GAA: McGrath: I've come this far.. I don't want the adventure to end here; ALL-IRELAND SEMI-FINAL: MAYO v FERMANAGH.Byline: Orla BANNON FERMANAGH has gone Erne crazy but midfielder
In association football, a midfielder is a player whose position of play is midway between the attacking strikers and the defenders (highlighted in blue on the diagram). Marty McGrath insists the team won't lose their focus ahead of Sunday's All-Ireland semi-final clash with Mayo. It's the biggest game in the history of Fermanagh football and the county's fanatical supporters have gone wild. After years suffering under the shadow of neighbours This article is about an Australian soap opera. For other articles with similar names, see Neighbours (disambiguation). Neighbours is a long-running Australian soap opera, which began its run in March 1985. Donegal, Tyrone and Armagh the Erne fans finally have something to shout about and there's hardly a house or a lamppost that hasn't been painted green and white in the days since their shock quarter-final win over the orchard orchard, generally an area on which fruit or nut trees are planted and cultivated. The words grove and plantation are often used when the fruits are tropical, e.g., a "citrus grove" or a "banana plantation. county. It must be hard for the players to ignore but McGrath insists they haven't let the enormity e·nor·mi·ty n. pl. e·nor·mi·ties 1. The quality of passing all moral bounds; excessive wickedness or outrageousness. 2. A monstrous offense or evil; an outrage. 3. of their achievements this summer cloud their concentration. He said: "The county's gone mad but we can't really get involved in that to be honest". "I suppose we don't know what we've done yet and maybe we don't want to know. We just want to concentrate on the Mayo game. "The place is crazy since we beat Armagh but we only think we've won a match and it's only another rung in the ladder. "We have to concentrate on the football and if we don't concentrate on the football we'll be put off the next day. "Obviously we know we've gone further than any other Fermanagh team but we're only young. "This is my fourth year with Fermanagh, last year we reached the quarter-finals and I was thinking hopefully we can get back here again. "Maybe you don't often have that opportunity but we're back again this year and I'd like to think we can take it another step." Neutrals across the country will cheer on Fermanagh hoping they can reach the promised land of the All-Ireland final. They won't be favourites but that's something Charlie Mulgrew's young side have lived with all summer. "Every game we've gone into this year people have wrote us off and said we won't beat this team or that team," said Ederney man McGrath. "We hadn't beat Armagh in 40 years and still we beat them. "Donegal hold a record against us and we beat them too. "Every game we've gone out this year we've made history come to think of it and I suppose in a way that's been a motivation but we knew ourselves we could do it. "There wasn't much point in going out if hadn't the confidence in ourselves. "What people say doesn't matter, it's what we work at and what we concentrate on and how we play. "What happens in the changing-rooms and on the pitch is what counts." The team enjoy being written off but for once this summer they'll be given a very real chance of winning a big championship match. The Erne men have beaten Mayo three out of the last four times they've met - including last year's fourth round qualifier qual·i·fi·er n. 1. One that qualifies, especially one that has or fulfills all appropriate qualifications, as for a position, office, or task. 2. in Sligo which put Fermanagh through to their first ever All-Ireland quarter-final.Perhaps the pendulum has swung slightly in the lakelanders' favour but McGrath refuses to accept there may be some pressure on the team. "I wouldn't believe there's pressure on us - why should there be pressure? "We're just going to go out and try to do the things we've done before. "Beating Armagh was a big thing, people talk about history but history doesn't count about here - the game's gone, we beat Armagh and the game's over. "We can't be looking back on it now, we have to look ahead." Fermanagh certainly seem to have their feet on the ground despite their heroic he·ro·ic adj. Relating to a risky medical procedure that may endanger the patient but also has a possibility of being successful, whereas lesser action would result in failure. feats and although McGrath is already being tipped for an Allstar he shrugs off personal plaudits. "I suppose I've had a bit of praise alright Alright is an alternative spelling of "all right". It is usually used to indicate that something is good but not great (so-so): "The play was alright." It is also used as an expression of great pleasure: "We won the championship! Alright!" this year but I always feel I can play better," he said. John Maughan was the man who introduced McGrath to championship football and he knows the wily Mayo man will have his homework done. He added: "We're delighted to be in this position but we don't want it to end here." CAPTION(S): DREAM IS STILL ALIVE: Marty McGrath; MULGREW: Prepared |
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