Lion hearted Ferbane stalwart hungry for second medal

NOW 31 years of age and with his body beginning to creak and groan, Leon Fox will leave no stone unturned in his bid to win a second Senior Football Championship medal in Sunday's final against Tullamore.

A rock solid, physically powerful centre half back, the Belmont man leads by example. While he has played a lot of senior hurling with Offaly and Belmont is his club first and foremost, he has a great passion for the big ball game.

A garda based in Drogheda, Fox also enjoys playing rugby with Tullamore and has featured with them in the All-Ireland League but only in the GAA off-season and when that allows.

Ferbane were beaten 1-5 to 0-6 by Tullamore in a remarkably low scoring final last year and Fox recalled:

“They were the worst conditions I ever played football in. You were dreaming about it all year and when it came to county final day, even small things, the band before was called off because of the weather; you couldn't even solo the ball in the first half and then you are changing gear at half time and it made no difference. We were happy enough to be in the final but it ended up being a poor game for both sides.”

He agreed that Tullamore were the better side on the day.
“Tullamore got a goal in the first half and that took the life out of the game. Cian Johnson came on at half time and scored whatever few points there were in the second half. The conditions didn't help and the early goal by Tullamore was important.”

Ferbane were close to getting a late winning goal and he said: “You don't get many chances at goals and if you get them in a week's time you'll have to take them.”
Tullamore have won their last couple of big games but Fox knows what it is like to beat them.
“ It goes in swings and roundabouts. I think we beat them in '15, '16 and '17. Then they beat us three or four years on the bounce. We're doing good things here and hopefully it's enough to get us over the line in two weeks. . There is no mental block when it comes to Tullamore.
He is desperate to add to his collection of one Senior Football Championship medal and one Division 1 Hurling League. He doesn't shy away from the question about Ferbane's need to win a second football one.
“I think it would be seen as an underachievement if we don't add one or two more before we finish. Lads like me would be seen as the golden group coming through . . Stephen Wrenn, Ciaran Cahill, Brian Grehan lads like that. We would have won a minor A . . . I suppose you could say we underachieved but we still have won three or four championships in hurling and football.”
Ferbane have been very consistent and only penalties denied them two more final appearances, as they lost out to Tullamore and Rhode in semi-finals.
Fox has painful memories of these for more than one reason. “I was sent off twice for penalty shoot outs. Black card and a red card. I've lost finals in hurling and football. I only won one hurling game since Shinrone beat us in the last semi-final. I think we were winning three out of four hurling games in our group this year in the 57th minute. Small margins.”

At one stage this year, Fox had lost two senior hurling games with Belmont, one senior football one with Ferbane.
“We were probably trying too hard. Everything had to be perfect. We probably took hurling and football a bit too seriously. Everything was geared towards winning and training as hard as you could. The belief was always there but a bit of seriousness crept in and it was probably too serious.
“The set-up in hurling this year worked fantastically. The manager this year was James Murphy and there was Shay Curran from Roscommon who was one of the best coaches I ever had. They worked perfectly all year and there wasn't a bad word said between Belmont and Ferbane all year.”

What happened Belmont after looking in such good fettle when beating Birr in the league final?
“I suppose we took Kinnitty for granted. They wanted the game more. We didn't expect Kinnitty to come with the fire power they had. We hurled well in the next two games but couldn't get it over the line. I suppose David Nally was a massive loss. We lost Paddy Clancy as well.”

He talked about Belmont's agonising defeats in semi-finals.
“I think everyone who has beaten us has gone on to win the final. It shows how close we are. We come back every year. We are a small village club and we haven't the numbers. We have to keep at it and hopefully we will get there eventually.
“We have the right lads over us. We play hurling 40 per cent less than the other big clubs due to football. It's hard. The fitness levels are never the issue, just the hurling.”

While hurling is his game of choice, he has never considered opting out of football for one season to concentrate on Belmont. Fox knows the damage such an action would do to the dynamic between Belmont and Ferbane.
“If three or four of us did you would probably have eight or nine others who would follow suit. Both clubs would lose out as a result.”
Living in Drogheda, the travel to training is a lot but Fox never misses.
“I come down for every training session. It takes two hours 15 minutes which is a four and a half hour round trip. People ask me why I do it and I say I won't be doing it forever. I missed out on a lot this year from injuries.”

The off season rugby gives him an outlet away from the pressure and scrutiny of Belmont, Ferbane and Offaly.
“I play with Tullamore and give it as much as I can. I love Tullamore. It's a very open and understanding club. I played firsts and played three or four games this year and the full season last year. I probably have twenty plus games with the first team. There are a lot of GAA lads there, from Tullamore and Edenderry. I only play it in the GAA down season to freshen up the body. It' a bit of an outlet as well, go out and enjoy yourself. It wouldn't have as much pressure.”
He would like to get a work transfer back down the country to Portlaoise or Mullingar in the coming years and to move back to Belmont.
What were your thoughts on the football format this year, with every team qualifying?
“ I didn't enjoy it but I love the home and away aspect of it. But everyone getting to the quarter final made a bit of a mockery of the competition. Regardless of where you finish you're going to have to play Tullamore or Rhode. I think the old system is better.
“But the home and away aspect creates a bit of a buzz. We played Shamrocks in Mucklagh and there was a good buzz. We lost to Shamrocks and there was a lot of soul searching after that game. We had Durrow and we were lucky to win that as Durrow caused us a lot of problems. Edenderry could have beaten us in the end but it was a draw. We could have got to the quarter final without winning a game.”

He agreed that Ferbane were much for tuned in for the semi-final against Shamrocks.
“As I said there was a lot of soul searching and there was a lot of things said that had to be said. I think we're in a good place now. You can probably see from the last two or three games that we are getting better with each game. Hopefully there is a few games in us yet to realise our full potential. Hopefully we will let loose against Tullamore now.”

Fox was delighted with the way they finished in the quarter-final against Rhode.
“There has been a lot of rivalry between Ferbane and Rhode over the last few years and the best thing we could have hoped for after a good campaign was to get Rhode in the quarter final. When we got Rhode it flicked a switch. Rhode brings out the best in us and we bring out the best in them.”
He knows what to expect from Tullamore.
“They keep growing at minor age, they have intermediates. They must have 35 players. I'd be friendly with many of them. There'd be great respect for Tullamore, we have no illness towards them.”