Happy Gilmore hoping there’s more joy on the Moy

Moy Davitts selector Ronan Gilmore is pleased to report a clean bill of health from the East Mayo side’s camp in advance of Sunday’s county intermediate final which means sharpshooter – and former Mayo attacker – Brian Reape is expected to be available for next Sunday’s mouthwatering showdown.

Reape played the entire semi-final against Davitts despite having had to withdraw from quarter-final action at half-time just seven days earlier. And it’s not as though as Moy Davitts couldn’t have done without his full services that day; Hollymount-Carramore had pushed the home side all the way in Foxford.

“We more or less have a clean bill of health and are hoping to have a full panel for the game,” confirmed Ronan at last week’s press night at Hastings Insurance MacHale Park – venue for Sunday’s final. “Brian has a niggling injury, however, he played in the semi-final and helped get us over the line in that game. Everything is looking good and hopefully things will continue that way.

“At the start of the year part of our plan was to qualify for the intermediate final. The focus now is on next Sunday and we know that we have to go out and perform against Crossmolina,” added Gilmore.

Moy Davitts are this year celebrating their 50th anniversary having formed out of the original Bohola GAA club, and are looking to mark the milestone in the most fitting way imaginable. However, their namesakes from the Galway border, Davitts, who coincidentally are also 50 years young in 2024, looked to have the Moysiders in big trouble when moving five points in front in the early stages of the second-half of the semi-final. But Ronan Gilmore says that management had faith in their team’s game plan.

“It was a tough game and conditions didn’t help for either team and it was one of those games where you didn’t really know what was going to happen in the end. The game swung both ways and at the start of the second-half Davitts hit 1-1 and they really had us up against the ropes. However, we managed to stick to the game plan and worked our way through the game and thankfully won it in the end.” 

The selector also reflected on his side’s incredible meeting with upcoming opponents Crossmolina back in August, one that saw Moy Davitts go from eight points behind to nine points ahead in the space of 20 minutes, and believes that it was probably the game of the weekend on that occasion.

“Four of five minutes into the second-half, I am sure that a lot of people may have thought that Crossmolina have this game won. However, 10 minutes later and the game is right back in the melting pot. From a neutral or spectator’s point of view, that was the game that everybody wanted to be at that weekend. It was a game that could have gone either way and we managed to get over the line on that occasion.

“Both teams mightn’t have known a huge amount about each other up until the last couple of years, however, you would like to think that next Sunday’s final will be an open contest.

“We would like to try and get over the line and win the game, but who knows what will happen on the day?” 

Last weekend’s postponement of the Mayo SFC final between Ballina Stephenites and Knockmore – the two clubs who fill the bulk of the distance between Moy Davitts and Crossmolina – has not impacted on the scheduling of the intermediate final, with the senior re-fixture taking place on Saturday night and Moy Davitts v Crossmolina remaining a standalone tie on Sunday afternoon. For the game to be given that status is something that pleases Ronan Gilmore.

“The buzz is starting to build in the town. With three weeks between the semi-final and final, a lot of supporters and neutrals going to it will want to enjoy the game and the occasion.

“We have a plan to get back up to senior level and remain there. We won the intermediate championship in 2017 and did well in 2018, however, after that it was a struggle until we went back down. The plan now is to get back up to senior championship and maintain that for the future.”