The plight of Eire Og has certainly been one of the main talking points of this year’s Carlow Senior Football Championship.
They agonosingly fell short in their quest for five consecutive county titles in 2021 as an inspired Rathvilly side got the better of them in a memorable decider.
That result seems to have been a factor, however minor or major, in their underwhelming 2022 campaign that came to an end on Sunday afternoon at the quarter-final stages.
They once again fell to Rathvilly, but it was the nature of the performance that was worrying for the club’s supporters as they failed to get to grips with the intensity of the tie.
Speaking to KCLR’s Full Time on Monday evening, Carlow and Eire Og legend Willie Quinlan reflected on a poor championship for the team, with a solitary victory over Ballinabranna the only fond memory they have from an otherwise miserable campaign.
Quinlan began: “It was a disappointing year for Eire Og. Even in the league, they were struggling to find form and to get good results.
“We harp back to it, but they were missing five or six key players through injury or they have gone away.
“The younger guys need a few years to bed in and they’re not as physical as the players that are missing.”
While he did acknowledge that there were reasons outside of their control for the premature exit from the championship, the staunch clubman questioned Sunday’s display as well as the performances throughout the year.
“We were expecting a lot more from them,” he said.
“They seemed very disorganised and they gave away the ball quite a lot. Their fitness also has to come into question.
“They didn’t look as fit as they had been in recent years and were overpowered by Rathvilly on Sunday. They couldn’t cope with Rathvilly and they were deserved victors.
“Eire Og can have no complaints.”