ONE of the chief attributes of Fermanagh county champions Erne Gaels is their remarkable level of fitness.
And that is largely down to one man – their strength and conditioning coach Ciaran ‘Quey’ Smith, who has been involved with the team for the past few seasons.
Smith played for the club for almost 20 years – a pacey, powerful reader of the game and a highly-qualified coach.
That historic county final victory on November 2 was an emotional one for the PE teacher at Loughan House as he had soldiered with quite a few of the team in his long career with the black and amber.
“It was tough on my mum and dad. I knew I was self-destructing. And I also knew the next phase of that, if I had carried on, it was not being here. I was in a very dark place...” - the life and times of Caolan Mooney
‘If you’re still in it when the Christmas tree is up then you’re not going too badly’ - Tommy Coleman’s minors striving for more Clann Eireann success
He and his club-mates have also had to deal with the shock passing since of Mark Lyons, a man who Ciaran played alongside for many years.
Smith has always been a leader both on and off the field with Erne Gaels and is also a former Northern Ireland soccer international at U16 and U18 and a Milk Cup player with Fermanagh.
But GAA was in the genes too, as his father Conor was a PE teacher in Loreto Convent in Coleraine and played football and hurling for Antrim, so it is very much a genetic thing.
Ciaran Smith captained a star-studded St Michael’s, Enniskillen to a MacRory Cup title in the first live televised final when they beat St Colman’s, Newry in Casement Park in 1999. That team included future All-Stars Barry Owens and Marty McGrath.
While much of the focus has rightly been on the high standards of Declan Bonner and Paul Brennan, Smith has played a huge role in helping to get Erne Gaels over the line.
“The main goal for me is to have everybody available for selection on game-day and physically able to carry out everything that they can and to be able to carry out the game-plan and all possible scenarios.
“It was great to see how, in both games against Enniskillen, our boys were able to stand up and keep going in the last 15 minutes.
“You plan in reverse. We call it reverse engineering, so you plan for the county final and you work back, so I wanted them to be in the best possible shape for the final and thankfully that is how it worked out.
“It is all about building towards the championship and Declan and Paul brought it up to another level. They are both winners and they know what’s needed to get to that level.
“We pushed them hard but everybody was available for selection for the final and they are in the best shape I have ever seen them in the four years that I am with them. I was so happy with that.”
As someone who played with the club for so long, winning the title for the first time in 43 years was just “unbelievable” for Smith.
“It was a huge sense of relief after the heartbreak of the last two years, but the real pleasing thing was the way the boys came back after going five points down.
“I suppose people outside the group were going-here we go again, but Declan and Paul have drilled into them that it is all about the next play.
“I knew that if we got back to a few points, that we would do it and they had the fitness to carry it through.”
Mark Lyons, brother of current skipper Ryan, and, like Smith, a club legend, passed away in England three days after that win.
“It has been a roller-coaster of emotions,’’ admits Smith
“You are going from the ultimate high of a Saturday night to the ultimate low when I got the sad news about Mark on the following Tuesday morning.
“I played all my football with Mark after playing for the seniors at 16.
“We won everything together and he was a great player and a better team-mate and no better man to be beside you when things get a bit rough.
“It is such a tragedy for the whole family and they are all heavily involved in the GAA in Belleek.”
The team had a big collective session on Saturday after Mark ‘‘came home”. It was important to get them to focus on Scotstown.
“Then we all went to the house where Mark was waked on Sunday in the club colours and that was very poignant.
“Big Mark would have loved it, and hopefully it brought some solace to the family.
“It has galvanised our boys and it shows the deep respect they have for Ryan and his family. Mark was held in the highest regard.”
Smith has has no doubt that Ryan Lyons will rise to the occasion.
“It will be a very difficult one for Ryan, but knowing the player that he is I think this will drive him on.
“As a group we owe ourselves a performance, we owe the Lyons family and the surrounding community to give everything we have to try and get over the line on Saturday. Anything less than that is not enough.
“It is going to be a physical test today and even more so an emotional battle after everything that has gone on this week. ‘Big Nuggets’ would want us to go all out and Fr Frank McManus said it all at his funeral when he said ‘Let Mark inspire you.’
“That is it and we have to rally around Ryan as well and we will be giving it all for the Lyons family and the whole community.”
Facing them will be a Scotstown side with seven men who have worn the Monaghan jersey over the years.
“They are almost unbackable and we are under no illusions about them. We will respect them, but we are really looking forward to it.
“They have a great spine, but as Declan and Paul have been saying all year, the focus is all on our own group and maximising our performance each time we play.
“And you could see that through the championship as game by game we were getting that bit better.
“We are in a really privileged position and we are not taking it for granted and we are all really excited.
“We have progressed as a group as well and we are looking to improve on that on Saturday.
“Declan and Paul have instilled that belief and we hold ourselves accountable and we want to move it up a level.
“And especially after this week we want to go out and represent ourselves and Fermanagh football to the very best of our ability on Saturday.”
