O'Rourke hails historic Fermanagh win
It was a night to savour for victorious manager Malachy O'Rourke as Fermanagh claimed their first win over Cavan in the Ulster Senior Football Championship since 1914 at Kingspan Breffni Park last night.
Ryan Carson's goal, fired home six minutes from the finish, proved crucial as the Ernesiders won out on a 1-13 to 0-13 scoreline.
Fermanagh have been relegated to Division 4 of the National League for next year, following just one win in their recent campaign in Division 3.
So, turning their fortunes around in the Championship, O'Rourke was delighted to see his side deliver a top drawer display against Cavan.
"It has been a tough year and it was a big day for us as we hadn't played to our potential," he said.
"We have worked hard and prepared well, so it was a matter of playing well on the day and that's what we did.
"Everyone stuck together but one swallow doesn't make a summer and Monaghan will be a tough proposition in the semi-final.
"Every substitution is a gamble but Seamus Quigley made an impact by scoring a couple of great scores and I'm delighted we were able to win on the day."
The Fermanagh boss praised his side's work ethic in their build-up to this game.
"We worked really hard over the last six weeks, and the boys stuck together and showed great character.
"We thought we were well prepared for Cavan and we are all delighted that we got a performance.
"Cavan came at us and went three points up at one stage, but we held our composure and that got us through. We know we are facing a tough game with Monaghan but we will savour this win."
O'Rourke added: "We knew coming into the game that we had not done ourselves justice so far this year, but we felt that if we got a performance we would not be far away.
"It's been a total panel effort and the boys have really stuck together following the disappointing league campaign."
Erne defender Ryan McCluskey was delighted to avenge last year's Ulster Championship defeat to Cavan.
"We were disappointed with our performance last year but the boys have knuckled down, the whole team did really well and we're delighted to be in the next round," he said.
"The goal came at the right time for us and if we had taken a couple of our other chances, we could maybe have pulled away."
Cavan manager Tommy Carr admitted afterwards that his side 'never looked like scoring a goal.'
"We had little time to react - the ball broke to them and ended up in the net - those are the small things that decide Championship games," he lamented.
