James Morgan is now in his fifth year on the Armagh panel

ARMAGH defender James Morgan has said that it’s time for the players to step up to the plate and ease the pressure on manager KieranMcGeeney.

The side’s Ulster loss to Down earlier this month has left McGeeney’s championship record as Armagh manager standing at played seven, lost six, won one. A second win against Fermanagh in Sunday’s Qualifier is a necessity if they are to extend their season beyond the weekend.

The loss to Down three weeks ago proved particularly frustrating for Armagh fans as they completely malfunctioned against their bitter rivals, with McGeeney shipping a lot of criticism in the aftermath.

Morgan is a bit perplexed about the fact that McGeeney, who will once again be in the stands serving a suspension, seems to be in the firing line on his own with criticism deflected from the players onto their manager.

“Kieran is a great manager but he’s not available to kick the ball over the bar. He’s instilled a ‘go out and do it’ attitude into us over the last few weeks.

“Rather than talking about what we’re going to do, he’s just telling us to go out and enjoy what we can do. He believes in us, it’s time for us to step up for him.”

The full interview with James Morgan is available in store today or online here.