FORMER Fermanagh boss Dom Corrigan has taken a swipe at ‘‘experts on the TV’’ who have been calling for the introduction of a B football Championship.
Fermanagh’s run in the Qualifiers has reinforced Corrigan’s frustration at what he sees a ‘‘complete lack of respect’’ shown to the smaller counties.
“I have been so annoyed watching the TV over the past few months. I have heard a number of people call for this B Championship to be played. Both Ciarán Whelan and Tommy Carr were at it and I just think it is a bit rich of them,” the former Fermanagh boss said.
“I seem to remember being at a Dublin-Kerry Championship match in Croke Park with my son Tomás and the game being over after 15 minutes, such was the hammering Dublin were getting. There were no calls for the Dubs to go into the B Championship then.
“Lots of teams have received big hidings in games - Monaghan recently, Mayo in a few All-Irelands. What annoys me is that there is no attempt to analyse the game when a smaller team is beaten heavily.
‘‘It is just straight to calls for a B Championship. It happened last week with Sligo. And I know Sligo will be back and regroup and will learn from this year, yet all we got was how there should be a B Championship.”
The St Michael’s, Enniskillen schoolteacher is well placed to know what it is like to come from a smaller county and challenge the perceived order. Corrigan was Fermanagh manager in 2003 when the county reached an NFL semi-final and an All-Ireland quarter-final.
“What people don’t realise is what a run like that can do for a smaller county," he added.
"It can lift and galvanise everything. I can guarantee you that Fermanagh players do not dedicate themselves and train all year round for the chance to play in and win a B Championship. They do it because they want their crack at the top table, the chance to get there.”
Corrigan is well-placed to draw that last conclusion, with two sons on the current Fermanagh squad. Tomás was a point-scoring star in their round three Qualifier win over Roscommon, while Ruairí was arguably Fermanagh’s best player in the League and should be back to full fitness after a troublesome hamstring problem restricted his Championship minutes.
Corrigan believes the introduction of a tiered Championship structure would be catastrophic for a large swathe of counties, who would miss out on the top tier and he states that those arguing for this change are fundamentally missing the point about what it means to strive and fight for a place in the latter stages of the Championship.
“What we get is a lot of patronising talk, to be honest," he said.
"About how teams need to play in competitions that they can win. If that is the case, how many would be in the All-Ireland? Four or five? Winning trophies is great, but I have always been a firm believer in the journey being the most important thing and we in Fermanagh want to have the same opportunity as other counties."
Corrigan said the mood in Fermanagh is "massively upbeat" after their victory over Roscommon and he relayed a scenario that could come to pass should Fermanagh beat Westmeath this evening: “I was chatting to a man whose mother turns 92 on Sunday, August 2 and he said he told his mother that he might not be able to be with her for her whole birthday because Kerry, Cork and Dublin will be playing in Croke Park and Fermanagh could be there too. His mother told him that he better be in Croke Park. That’s what it means to Fermanagh people.”
In terms of today’s game, Corrigan is wary of the challenge presented by Westmeath and believes Fermanagh will have to find a little bit more than what has taken them to this point.
“The team will have to find a good bit more from their performance against Roscommon," he said.
"The players know that themselves, but if they can do it then they can book their place for possibly a crack at the Kingdom in Croke Park, and won’t that be quite the journey. Something never possible if we were playing in a B Championship.”
