Fermanagh manager Kieran Donnelly said missed chances cost his side on Saturday evening as they were dumped out of the Tailteann Cup by Antrim.

“We felt we were in total control in the first half and were managing the ball well,” Donnelly said speaking after the game.

“We were finding pockets of space and I thought they were finding it difficult to live with our energy.

"I thought the key stage was at the start of the second half, we had two or three key chances, probably easy scores. I suppose our message at halftime was to keep the scoreboard ticking and try to stretch out the lead.

"But that didn’t happen. We missed them and that kept Antrim in the game. Credit to Antrim, they were the same against Sligo.

"They were four or five points down and came back, they did the same today. Their bench made a massive difference, fair play and good luck to them in the next stage of the competition.”

Fermanagh led by six points at the break with Antrim rarely threatening on the attack as the Erne side seemed to deal with everything they had to offer.

However, that changed when Antrim made use of their bench in the 43rd minute as spaces began to appear and momentum sided with the Saffrons.

“Well you're always trying to focus the players and keep them guarded on their mindset,” added Donnelly.

"I felt the key was that we had three or four scoring chances and we just didn’t put them away and just gave them that wee bit of oxygen. They got two or three excellent scores, a couple from the wing.

"That gave them energy and it can sometimes be our Achilles heel, we just didn’t maximise our chances when we were on top.”

Speaking on his future, Donnelly said he hadn’t yet thought about next season after completing three years in the Erne hot seat but added that his young squad can build on this year’s efforts: “They are young there’s no doubt about it. There’s players who are 20-21 and there’s a long journey ahead of them.

"I suppose you do have to garnish that with a bit of depth, build on it and look to push on because they have bright futures ahead of them.

"It’s something we have to learn from massively. When you’re in front of a game, we should be pushing and we shouldn’t let it slip away.”