Eamonn McEneaney's first year in charge of the county seniors didn't go quite according to script - it was even better! All the goals were met. Steady progress: check. Pride restored: check. Promotion: check. Passion in the jersey: check. But no-one could have envisaged that the Wee County would collect two national trophies into the bargain. It's been a magnificent start for the new regime, but the manager isn't getting carried away. To the contrary, he tells Gerry Robinson that there's still plenty more work to be done… The good times certainly returned for Louth football in 2006. It's not often we get to reflect on a campaign with unrestrained enthusiasm, so it's only natural that we should take a moment to wallow in the success enjoyed by the Wee County seniors in '06. As documented in greater detail elsewhere in this publication, Louth claimed the national football league Division Two crown as well as the Tommy Murphy Cup. They also took defending All-Ireland champions Tyrone to a replay in the All-Ireland SFC qualifiers. All in all, it was a highly satisfactory opening shot from the new management regime. While manager Eamonn McEneaney is obviously pleased with the way things panned out, he is also painfully aware of the fact that Louth are still a 'Work in Progress' with a great deal yet to prove. Huge tests await in Division One and we must bear in mind that the Class of 2006 failed to win a game in the championship proper. Borrowing a political term, the manager says it's a case of a lot done and a lot still to do: "We're under no illusions whatsoever and we know that the real work starts now," he concedes. "Our targets for the year were to make ourselves more difficult to beat, to try to make an impression in Division 2B and possibly challenge for a promotion place. Also, to see how well we could do in a championship situation and to try to win a few games. "To win Division Two outright was beyond our target and to beat Donegal in the final gave us great confidence going into the championship. The first-half performance against Meath would have inspired anybody, but the second half raised questions about how strong the lads were and how good we were from a mental point of view. Fellas reverted to their old way of thinking and just stopped doing what they had been doing in the first half. We recorded 31 incidences of tackling in the first half and only seven in the second. "The guys learned from that and we went out and gave a very good account of ourselves against Tyrone in Navan, where we played a lot of very good football. We didn't start as well as we needed to in the first half of the replay. That was probably one of the failings that applied to us during the year, where we only played for 30-45 minutes in some matches. You need to play for the full 70 minutes and we did that in subsequent games in the Tommy Murphy Cup." Free-scoring Louth averaged over 20 points from their four Murphy Cup outings against Clare, Monaghan, Antrim and Leitrim. The manager was happy with this scoring so late in the season, as it proved that his players were still keen to impress. "It also reflected the nature of that particular competition, which has a lot of free-flowing, open football. It was enjoyable football to play and we were going into a lot of games that we wouldn't have had otherwise. The prospect of a game in Croke Park and a cup at the end of it all was a good target and the victory represented a great achievement for the team. I was delighted with the way the year ended on such a high note." As the team is only one year into a five-year plan, there's a great deal still to be done. "We need to be aware of that fact," Eamonn warns. "We need to step it up for Division One. The players need to work even harder and the younger lads on the team have to become even stronger if they're going to stand up to the sort of encounters that lie ahead." Is Eamonn surprised by how far the team came in 2006? "Not surprised, but pleased. We said we'd have changes and that we'd do the job in a professional manner and the players have responded in the manner in which I hoped they would respond. We enticed some lads who were wondering about their futures with Louth. We demonstrated that we were keen to get them in and told them that things would be done in a certain way. "We told them what we would require from them and that if they couldn't give that then they were effectively opting out themselves. The only players we lost were Brendan Reilly to injury and John Kermath to work commitments. We also managed to bring more new faces in for the Tommy Murphy Cup campaign and those lads will be able to stay with us." There was no break between seasons. Once the Tommy Murphy Cup ended in glory at Croke Park, the management team was busy preparing its programme for 2007. Intercounty football is now a full-time, twelve-month job. What were the high points of 2006 from the manager's perspective? "Obviously, the two trophies. To see Martin Farrelly up collecting the cups in Breffni and Croke Park was great for the team. Also the first match against Tyrone … though they were depleted, they were still All-Ireland champions and it was great to come back from seven points down. The lads showed great character that day. The lowest point was the second half performance against Meath but we have gone some way towards banishing that and I'm happy with the way things have gone since." As we're at that time of the year again where managers set out objectives, what is the target for 2007? "We will want to stay in Division One and we know it's not going to be easy. Our target has to be to finish in the top six. After that, it's out of our hands what way the league is restructured. "For the championship, the target will be the same as it was for last year - to try to win some games. Anything else is unrealistic. We are guaranteed more than one game and our aim is to get some wins on the board." Long-term, what's the objective? A Leinster title within the five-year term perhaps? "If we evolve enough and are good enough to challenge at that level, we'll know. But it's impossible to say. You can't put a finger on when these things are going to happen. Obviously it would be nice to put ourselves in a challenging position. We've made progress and now we have to improve further. "Division One of the national league will be very competitive and will provide a good indicator as to where we're going to be in relation to the championship. We're not under any illusions; we know we have to take small steps before we can take the bigger ones. Our main priority will be to stay in Division One. "We also have to start beating bigger teams. With the exception of Donegal and Limerick, a lot of the teams we beat in 2006 wouldn't be in the Top 16. To be blunt about it, we have to start beating teams like Donegal on a regular basis." Louth succeed Eamonn's native Monaghan as Division Two winners. The Ulster county found life in the top division tough and made little impact in '06. The Wee County manager knows all about the potential pitfalls: "Monaghan is a good example of how you aren't guaranteed anything when you go up. We have done what they did, though we also got the extra fillip of the Tommy Murphy Cup at the end of the season, which should make a difference. "Last year is over now and we have to learn from the lessons of teams like Monaghan. There are no guarantees that we're going to have another good year. The lads have to invest a huge effort again. I'm only too aware that Louth have to step it up. We need to improve in tight games and raise our intensity for a full 70-minute game. It's not just about what you do when you're on top; it's also about what you do when they are on top… "In general, I'm happy with the season and aware that there's more to do. We're working on putting that in place. One really encouraging thing is that there were quite a few U21s on the team that won the Tommy Murphy Cup and that augurs well for the future of Louth football." Tweet

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