Club contenders emerging
THE league is taking shape, but no remarkable feature has come to light in the four rounds completed. Last year’s county senior finalists are stiffening their primacy status within the county with the Mitchels nosing ahead of the champions at the top of Division 1A.
Next week they’ll go head-to-head at Clogher, and while the ifs and buts of the county final will not be sorted out in a league match, pride will propel the hosts to concede no inch, and Castlebar to ponder what might have been.
Both are now under new management and the league is being used to familiarise Pat Holmes and Anthony McGarry with the quality of the players at their disposal for the more serious competition ahead.
But the sinister effects of the recession have already begun to hit the plans of many clubs throughout the county. And Pat Holmes is no exception. At least four of his top players are planning to spend the summer months in America.
Holmes will be hoping that Donal Newcombe, Ger McDonagh, Danny Kirby and Aidan Walsh will be around for a few further league games before taking their leave. More worryingly for him though, is whether they’ll be back for the latter stages of the championship… and, more to the point, in what state of fitness.
The Mitchels are grouped with Charlestown, Ballagh’ and Aghamore for the championship and having experienced the strength of the first two in the past few weeks, the manager cannot hope to field understrength sides against them with any degree of confidence.
It’s a young team Holmes is nurturing, and the absence of Kirby and Newcombe will be sorely felt from a defence that was vulnerable in their home game with Charlestown. Some careful patchwork will be required. But the Mitchels’ championship hopes will have receded somewhat.
Ballintubber blossomed with the winning of their first county senior title. Last weekend, however, they were toppled from the peak of Division 1A by Shrule/Glencorrib, a defeat they will want to avenge next weekend when they meet Castlebar.
Their confidence is unlikely to be dented especially if Alan Dillon is back. Without him they look rather rudderless. Against Shrule/ Glencorrib they erred in the use of full-forward Michael Nestor as a sweeper in defence… where James Horan had him so successfully employed.
Nestor was shadowed all the way by David Geraghty, and the full-back, playing full-forward, had a key role in the recovery of the south side from a five-point deficit to a last-gasp winner tossed over by full-forward Brian Murphy.
Ballaghaderreen, led by Mayo star Andy Moran, are the surprise packets of the top-flight so far, and their performance against the Mitchels will have been the boost Kieran Gallagher sought to reignite their championship hopes.
The Ballagh’ side, reduced to fourteen men in the second half, lost to Knockmore on Saturday, but still look a good bet for success in the summer jousts.
Charlestown’s single point from their four games makes hopes of a return to the form with which they swept the county two years ago hard to sustain.
The old fizz appears to be fading. The diminishing influence of the Higgins brothers, Aidan and Dermot, has not been replaced, and David Tiernan has retired. Dignity and self-esteem will buttress their championship challenge and a backlash is not beyond their capabilities. But without reinforcements the championship is beyond them.
As ever Knockmore are alive and well and creating an impressive image. They are joint second on the table with Ballintubber. A few bold bids to return to glory have been made over the past few years. And with John Brogan enjoying a new lease of life at full forward, you count them out at your peril.
Ballina are building, and experimenting, too. Thus we saw Eanna Casey at full-back, Aidan Tighe flourishing in his new centre-back berth, and Levi Tierney looking good as leader of the attack. But I don’t think they will recover All-Ireland winning form this season.
Nor do Crossmolina appear ready to re-conquer. Their bottom of the table slot is not a true reflection of their worth… what with injuries and absenteeism. The return of Ciaran McDonald is a fillip and his midfield performances are worth watching. They’ll be better, but it will take more than one star, however bright, to reinvent them.
The return of Donal Vaughan may not be enough to lead Ballinrobe to centre stage in the summer. But James Horan will be glad to see him back in the spurs, and while he is dominating midfield for his club, it is Vaughan’s value as a defender that will be exercising Horan’s mind.
Their draw with Crossmolina will have been a boost for Burrishoole, and they will build on the experience of the league for their intermediate campaign. But Westport are struggling. Big efforts against Ballina and Ballinrobe failed narrowly. They’ll be hoping for better luck against Shrule/Glencorrib next Sunday, but it’s another tough call.
Horan weighs up his options
THE game was barely two minutes old when Jason Doherty poached his second goal for Mayo… and left struggling Antrim with a mountain they were unable to climb.
Doherty’s goals apart, this challenge at Kiltimagh on Sunday was also notable for the return of Donal Vaughan after injury, and the Ballinrobe man made a sufficient impact in the full-back line to be seriously considered for the position on the championship side.
I would have liked to see him perform in the troublesome centre-back berth, but Tom Cunniffe made a big impression there against Antrim. Cunniffe is speedy, and he works his way out of trouble intelligently. Whether he has the physical capacity to counter big attacking centre forwards is the test he has yet to undergo.
Trevor Howley also made an appearance after a long absence through injury. Horan slotted the Knockmore man in at corner forward, and played him as a third midfielder with significant success.
The match was used as a further trial for some players on the fringe of James Horan’s final squad, and each played as if being personally assessed. All worked hard, and tackled furiously, and management will find it hard to exclude any.
‘Ginger’ hangs up his boots
ONE of Charlestown’s great servants has hung up his boots. At 37 years of age David ‘Ginger’ Tiernan bowed to the merciless onslaught of time. They would have wanted him to stay on awhile, now that their team is struggling in the league. But the great motivator knows he has nothing more to give.
At the height of his career, Tiernan was more than a match for the best around. He was clever, committed… and a little feisty. He could spring for a ball higher than most, and his shrewd sense of positioning won him many vital scores.
Like others who escaped the net, Tiernan had more leadership ability than some of those who represented the county, but even though he spearheaded Charlestown to many fine victories he was never fully recognised by Mayo selectors.
Just a thought …
Dublin’s victory over Kilkenny in the National Hurling League final was a mighty blow struck for the underdog, and an example for underachievers that in the right frame of mind almost anything is possible.
