Newmarket-on-Fergus’ senior manager, Tomás Ryan has said the overriding feeling is pride and progress when reflecting back on their campaign this year.
One point was the margin in last weekend’s semi-final defeat to Ballyea as the Blues exited to Robbie Hogan’s men, ex Clare footballer Gary Brennan playing a key role throughout the contest and also teeing up Aaron Griffin for the winning goal.
Ryan pointed to the green flag as a turning point in the contest. “When they got the goal they were the better side and they finished out the game strong. I thought up to that we had the better of it but I might be a bit biased in that. Their goal turned it in their favour. It was a great battle, a good quality game although the score wasn’t hectic. Conditions turned difficult in the second half”.
A first semi-final appearance since 2017 followed an unbeaten campaign in Division 1B of the Clare Cup for Newmarket, however the absence of any promotion or relegation means they will be confined to the same grade next year.
Semi-final appearances are rare in Clare, the Blues boss noted when reflecting back on their year. “Look I am very proud of the panel of players we have. They really represented the club and themselves well. They are a joy to be involved with. Ballyea’s experience was important. They have huge talent throughout their team, they are a really talented side. We didn’t underestimate them by any means.
“Some of those lads really came strong in the end but we can be really proud of where we got to this year. You don’t get to semi-finals too often. It doesn’t come easy or often and we have to enjoy it and take some reward out of coming this far and hopefully we can build on it for next year. It’s reset and back to square one for next year”.
