There was heartbreak for the Carlow senior footballers on Sunday afternoon as they bowed out of the Tailteann Cup at the quarter-final stage following a 1-21 to 2-13 loss at home to Westmeath.
Despite the defeat, the Barrowsiders’ manager Niall Carew was in good spirits when questioned on several issues upon the completion of an up and down year for his side.
Two heart-warming displays against Tipperary and Westmeath in the inaugural second tier competition were enough for Carew to suggest that it has been a positive year for his team.
He said: “It would have been very easy for us to throw in the towel when we went 1-04 to 0-00 behind, but our lads hung in there and that goes to show the character in the panel.
“Overall, I’m really happy with the performance but I am disappointed with the result. I’m proud of the entire panel.
“We needed a goal at some stage in the second half to get us back into the lead and to regain a hold in the game. That’s a bit of experience and considering we had ten players playing for the first time ever this year goes to show how young a team it is.
“We’ve improved as the year has went on and we’ve been competitive in every game and that’s all we can ask for.
“I’m very happy with the year. The plan next year is to get out of Division 4. We need a little bit of luck with injuries and we know it will be tough but every team in that tier will feel as though they can promote. I’m really looking forward to the challenge next year.”
You can listen back to the full interview on our Scoreline Extra Podcast here.
