Trying to win ugly is turning away fans

We witnessed the good, the bad and the ugly in MacHale Park on County Final day on Sunday. The good? An absorbing and hugely entertaining junior final between Lahardane and Shrule-Glencorrib. The bad and the ugly? What followed it in the senior final.

Let’s start on a positive note. I was really impressed with the commitment and quality on show in the opening match as Lahardane just prevailed over a gallant Shrule-Glencorrib in a topsy-turvy affair. Despite the result and another bitter final defeat for my home club, they can be extremely proud of their showing. The wait goes on for our maiden adult men’s title but it was not for a want of effort or performance last Sunday. Lahardane were probably slightly the better team, but only just.

It was definitely not a five-point game and was in the balance for most of the 60 minutes. Lahardane scored goals at crucial times just to put a halt to Shrule-Glencorrib’s gallop as they looked to be building up a head of steam. The pitch was in great nick on a pleasant autumnal afternoon and the quality of shooting was a joy to behold. Ronan Warde and Evan Cawley kicked some monsters from downtown for the Border men while James and Matthew Maughan followed suit for Lahardane. The quality of point-taking in the junior match was in stark contrast to the errant pot-shots which littered the senior decider.

Shrule-Glencorrib are a very well drilled team but Lahardane just had a little more pace to bore holes in their opponent’s rearguard and thus created more goal-scoring opportunities. Man-of-the-match, Mark Noone, took two of those opportunities with brilliant finishes in the second-half. His second goal was a sublime soccer finish and one Erling Haaland would have been proud of. Barry Leonard scuffed a cross-cum-shot across the edge of the big square and without breaking stride Noone swept it in to the top corner for an absolute peach. In fact, Noone’s goal and Kevin Quinn’s rasper in the intermediate final the previous day, are two of the best GAA goals I have seen in some time.

Lahardane had great running power in the middle of the park and Shrule-Glencorrib struggled to nail down the powerful Shane Finnerty and Darragh Walsh. Their penetration meant they found it easier to score from play while our boys relied more on frees to keep the scoreboard ticking over. TJ Canavan, Shane Mellett and Conor Bohan put in great shifts and were unlucky to be on the losing team. A glorious day for Lahardane MacHales, a disappointing one for us, but credit to the players and management on both teams who treated supporters to a cracking final.

Alas, now my tone will change as I reflect upon the “showpiece” decider. I’m not sure what more I can add that has not already been said about this game. The dogs on the street know that this was a horrific watch. The people sitting beside me in the stand were praying that it would not go to extra-time – and some of those were fans of Breaffy who were chasing the elusive equaliser! It’s the first time I’ve ever been at a county final where I’ve seen a smaller crowd in the second-half than the first. Neutrals from Shrule and Lahardane who decided to hang on for the big one opted to get out of dodge at half-time.

Nationally, the mood wasn’t much better among punters who had paid €20 to stream the match. Colm Parkinson tweeted “This was the worst game I’ve ever watched. Genuinely.” Joe Brolly colourfully added that “it would make a dog eat its granny.” Maurice Brosnan reckoned that the first-half was “as bad a half a football as I’ve ever watched.” John Maughan, on streaming co-comms, apologised to the viewers for the spectacle. He hoped that Larry McCarthy, the GAA’s President, was present so that he could see first-hand the current state of our club game and that change would be afoot.

It’s only one match so it’s important not to be hysterical or overly dramatic but we cannot just look at the county final in isolation when analysing the standard and entertainment in this year’s Mayo senior championship. This year, there was only one goal scored between both semi-finals and the final. From the quarter-final to last Sunday’s final, a total of seven games, there were only five goals scored. Two of those came in extra-time for Castlebar Mitchels against Ballintubber, one of which was a Bob Tuohy fluke from the halfway line. Another of those five goals was a Robbie Fadden penalty for Breaffy against Westport. Nowadays, turgid Gaelic football isn’t exclusive to the Mayo club championship but it will be really interesting to compare and contrast next Sunday’s Galway final between Corofin and Moycullen with the Ballina-Breaffy affair.

On Sunday last, there were only three scores from play. Creativity was thin on the ground and clinical finishing was even more scarce. The scoring zones and scorers were all shut down which led to wild shots from crazy angles. Ballina totally dominated the first-half but could not translate their dominance into scores. Had they been more precise with their shooting, they probably would have been home and hosed at half-time.

They didn’t really re-appear after the break though and had Breaffy equalised, I think they would have gone on to win it. They were one point in arrears for most of the second-half but huffed and puffed and just couldn’t get parity. It reminded me a little of the rugby World Cup Final the previous evening. Against all odds, had New Zealand equalised or nudged ahead of South Africa, then I’m certain they would have seen it out. Breaffy will rue being so dominant in the second-half without ever landing any killer blows.

For Ballina, Luke Feeney did well on scraps. He dug in and showed presence at 14 to win some crucial gimme frees in the first-half when scores were hard to come by. Fittingly, he also kicked the clincher late on. He is a full-forward from yesteryear, a good target man and a handful on the edge of the square. It’s just a pity that more ball isn’t kicked his way.

The highlight of the match for me though came at the final whistle. No, not because the torture was over, but to see Ger Cafferkey sprinting towards David Clarke to embrace him. Other Stephenites players just fell to the ground and rejoiced towards the heavens, but Caff sought out his old buddy to share the special moment. The seasoned pair have been through a lot together and I’m sure Sunday’s victory was as sweet as they come.

Cafferkey is still a class act by the way and was the best defender on show. He is very disciplined in his tackling and so annoying to mark with his telescopic limbs. Himself and Clarke are standard-bearers for any team they play with and they led their clubmates to glory on Sunday.

For Breaffy and Shrule-Glencorrib, it is that old familiar feeling of a county final loss. The more sport I play and watch, the more I come to understand that it is bloody hard to win anything. When the day comes, you have to savour it, celebrate it and cherish it. I’m sure Ballina and Lahardane will do just that.

At the end of the year, only one team can be victorious in each grade. For players and supporters from the rest, championship victory and trophies are an elusive, tantalising prospect. Good football, entertainment and enjoyment need not be, though.