St Fechins may not have set the Wee County GAA scene on fire in 2007 but they still made a slight improvement on the previous year, so signs are encouraging that gaelic football is making an overdue comeback in the Termonfeckin area. First team boss Aidan Butterly is targeting further progress in '08 as the Hoops continue to gather a head of steam. One of the dominant forces in Louth football in the 1980s, St Fechins have stumbled upon harder times in recent years. Thus far, the new millennium has offered precious little comfort to those who long for a return to the good old days, but at least the club is producing some formidable underage talent while the first team fared noticeably better in '07 that they did during a fairly dismal 2006. Things are looking up - even if the glass is still arguably less than half full - and former player and current manager Aidan Butterly aims to oversee further advancement in the coming season. Determined to build a team comprised exclusively of players who want to play for the club, Aidan is confident that the Fechins are on an upward trajectory at present. Furthermore, he believes that if they continue to progress steadily, then the current crop could challenge for a junior championship within the next two to three years. As a player, Aidan saw it all in the Fechins colours. He was part of a history-marking combo that captured all three major senior trophies in Louth during the 'eighties - including back-to-back SFCs - and lined out regularly for the local football team at the very highest level. Though circumstances have changed and the balance of power in the Wee County has shifted radically (as it does regularly in every county apart from Armagh!), the manager is optimistic that the Fechins will rediscover their winning touch as long as their players demonstrate a desire to represent the club. And he's happy that there are plenty of such players at his disposal right now. Aidan was appointed manager of the junior team for the 2007 season having enjoyed reasonable success with the club's reserves the previous year, helping them to a championship final and league semi-final. "The lads asked myself, Con Sands and Tom Flynn to take over the first team and we agreed to give it a go," he reflects. With new club structures in place in the county giving rise to a considerably more difficult junior grade (the number of junior clubs rose from seven to 13), it was a potentially difficult year for St Fechins, who had finished perilously close to bottom of the pile in '06. Fortunately, they displayed a marked improvement on that form to move, albeit slightly, up the pecking order: "We had finished 34th in the county in 2006, which wasn't good. There were twelve teams in each of the top two divisions this year and we finished fourth in Division Three, which is 28th overall. So, we moved up a few notches. We still have a long way to go but at least the lads are showing signs of improvement," The disruptive nature of club football in the county didn't do the team any favours. With so many hold-ups due to intercounty activity - even in the basement division - the Fechins had little chance to gather much momentum. "We were optimistic enough at the beginning of the year, but the emphasis on clubs has been lost because of the extended intercounty championship. Everything in Louth was geared towards the county team and a lot of club footballers lost interest. Things went off the boil a bit and it was disappointing that junior football could be so badly affected," says Aidan. "The club made a stand after an incident in a game where the wrong player was punished and we were without a couple of men for a while due to that. That also put a dent in it but at the same time it forced our hand to an extent to introduce a few fresh faces and those lads did really well. We had five players who featured in last year's county minor final and I was very happy with how those lads adapted to first-team football." St Brigids also reached the semi-final stage of the 2007 Louth MFC, so it looks like the Fechins have ample young talent about to come through from their side of the minor amalgamation. The team manager is very enthusiastic about the calibre of player he has on his hands - not just in terms of ability but also regarding their attitude towards the game: "Looking forward to 2008, I think we will be even better represented than we were in '07 because the players we have now all want to play for Termonfeckin. That's the key. We won three of our last five league games and drew one, which was a good finish to the year and a reason why the lads can look forward to 2008. The younger players who came on board acquitted themselves really well, while the more seasoned campaigners led by example and provided a good influence." There is certainly plenty of underage talent coming through. The aforementioned minor amalgamation with Dreadnots reached the 2006 county MFC final and also got to the semi-final stage of the knockout and a league final in '07. The task now is to transform these promising teenagers into capable adult footballers. "There is a fantastic juvenile set-up in Termonfeckin," says Aidan. "We're on our own from U16 down and we receive great support from parents. Unfortunately, the parents don't seem to support the lads as much from 17 to 19 and we lose some players at that age. We have disappointing turn-outs at our matches, but we're hoping this will improve as the club continues to move forward. I really think clubs are suffering due to so much emphasis being placed on the Louth team. "There was one player from Togher on the county senior panel in 2007 and it's disgraceful that the junior championship was held up for three months to accommodate one player. It's the clubs who are suffering. Besides, if we have to depend on a junior player to win a Leinster or All-Ireland championship, then Louth are going nowhere." And what of St Fechins? Where will they be going next year? "I'm hoping to take the team again as I get on well with the lads and I respect what they're doing. I provide the guidelines and the lads listen because they all want to play football. With their application, they won't be too far off and they could win the junior championship." Aidan himself played at a time when winning was second nature to the Fechins. He participated in six major finals in a decade and never lost one, collecting two senior championships [1983 and 1984], three ACC Cups [1981, 1989 and 1990] and one Cardinal O'Donnell Cup [1985]. His son Colum is coming through at present with a strong U16 side that contested an U14 county final against Cooley a couple of years back. "If we could bring through two or three players a year, it would be great," he concludes. "There are a lot of distractions from other sports and not as many people are interested in playing team sports these days, so it's becoming more difficult to get lads to commit to a team, but we have a group here now that want to play football. "We also have three or four lads on the Louth U14, U16 and minor development squads, so the future for football in Termonfeckin is bright. We have the facilities here and we have talent emerging, so if the attitude of the players remains right, we can continue to make steady progress and hopefully St Fechins will be back playing senior football within six or seven years." Tweet

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