Rory warns squad they will have to Erne trophy

FERMANAGH and League finals have not gone hand in hand in recent years, but they get another shot at trying to win spring silverware in Croke Park this evening.

A Division Three final win over Armagh – who beat them on the exact same stage in the 2015 decider by five points – would be the perfect platform for Rory Gallagher (below) and his side to take into their first Ulster Championship together.

Half of the Fermanagh team are still around from the 2012 Division Four final loss to Wicklow, and a third League final defeat in seven years is definitely not a statistic any of them want on their CV.

To get past an in-form Armagh side, who have shrugged off the loss of some key players over the winter, Gallagher knows where his players need to up their game. Although they have the best defensive record in Division Three, they were only the fifth highest scorers of eight teams.

“For whatever reason in the second half of a number of games we haven’t scored as regularly as we want,” Gallagher says. “It’s an area we’re very conscious we need to improve on. The conversion rate has to go up.

“It would be great to round off the League with a victory but it will take a ferocious effort. Generally, you don’t win in Croke Park unless you are able to hit 16 or 17 points.”

The sides drew 0-7 each in a dour struggle in Brewster Park a few weeks ago. The Ulster rivals are also due to clash back in Enniskillen in the Championship opener on May 19.

Last year Armagh hammered Fermanagh by nine points in an All-ireland qualifier.

“I know they have been keeping a good eye on us all year and obviously it’s our job to keep a good eye on them,” said the Erne boss. “At the start of the year this is where you wanted to be, and we will go down and try to get a performance.”