Carlow bowed out of the Tailteann Cup quarter-finals after defeat to Antrim in Corrigan Park by four points yesterday to end what has been a decent run in the championship
After six games in this year’s football championship, the journey has come to an end for Carlow senior footballers. The Barrowsiders went to Corrigan Park as underdogs in the quarter-final of the Tailtenn Cup. Carew’s side’s high wides tally would come back to haunt the team in a case of what might have been.
“We certainly have to reflect on what was a great year in terms of getting six championship games, and getting to the quarter-final of the Tailteann Cup”, Carew told Scoreline.ie immediately after Sunday’s defeat.
“We came up short today, but in fairness, you’re not going to win a game if you kick eleven wides and drop six short. That ultimately cost us. They’re (Antrim) a well-drilled team. For us, we’ll reflect on this. we do think we are improving as a group, I think they’re a great group of lads, they are so honest, and there is definitely an improvement in them, I don’t think it’s going to stop there, they’re so young”
“I thought a couple of decisions went against us. I thought the goal they got in the first half was a square ball all day long. The second thing was the free against Darragh Curran near the end when we had all the momentum. He [referee] didn’t kick eleven wides or drop six short we have to own that and that’s what we’ll do.”
“Overall this is a really tight group. We are so disappointed, we felt it was there for us especially when they got the black card. Jamie’s one, it was around the neck that’s yellow. If he was going to give a black card he’d have to send him off, if he dragged him around the neck to the ground, it’s a red card. I don’t know where the black came in.”
“We won the second half by three point. For us we just knew we didn’t have enough width in our attack, we didn’t have enough depth and we were just making it easy for them to defend. We spoke about that at halftime and we’re just going to have to do that better. They did, and I felt when we got the width and depth into it I felt we stretched them more and we got back into the game. We’re very disappointed but they’re a great bunch.”
“I definitely had to build a new team from the start, when I came in from Turlough’s reign. I suppose we had all his brigade, and every one of them retired. You’re looking at 14-15 retirements so you really had to build from there. Everything we’ve thrown at them they have produced it for us. The big minus for us today was losing Ciaran Moran and Shane Clarke, they’re experienced players. We only have three lads in that bracket, with them two gone you were left with a really inexperienced team, a really inexperienced half-back line. Look, they’re a really honest bunch. We’re so disappointed that we didn’t nail those scores, we know were well capable of it, you know those misses are going to come back to haunt you and they did, but look I can’t fault the effort they really gave it everything”
Listen to the full interview on Scoreline Extra below:
