Tony Martin chipped in with five points when Annaghminnon beat Glen Emmets in the 2000 JFC final to capture their first piece of silverware in 36 years. Speaking to Gerry Robinson, he admits that Rovers' return to junior ranks in '03 was less memorable. Two-thousand-and-three saw Annaghminnon Rovers return to junior ranks for the first time since famously winning the JFC by beating Glen Emmets in the decider at Tallanstown in 2000. This time, however, the end result was decidedly less impressive. A number of changes have affected Louth football during Annaghminnon's two-year tenure in the intermediate grade. One of these saw the format of the junior championship altered. Thus, in '03, the JFC was played on an initial group basis for the first time ... and it didn't go quite according to plan for the Rovers. Pitted in Group A alongside Dowdallshill, John Mitchells and Glen Emmets, the Stonetown men were hopeful that the experience of playing at a higher level for two years might give them an edge. But they failed to get that crucial win under their belt in the all-important group opener against Dowdallshill and never managed to get back on track thereafter. With their backs to the wall from the off, Annaghminnon ended up losing all three of their championship outings, finishing pointless at the foot of Group A with the other three clubs tied on four points apiece. They also finished the year at the bottom of Division 3. Bearing in mind the spectacular Christy Bellew Cup heist of three years earlier, the 2003 outcome was alarmingly anti-climactic. Though he's still only 25, it was Tony Martin's tenth season on the first team. The dangerous attacker admits that Annaghminnon's re-introduction to junior grade football came hand in hand with that uncomfortable sinking feeling: "It was disappointing the way things went because we had such good intentions and we hoped that maybe we'd give the junior championship a good rattle again. We'd won the junior in 2000 and then had two years of intermediate football. We struggled in 2002 and learned that there's a big gap between intermediate and junior football, but we were still optimistic that we could at least hold our own this year. Unfortunately we got off to a bad start and never managed to turn it around..." Annaghminnon kicked off their 2003 junior championship campaign against Dowdallshill at Tallanstown on July 4th, falling to a 3-10 to 1-10 defeat in an evenly-contested match. Tony notes: "The first game was very disappointing. It was important to get off to a good start and that one against Dowdallshill would have made all the difference. If we'd got off to a winning start it would have set us up for the year. "In the game itself, we started slowly and then came back into it late. But they got two quick goals and our heads dropped. In the end, I don't think the scoreboard gave an accurate reflection of how the game went, but a defeat is a defeat and it wasn't exactly an ideal start." A fortnight later, Annaghminnon took on John Mitchells but were again edged out, 4-10 to 3-6: "Our backs were already to the wall and we were under pressure going into the Mitchells game. In the run-up to that game we lost Martin Holland, a key midfielder, and that meant we were off to a bad start again before we had even kicked a ball. As it turned out, we actually had most of the play in that game but didn't convert enough of our scoring opportunities." By the time they played their final Group A match there was nothing left to play for. Opposition was provided by Glen Emmets (a repeat of the 2000 JFC final) and the Tullyallen men needed to win to keep their hopes alive at the top of the table. With little or nothing in the way of motivation, Annaghminnon were crushed, 6-10 to 0-5, at Dowdallshill on August 10th. "We were already well out of it before we played that last game. Some of our lads had completely lost interest by then. The league was totally gone from us too and a lot of our players gave up. The result against Glen Emmets didn't help at all ... it made things even worse. If things were bad up until then, that was a disaster. "We only had the bare fifteen plus one sub for the Tullyallen game so our options were limited and we didn't offer much resistance." It was the final nail in Annaghminnon's 2003 coffin: "After winning the junior championship and then spending two years intermediate, we didn't think for a minute that we'd finish bottom of the group without a single point. We were expecting things to go much better than that but I suppose we have to accept that we're back to Square One now." It's worth pointing out that for some clubs it's an achievement in itself just to survive. Given their plight, Annaghminnon are to be congratulated just for keeping the club ticking over. Says Tony: "Only for the hard work and determination of a few men there'd be no club here at all. "It's the same men doing all the work behind the scenes all the time and they invest a tremendous amount of effort and energy into keeping Annaghminnon Rovers alive. When you consider the amount of effort they're putting in, it's a pity we can't do better on the field of play. I don't think it would be possible to count the hours they put into the club every year." With precious little underage talent coming through, Annaghminnon are in a precarious position: "Other clubs have underage teams coming along and that's always a source of encouragement but we don't have that at all," Tony Martin notes. "We're joined with Louth village at underage and there's no real flood of talent coming through. "When we won the championship we had five or six 18- and 19-year-olds who were well fit to play junior football and also had a great interest in it. Everything just clicked into place for us that year and there was a great spirit in the camp. "However, due to lads having to work and a general lack of interest in the football, it's very hard to hold onto our players. And when you're losing games - as we have been for the past two years - it's disheartening and things go from bad to worse. "It's very difficult to encourage lads to turn out for training when they're going out and getting beaten week after week. After the bare ten or twelve reliables, you're struggling to plug gaps in the team. But people have to work and pay bills and club football is a big commitment these days." Tony himself was in Australia for the start of the year but returned in time for the championship. "We have a very small squad to pick from at the best of times," he says. "We might have had 18 or 20 lads for the first couple of championship games but that's about the height of it. We just don't have the numbers and that's what makes the 2000 win all the more remarkable. "Sean Kerr, David Kellett and Seamus Quinn were in charge in 2003 and in fairness to them they gave 100% effort all year but the players just weren't there. When you don't have the material to work with, there's nothing you can do." Tony Martin made his debut at the age of 15 and has been on the Annaghminnon first team for the best part of a decade now. "There were about nine lads from that same national school class who all came through together and we had a decent underage team. About six or seven of those went on to play for Annaghminnon and we still have five or six..." Tony is joined on the team by brother Seamus as well as four cousins - two Martins and two Peppers. Gerard Pepper is club chairman, while Richard Pepper captained the successful 2000 side. Three years have now passed since that historic JFC breakthrough. What is Annaghminnon's goal for the 2004 season? "Hopefully we'll start off by getting the right attitude and setting the right tone at the AGM. After that, if we could get a few more players out and get the spirit back in Annaghminnon Rovers football club, then we'll take it from there..." Tweet

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