GAA
15 July 1998

Welcome Inn GAA Focus Division One

Mitchels and Balla share spoils Balla 0-11::::::::: Castlebar Mitchels 0-11

With both of these sides out of the championship, a share of the spoils could well prove their salvation as they try to remain in the more secure top half of the first division. A pint shared brings them both to nine pints and that should see them safely home, regardless of the outcome of the remaining fixtures

In the end both had match-winning chances from frees to win the game, but neither could complain about the outcome in the end as both sides were understrength.

However Balla will wonder how they allowed a six point lead in the second half to be whittled away, but credit for that must rest with Mitchells midfield which took over for the final twenty minutes, and were it not for some wayward shooting, atrocious free taking, and a missed penalty, Mitchels would have won this game.

However, Balla could also claim that John Dempsey's should have found the net to seal it late in the game but his shot flashed past the post for what would surely have been a tremendous goal with only Colin Dawson to beat.

However, some wood work from Dempsey, who got the first point, Maurice Sheridan, Dempsey again James McDonnell and John Loftus gave Balla an interval lead of 0-7 to 0-4, the Castlebar points coming from Keith Bourke (3- 2 frees) and Maurice Connaughton (free).

Mitchels reduced the gap to two points with an early point from Stephen Murphy but Balla hit the next four scores, John Dempsey, James McDonnell, Colin Sheridan and Maurice Sheridan putting them into a 0-11 to 0-5 lead in their best spell..

With Peter Forde now operating at midfield with Maurice Connaughton, Mitchels took control of this sector and pulled the pressure on Balla.

Keith Burke reduced the arrears and then Stephen Murphy blasted a penalty wide. However points from Eamon Kennedy, Kevin Malone and Maurice Connaughton finally pulled Castlebar just at the end of normal time.

However in a nerve-racking four minutes of extra time both Maurice Sheridan and Steve Murphy had chances from frees to clinch it but both failed to find the target and in the end a draw was fair result for two teams who have much rebuilding to do.

Balla C. McNicholas, N. Sheridan, M. Higgins, C. Golding, R. Clarke, R. Nally, T. Carolan, D. Ansbro, C. Sheridan, F. Joyce, M. Sheridan (0-4); J. Loftus (0-1); T. McDonnell (0-2); J. Dempsey (0-3); J. Armstrong.

Castlebar: C. Dawson, W. Flynn, P. Ford, R. Gibbons, D. Cannon, P. Reddington, A. McNally, P. McNamara, M. Connaughton (0-2); K. Bourke (0-5); K. Malone (0-1); F. McHale, S. Murphy (0-2); E. Kennedy (0-1); J. Tiernan. Sub: J. McCabe. Ref: M. Murphy (Ballinrobe).

Connacht Junior Hurling League Final

League title renews hope for Mayo hurlers

Mayo 2-18:::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::: Sligo 0-10

John Melvin reports from Hyde Park

Joe Henry, Tooreen's most famous son in a long and proud lineage of Henry hurling brothers, who took up the onerous, and indeed dubious challenge of putting steel and pride into the Mayo jersey, was given the kind of boost that will help him to renew his faith by claiming his first piece of silverware as manager in a relatively short space of time.

And this Connacht Junior League title could provide Mayo hurlers with the kind of incentive to continue their good work as they now contemplate an All-Ireland junior 'B' clash with Meath.

On the evidence produced, particularly in the second half of the is final in Rosocmmon, it is a clash Mayo can face with reasonable confidence and optimism.

It did take them quite a while to sort out their problems in this game against a mediocre Sligo side, propelled by the outstanding midfielder Paul Seevers who scored all but one of their ten points.

But if he name Henry has been long associated with Mayo hurling, it is the name Greally that left the deepest imprint on the this game, and more importantly. Not for the first time Dom Greally showed, that had he been born nearer the epicentre of hurling i.e. Cork, Limerick Tipp, Clare and Kilkenny, he would have rubbed shoulders with the aristocrats from the 'real' hurling ascendancy..

He was in a different class in this game and proved it with the rich pickings of 0-11 from an assortment of distances and angles. If Greally was the target man who exploited any space given to him in attack, not far behind him was Frank Browne, a Wexford man who has pitched his tent in Ballyhaunis.

The hurling pedigree of this man was easy to spot and he was the provider of many scores, particularly for Greally, whom he supplied with some very good ball into space.

The third player who stood out in this game was full back Kenny Golden, a tenacious player who can not only clear his lines, but turn defence into good attack. While these three were particularly dominant in shaping Mayo's win, there was several other honest performances and Joe Henry will be pleased that he is getting the right response from his exhortations. Mayo in general were the better organised, and indeed much fitter side, and while they won comfortably in the end, they will need to work a bit harder on their play as an attacking, unit.

This game didn't really open up until the second half Mayo turned over with a goal lead 1-5 to 0-5, the goal coming from Owen Shaughnessey who beat the keeper with a ground shot after Paddy Barrett, who had an excellent game at wing, pumped in a high ball which broke nicely in the path of the alert Shaughnessey.

It was a goal which put Mayo into a lead they were never to relinquish and eased them 1-1 to 0-2 up after twelve minutes.

Paul Seevers, better known for his footballing exploits, scored all his sides' first half tally, mostly from frees.

Three points from Greally, and a lovely point from Brown, accounted for Mayo's first half tally of 1-5.

Two early points from Dom Greally stretched Mayo's lead to four points but the pointed frees by Seevers kept Sligo in the game and left a goal in it going into the last fifteen minutes.

However, it was then Mayo finally began to convert their dominance into scores and Greally, substitute Kieran Conroy, Derek McDonnell, Paul Hunt and Greally again hit five points in five minute spell before Adrian Hession connected perfectly with a cross to crack home Mayo's second goal and settle the contest for good. .

Brown, with another great strike, two more from the unerring Greally, and another from Pat Delaney saw Mayo finish with a flourish and in total command..

As I said, a win that will boost the confidence of what is a relatively young team and while Greally, brown and Golden were the main contributors there was some excellent work from Michael Murphy, who made one important interception in goals, Pat Ryan, Liam Greally, Paddy Barrett, Ger Greally, Owen Shaughnessey, m Paul Hunt, Adrian Hession and Derek McDonnell.

Scorers for Mayo: D Greally 0-11; O. Shaughnessey 1-0; A. Hession 1-0; F. Browne 0-2; P. Hunt, D. Tiernan, K. Conroy, D. McDonnell and G. Glavey 0-1 each. For Sligo P. Seevers 0-8; Mayo: Michael Murphy (Tooreen), Pat Ryan (Castlebar), Kenny Golden (Ballina), Liam Greally (Tooreen), Paddy Barrett (Belmullet), Ger Greally (Tooreen), Brian Delaney (Tooreen), Paul Hunt (Tooreen), Frank Browne (Ballyhaunis), Owen Shaughnessey (Castlebar), Dermot Tiernan (Westport), Derek McDonnell (Belmullet), Ger Glavey (Tooreen), Dom Greally (Tooreen), Adrian Hession (Tooreen). Subs: Conroy (Belmullet) for McDonnell, Declan Cafferkey (Ballina) for Tiernan, Patrick Freyne (Tooreen) for Glavey.

Ref: Jimmy Cooney (Galway).

Connacht Final View: John Melvin

GALWAY LOOK THE GOODS

FOR US poor souls in Mayo, life, on Connacht Final day, will not be as we know it, or should that be, as we had come to know it. Maybe we were spoiled. Two hectic seasons in-a-row. Back-to-back Connacht titles, and talk of a three-in-a-row. All that is now history, and Mayo footballers will find themselves in the unique position this Sunday at having to watch from the stand, that is they are able to get tickets for what is expected to be a capacity crowd for this Galway-Roscommon Final in Tuam Stadium.

I'd be less than honest in saying I did not expect Roscommon to reach the final. We didn't need smoke signals to tell us that all was not well with football in Rosocmmon, but perhaps we shouldn't have been naive enough to ignore their proud championship tradition.

If nothing else they had to salvage pride alone, and that can be a great motivator. And having lost to Sligo last year, manager Gay Sheerin, a man who knows only too well the slings and arrows of championship football, has certainly given a new vigour and instilled a new belief in the wearers of the 'primrose and blue'. And not before time. Sheerin was part of one of the best teams ever to wear the Roscommon jersey. Moving from those days of the rich pastures when Rosocmmon grazed on five Connacht titles in the 80's to the barren nineties was not easy to stomach. He is beginning to turn the ship around, but the best he can hope for at the moment is to anchor off-shore until an experienced crew is assembled. That assembly began when Roscommon found themselves seven points adrift against Sligo and rolling perilously close to the rocks.

Two late scuds sent Sligo diving for cover and the rest, as they say, is history. The slide has been stopped, in Rosocmmon at least. Sligo have their own ghosts to face as the reappraise what has been a disastrous championship.. Like Mayo, they will be watching from the wings.

What is important if football in the province is to advance, is that all the countries are in with a shout when it comes to the championship. We should have been long enough on the road to have realised that the Mayo-Galway first round clash was not the Connacht Final. Subsequent developments have certainly changed our views on that, and while I still hold to my belief that Galway will go a good distance down the championship road this year, and probably next year, Rosocmmon still have to be beaten, and that will not be easy.

Now that they have come back from the dead, and they were dead against Sligo in the first game, they will have earned the respect they deserve. They are not a great team, but great teams don't necessarily win titles, the World Cup being a case in point.

No Doubt, John O'Mahony, the Galway manager, will be telling his troops that Connacht titles have to be won on the pitch, no matter how many acres of column inches tell him that Galway are going to win.

But where will it be won? There is much talk about the Galway forward line which was mainly responsible for knocking Mayo out of the championship, and they do have impressive credentials.

Padraig Joyce, Neill Finnegan, Michael Donnellan, Derek Savage and Jarlath Fallon inflicted most of the damage on the Mayo defence and also enjoyed an impressive haul against, what was in fairness, an off-colour, Leitrim side in the Connacht semi-final.

But Roscommon too will feel they have a few handy men who know where the posts are and Eddie Lohan, a good place-kicker Tommy Grehan, Nigel Dineen and Lorcan Dowd, Don Donnellan and Fergal O'Donnell will test Galway at the back and the battle between Roscommon's full forward line and Galway' s full back line may well be crucial to the outcome.. A score of 1-13 against Sligo, and fourteen wides, suggests they had an abundance of possession which must create a doubt about Galway having it all their own way at midfield. Don't forget Mayo were without Pat Fallon and David Brady did not produce the goods on they day and yet Mayo won a fair amount of ball from Galway's Walsh and O'Domhnaiil. I think Michael Ryan and Gerry Keane won't fare too badly.

If Roscommon can find weaknesses in that Galway full back line, and I think they are there, they could be in business, but they will have to curtail arguably Galway's strongest unit, their half back line of De Paor, Silke and Mannion from coming forward and setting up scores.

Galway are deserving the tag of favourites on the basis of beating the champions Mayo, and hammering Leitrim. They will be very difficult to beat in Tuam, and while Roscommon will give them a fair shot, I think they will be four or five points off the pace at the final whistle.

Connaught Telegraph - News & Sport - July 1998