Naomh Feichin's plan of an instant return to intermediate ranks didn't quite materialise in 2006. The Termonfeckin club struggled to adapt to their new surroundings in the lower ranks and blew their JFC prospects when losing their second and final group game to Dundalk Young Irelands. Trusty clubman Fergal McEvoy is confident that the Green & White can offer an improved performance in '07… Having suffered a dreaded relegation blow at the end of the previous year, St Fechins went into 2006 with a single objective: promotion. To achieve this, they had to win the junior championship. With only one promotion place available to junior clubs, there was no room for error. Things started promisingly with a 2-9 to 0-10 victory over John Mitchells but a 0-11 to 0-7 defeat at the hands of Dundalk Young Irelands consigned the Hoops to another year in the basement grade. As the junior field is set to be increased from seven clubs to twelve in 2007, the task facing the Fechins next year is even more daunting, but Fergal McEvoy is confident they can stand up to that challenge and emerge as genuine contenders. The reliable defender was disappointed with how things panned out in '06 and is hopeful that 2007 will prove more fruitful for the Termonfeckin club. The versatile back, who was his normal dependable self throughout the year, concedes: "We were very disappointed. We certainly didn't achieve what we set out to achieve." Having slipped down to junior ranks at the end of the previous campaign, St Fechins set their sights on an immediate escape from the basement grade: "We were hoping to win the championship and go straight back up," says Fergal. "That was definitely the plan of attack, but things didn't work out for us. Even in the league, we never won enough games over the course of the year, so we were unhappy with the general level of our performance." Is there a feeling in the area that Termonfeckin don't belong in junior football? Of course, we all know a team must earn its stripes on the field of play, but surely the Fechins - with so much tradition and a sizeable catchment area - believe they're capable of more? "I wouldn't like to think of us as a junior club, but the tables don't lie and we have to prove otherwise. It's down to the players to show what we can do. "Last year, we weren't scoring enough and that's what cost us our intermediate status. We were defending well but couldn't rack up the scores at the other end. At the start of this year we were getting a lot more scores, but we also started conceding too much. So we couldn't get the balance just right. When the championship came around, we solved the problems at the back by moving a player or two back, but we were back to our old tricks and couldn't score! It was frustrating, but hopefully we'll work better as a unit in 2007." Fechins were in the three-team group of a seven-team junior championship. They beat John Mitchells in their first assignment, which left them within touching distance of a place in the knockout phase. A win against Dundalk Young Irelands would have secured a semi-final berth but defeat was the Hoops' lot and their year was effectively over before it began. "Starting with the win took some of the pressure off - maybe it took too much pressure off! - but we then lost a few players through injuries and had to use a more defensive approach against Young Irelands. We had lost to them earlier in the year and perhaps we were too cautious in the championship game. We didn't give much away but the scores never came…" Alas, it was the Irelanders who advanced to the penultimate stage, wherein they produced a very lacklustre performance against St Kevins, with the Fechins left looking on thinking they could have done better. "It's frustrating," Fergal continues. "You look at a game like that semi-final and you think you could have done better, but we had our chance and we didn't prove ourselves, so we can't complain. You have to do your talking on the pitch and we couldn't complain about our results." Next year's JFC will be a more crowded affair as the bottom rung is set to be enhanced by the addition of seven clubs who played intermediate fare in '06. Can St Fechins make an impact in the new-look junior competition? "We're looking forward to playing in a better junior championship and hopefully we can give a decent account of ourselves. We went through a lot of spells this year - and last year - where we had long lay-offs with no games. You're training away and there are no games. Even before the championship, you might have no matches to give you some competitive football and sharpen the team up. Without big games, it's very difficult to keep lads motivated. In 2005, we made a really good start in the championship with two wins and morale was high - then we had three weeks without a game and lost our momentum. We were back where we started." The promise of extra games in '07 carries much appeal as far as the players are concerned. "Hopefully the fixture-makers will play the games off quicker," says Fergal. "If the rugby can do it and the soccer can do it, there's absolutely no reason why we can't have a game every week during the summer. That's what it's all about. Lads want to play football and it they can't get matches they'll go elsewhere. Ironically, we ended up with months of games where there's nothing to play for. Once we went out of the championship, we were just fulfilling fixtures." Fergal McEvoy was a reliable utility man in the Fechins defence all year, operating in the corner, on the wing and also enjoying a spell at full back. He is confident that the club can bounce back and produce a team to reflect their remarkable facilities: "The facilities we have are excellent. There's talk of the club adding on a community centre as well, which would improve things further. There are a lot of great people involved in the club and their efforts have led to that dream becoming a reality. "We also have unbelievable workers at minor and underage level. There's an awful lot of work being done and hopefully we'll reap the rewards of that. Dreadnots/St Fechins got to the minor championship final in 2006 and we're looking forward to seeing some of those players come through to make a name for themselves with the first team. But we have to give them games every week or we'll lose them. We're hoping that the huge investment of time that has gone into the underage section of the club will pay dividends." Tony McEntaggart trained the first team again in 2006, with assistance from selectors Martin McDermott, John McEvoy and Peter Briscoe. "They've served the club well as players and they're doing their bit on the line. They gave it everything and we're lucky to have people like that to help us along," Fergal notes." Finally: the plan for 2007? "We have to sit down and work out what went wrong, and see how we can improve things. Commitment is one of the keys and I'm sure the backroom team will look for an improvement there. With everybody fit and available, hopefully we can get out of junior football. "You can only think positive thoughts…" Tweet

Most Read Stories