No complaints from Maye, only great memories of journey

In the end, St Nathy’s were left with disappointment.

A journey that will live long in the memory for everyone associated with the Ballaghaderreen school ultimately ended in cruel fashion as they were beaten by a slick Cnoc Mhuire Granard outfit.

For St Nathy’s joint-manager Colm Maye, the defeat was a bitter pill to swallow – although the Charlestown Sarsfields clubman admitted that his side had been bested by a superior force on the day.

“They were probably the better team than us on the day and they backed up everything that we had seen online about them. They are a good side. We just came up short. We got back to within two points, had a chance to get it back to one but then they broke up and got two quick goals on us. That really took the sting out of everything we tried there in the second-half,” he noted.

Another source of disappointment in the immediate aftermath was how St Nathy’s had been unable to capitalise on a ferocious start to the contest. The Connacht champions surged 1-2 to 0-1 ahead after just four minutes as a Patrick Gaynor two-point free and Conor Moriarty’s expertly taken goal gave St Nathy’s the dream start against a deceptively strong breeze.

Maye admitted his side sought to protect what they had instead of keeping the same pace in attack that had served them well, something he admitted was a source of regret.

“We got off to a great start and we sat off. Hindsight is a great thing but maybe we should have kept pushing forward. But credit to Granard, they are an exceptional team and we just struggled to match them today.

“We played into their hands at times by slowing it down too much and letting them get into their defensive shape. Credit to our lads they came out in the second-half battling and that is all we can really ask of them,” Maye noted.

Selector Fr Paul Kivlehan felt St Nathy’s were in a decent position at half-time, trailing by four points at half-time with wind advantage to come.

“We still felt we were well in the game. We went out and we attacked the game as good as we could in the second-half. We were well in it but we just conceded those two goals kind of against the run of play. For the first goal the high ball went in and it just dropped nicely for their man and I suppose that swung the game in their favour again,” he noted.

The Ballaghaderreen clubman still held that firm belief up until Cnoc Mhuire Granard’s quickfire goals from Karl O’Hara and Niall O’Donnell in the 52nd and 55th minutes of the contest.

“I just thought at that stage we probably had them. They kicked a few wides, and we missed one and that could have brought us back to a point. They went up and got the two goals, and it was over after that,” Fr Paul stated.

Despite the sobering taste of defeat, Colm Maye was able to reflect on an unforgettable journey for this group of players, one that truly started when they were crowned Connacht juvenile ‘B’ champions in 2022.

Tasting Connacht senior ‘B’ success and reaching an All-Ireland final this year created lifelong memories for everyone involved, according to Maye.

“It has been really special. I couldn’t have done it with a better group and management team, Ronan (Brett) and Fr Paul. It has been brilliant to be a part of. It is just disappointing to come up short on the day,” he concluded.