Clones rumbled with tradition when Cavan spilled out onto the pitch before last summer's Ulster Final and above the players and rippling colour, Fermanagh's Paul Brewster smiled his predictions for the television cameras, hiding the emptiness in his gut.

"It was hard, alright, seeing the Cavan lads run out and thinking how close we came to putting them away in the first round. I made myself a few wee promises that day," he reflects from his workplace in Galway, where he has been based since the New Year.

Brewster has been a constant on what has been a sometimes turbulent Fermanagh team-sheet throughout the 90s, devoted to a seemingly thankless cause since he was drafted into the panel in 1991. His recollections of the past turn more readily towards lows than highs.

A low for Fermanagh football came during Terry Ferguson's tenure in 1996 when Fermanagh were, recalls Brewster, "slaughtered in the championship by Tyrone", prompting one media pundit to query their suitability to senior football.

"Maybe some lads weren't putting it in then and perhaps the management just didn't know what it was about, but that stung lads like myself who were training as hard as anyone else in the country."

Remarkably, the core of the team humiliated by Tyrone rallied to win the All-Ireland B Championship last year and, subsequently, the McKenna Cup.

Just the referee's discretion stood between Fermanagh and a first round upset last year, but Martin McHugh's fresh young Cavan side forged an injury-time reprieve and narrowly squeezed past them in a replay.

"It was just small things that let us down. It was the same this winter. The new League format couldn't have come at a better time for us because it gave us the chance to play against the likes of Mayo. But it was disappointing, we just about got into Division Three."

These evenings Brewster trains with Galway at the invitation of John O'Mahoney.

"I'm really grateful to be able to train with Galway. The training there is comparable to Fermanagh's in many ways. Pat King is second to none in terms of training."

And what if he were asked to compete for a maroon number eight? "Well, it's been suggested but I'm a Fermanagh man and that's where I'll be playing for the foreseeable future."

As Brewster watched on last July, Ronan Carolan scorched Derry for six points, three from play. It was, perhaps, the place-kicker's finest hour in blue. Although it was Cavan's 39th provincial title, it was their first since the troubles began. Carolan had been reared through a generation of heartbreaks.

"It's impossible to explain how much that victory meant in Cavan, how much we invested in it. In many ways it was disappointing that Martin (McHugh) left when he did, but it was so understandable, we were all exhausted," he says now.

That emotional outpouring left them strangely flat in the county's All-Ireland semi-final game against Kerry.

"When we looked back, it was obvious that there was something badly wrong that so few key players performed. We left it behind. I'd like to think that if we got there this year, things would be different."

In a sense, things have turned full circle in Cavan. Their league campaign suffered in the wake of McHugh's departure but recent challenge wins over Galway and Dublin have sparked a little buzz across the county once more.

"`The only difference now is that the interest is greater because we are Ulster champions. But our supporters still don't know what to expect."

Liam Austin, a man who differs greatly from his predecessor, has brought some semblance of stability to Cavan again. He is, according to Carolan, essentially trying to build on the platform he inherited, while encouraging a more direct attacking approach. Only when Cavan take the field against Fermanagh can the absence of leaders such as Stephen King and Damien O'Reilly be measured.

"I suppose I have a responsibility as a senior player. I feel like a young grandfather on this team," says Carolan.