Down reach end of the road

Down reach end of the road

2 August 2017

DOWN’S All-Ireland dream for 2017 ended at Croke Park on Saturday night.

Despite a brave showing, Down were unable to cope with Monaghan who progressed to an All-Ireland quarter-final against Dublin.

Down had solid performances from Niall McParland and Caolan Mooney at the back while Conor Maginn and Connaire Harrison were on top form in attack, the Glasdrumman demon producing a career-defining display.

Following the game, Mourne manager Eamon Burns stated that he wants to take some time to consider what his own future holds.

“I don’t know. I will have to take stock of the whole thing and see where I am,” he said. “There are a lot of people I would like to speak to, family and friends.

As for the county’s footballing future, Burns appeared unbeat. “There is plenty of work to be done here and I think there is a panel of players coming together.

“We would like to be coming back here next Saturday, but definitely we have made progress and we would like to make more progress.”

Appointed manager in November 2015 Burns — the former double All-Ireland winning midfielder — endured a torrid first season at the helm which failed to yield a win.

A 23-month winless run finally ended with a victory over Meath in March as they retained their Allianz League Division 2 status before going on to record excellent championship wins over Armagh and Monaghan. 

However, they came up short against holders Tyrone in the Ulster SFC final a fortnight ago before the All-Ireland run was ended by Monaghan.

“I feel very passionate about Down. I played for a long time and I would really like to work hard with them and try to bring them down the line where we should be,” Burns said after Saturday’s game.

“I think there is a lot of optimism within the county and definitely the players are very keen to work on and make progress. There’s a lot of passion in Down for this team.

Coming to the job I knew it wasn’t going to be easy. Losing a huge amount of players from the year before, especially the senior players — the boys who have been there before — it is very difficult to replace experienced men. 

“A lot of them have stepped up. Going forward, I think its is very positive for Down.”

There is a meeting of the county board tomorrow night and it is expected that Burns’ future will be discussed.

There is no doubt that progress has been made this year and the current management set-up will feel that they can build on this next year.

One area that Down will need to address is their defensive frailties. A sound structure is needed if they are to make further strides in 2018.

The future of ageing trio Mark Poland, Aidan Carr and Peter Turley in county colours will also be a talking point with all three having been fine servants to the Down cause over the years.

There is renewed optimism in the Mourne County with the Ulster final appearance reinvigorating support among the Red and Black faithful. Now is the time to build on that.

Attention now turns to the club championships and the county board would be best advised to ratify the management team to ensure that they can cast an eye over potential new recruits.