EXPECTATIONS are always high in Armagh. On Saturday (6pm) the Orchardmen begin their Division Two campaign at home to Louth and, although Kieran McGeeney highlighted the merits of the Wee County, he knows his team will be expected to beat them, clinch promotion, get to an Ulster final and play Championship football deep into the summer.
McGeeney says his players have high expectations of themselves and they’ll do their best to measure up to the fans’ forecasts.
“Armagh is expected to win the All-Ireland every year,” he said with a knowing grin.
“Funny enough, nobody has ever told them (supporters) that we’ve only won it once. It’s like anything else, we have realistic expectations and you do your best. We have a decent team, and we have high expectations of ourselves and you play every game to your best.
“We were very unlucky last year, I think. Outside of the Tyrone game, our highest margin of defeat was a point (it was actually three points but there was never more than a kick of the ball between Armagh and an opponent), so that’s how close we were. The case was just that we had too many of them where we lost by a point, instead of won by a point and we ended up on the wrong side of it.
“It was a tough year and yet we were probably closer to it than we have ever been. We were close in every single game and to again go out on penalties is tough but sport is like that, it’s just one of those things.
“If it was fair nobody would be betting on it.”
So the million dollar question for Armagh this season will be: How do you turn narrow defeats into famous wins as Glen did in Sunday’s All-Ireland club final? Injuries took their toll on Armagh last season but the squad is close to full strength going into this weekend’s opener. Only Ethan Rafferty and James Morgan are on the sidelines and both are expected to be fit to play their part in the push for promotion.
“There is a wee bit of luck in it,” said McGeeney when asked how Armagh can rid themselves of their bad habit of losing tight games – a habit they broke against Galway in Carrick-on-Shannon last year.
“We had a lot of luck the year we won the All-Ireland final. We had a lot of one-point wins, and we had a lot of teams missing stuff against us.
“In the years before that we played much better and didn’t get across the line. Likewise, in years after that we played better and didn’t get across the line.
“So, you do need that bit of luck but, as they say: ‘The harder you practice, the luckier you get’. We’re hoping that is the case.”
Armagh have four games at their Athletic Grounds home in the League which is an obvious advantage and McGeeney hopes to see big crowds, a good atmosphere and “more importantly” eight points on the board.
After Louth, Armagh host promotion hopefuls Meath in the Cathedral City and will also play Ulster derbies against Donegal and Cavan (both under new management this season) at their home venue. All will prize taking the Orchardmen’s scalp.
“Any division now in Gaelic football is tough; everything is competitive now,” says McGeeney.
“Go down to Division Four and ask them how competitive it is… They’ll say the same, so this is no different. Dublin and Derry, although they won their games (in Division Two) last year, they didn’t win them handy - their backs were against the wall in more than one or two games.
“We’re starting the same way as everybody else, there are a lot of people hoping to get promoted. Meath, Kildare, Louth, Cavan, Donegal – everybody’s favourite – they’re all hoping for promotion.
“There is nobody in there who has any God-given right to win any game.”