No excuses for St. Brigid’s this time

The starting point is eerily similar.

St. Brigid’s as runaway Division One League winners, favoured by many to win a 19th senior football championship. But Pádraig Pearses are lying in the long grass.

Of course, the major difference being that Pearses — the hunters in 2024 — have now become the hunted.

Even when Brigid’s put their unbeaten O’Rourke Cup record on the line in the ninth round of this year’s competition, Pearses rocked up to Kiltoom and won by a point — a timely reminder to Anthony Cunningham’s men that what happened in last year’s quarter-final might not have been a one hit wonder.

Are Pearses paying rent inside Brigid’s heads?

But can Frank Canning’s charges reach the heights of last year when they looked like the most accomplished team in Connacht, only to implode in sight of the winning post against Coolera/Strandhill. That ending will have haunted them over the winter.

Still, they’re the county champions that have been put on a pedestal to be knocked off. Realistically, Brigid’s look like the only sniper with the artillery to do just that.

Roscommon Gaels and Boyle will feel that they can emerge from the chasing pack but until both clubs actually get over the line, demons from finals of recent years will linger.

While Mark Dowd will have Roscommon Gaels well-prepared and knocking at the door, Eamonn O’Hara’s redeployment to Boyle’s hot seat has the potential to be explosive.

The former Sligo All-Star knows all about the quality within Boyle ranks, but it’s reigniting that spark, which saw the North Roscommon clubs reach successive finals in 2022 and 2023, that holds the key to the club being back competing at the business end of the championship.

When the Gaels and Boyle lock horns next Friday evening in Abbey Park, early indicators about both sides’ prospects this season will be formulated.

Outside of Roscommon Gaels and Boyle, however, it’s hard to see a darkhorse emerging from the pack.

Clann are rebuilding, and while their tradition and mentality will always procure notions of a shock against their southern neighbours, the quarter-final reversal against St. Faithleach’s last year was a more accurate indicator of where they’re really at.

Mention of Faithleach’s, and, alongside Glaveys, they’ll know that getting back to a semi-final will be a big ask.

Oran have the quality to cause a stir but erasing hard luck stories from knockout games of recent vintage remains quite the challenge.

Away from the spotlight of winning the Fahey Cup, St. Dominic’s will have responded to Tom Gately’s rallying cry, and they should have enough to stay away from danger.

The great survivors Western Gaels are in a group that gives them a realistic chance to avoid flirting with relegation for a fifth successive year.

Castlerea’s survival will depend on helping out Adam McDermott in the scoring stakes. Dara Bruen’s side are far from a “one man band”, but troubling the scoreboard consistently remains an issue.

Elphin, after winning the championship last year, will be obviously keen to make an impression but as much as getting their hands on the Jamesie Murray Cup was a superb achievement in 2024, not getting out of the O’Gara Cup this season represents a blot on their copybook.

Michael Glaveys appear to be struggling for any kind of traction, and, at this stage, look to be among the favourites to be relegated. Their opening round game against Western Gaels is huge from manager Iain Daly’s perspective.

North Roscommon will enter the competition at the knockout stages. The goal of exposing players from senior and junior clubs to senior championship football is laudable, but its implementation in the current climate remains unsustainable.

Really, when all is said and done, the Fahey Cup appears to be a two-horse race between St. Brigid’s and Pádraig Pearses.

Quite frankly, however, there are no excuses for Brigid’s, and the arrival of Conor Carroll represents fills a very important section of the Kiltoom-based side’s jigsaw.

If they don’t become champions, given that the bulk of their team will be made up of intercounty players, the inquest will be gruesome.

All of which is music to Pádraig Pearses’ ears.