Connacht SFC Final Comment
THOUSANDS of miles have been travelled by Sligo supporters in the past 32 years following the Yeats County Senior Gaelic footballers, but while this current journey began with a win over New York across the Atlantic in the Big Apple, Tommy Breheny had no problem this year in finding the ‘core’ of Sligo talent needed to capture last Sunday’s Connacht success.
This journalist has watched a lot of Gaelic football in recent years in Leinster, but was always enthralled by the harshness exhibited by a number of people in the national media as to the ‘poor standard’ of Connacht football which they so often portrayed.
While a lot will have been made about the numbers of missed chances by both sides in this game and, in particular, in the second-half, there was no doubting the fact that Sligo’s defensive display was one of the top performances this season while Eamon O’Hara’s goal was worthy of the tag of ‘Goal of the Season’ even at this half-way point in the All-Ireland Championship.
Sligo were hungry and resilient as they captured their third ever Connacht title having captured their first in 1928 and a second in
1975.
Sunday’s magnificent victory was all about the current crop of play-ers and critics of Connacht football should think again after a fine dis-play of defensive tackling.
Noel McGuire encapsulated the feelings of the Sligo public in his speech after the game when the Easkey player signalled that this wasn’t the end - but rather the beginning.
And what about the Ulster tactic of the ‘blanket defence’? Well this is something which has not just been taken on board by Sligo but adopted to such an extent that kamikaze tactics were employed by two resilient defensive lines that didn’t break any rule in the game such was their intent in making a positive impression on this contest.
This was a pure display of grit and determination that had the hearts of 31 of the 32 watching counties hoping for a Sligo win - such was the passion which Tommy Breheny’s men displayed.
Breheny only took over the side in a caretaker capacity 17 months ago but at 4pm on Sunday the manager was fully relishing the moment of an historic success.
Tommy’s brother, Mark, was Sligo’s top scorer with four points, but this was far from a one-man show and indeed the blueprint which Sligo left on this game was one of a squad performance.
Black and White are the fashionable colours in the north-west this week and black and white ensembles seemed to be a popular choice in Dublin yesterday [Monday] where this journalist’s thoughts were turning to another enticing provincial battle over in Leinster next weekend (of course again following the ‘underdog’ in my native Laois!)
Long live Sligo football and the people who make it happen, this title is about the people in the clubs around the county who trained these and other players as Juveniles to help them reach their big day in the sun (plus the rain showers that seem customary in Hyde Park at this stage!). It was worth the wait!
