January and it's all aimed towards the county final in September and then it comes to a halt in August," Eamon reflects. "We still had the Kilmacud Sevens and a few league games to see out, but our year was effectively over. "The break is welcome now. It will help us to re-focus and recharge the batteries. Some questions will have to be asked about the mistakes we made, but we responded positively before and we can do so again." Eamon's stint on the St Patricks first team has coincided with the most glorious era in the club's history. He broke onto the team as a 20-year-old in 2001 and has so far won three SFCs (2003, 2004, 2007), a Cardinal O'Donnell Cup (2003) and an ACC Cup (2002). Did he ever expect to win so much? "We knew there was something special coming through. We still had older lads like Darren Kirwan and the Hollands and then there were the likes of Paddy Keenan, Owen Zamboglou and Ray Finnegan coming through. We knew there were big possibilities for the team. In 2002, we lost every game in our group, but we then gave it a huge push in 2003 under Peter Fitzpatrick, starting with a good performance against Mattock in Haggardstown, which set the tone." Eamon was part of the Louth senior panel for the great qualifier run in 2007 and was called up again in October for the 2008 national league campaign. Unfortunately, he was one of the unlucky four who got the chop for the championship. Does he accept that his intercounty career could be over now or does he still hold out hope of making it with the Louth seniors? "It could be tough to force my way in there now, but who knows? My No.1 love is the club and I'll keep my head down and keep playing as well as I can for them. If I get the call-up for Louth again, then that's great. It's all about getting the chance to impress and my opportunities have been limited, but I can't hold any major grudge on that count." And finally, what can we expect from the Pats in 2009? Can they win a fourth SFC in seven years? "With the players we have, we didn't show our true potential in 2008, but there's always next year and I can see already from the demeanour in the clubhouse that the hunger and drive will be there again in '09." Tweet

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