Hard work starting to pay off
Mayo play team game once more
THE chasm looked less deep on Sunday after Mayo pierced Kerry’s crust. Before the largest crowd this season at Austin Stack Park, they beat the All-Ireland champions more convincingly than the two-point margin tends to suggest.
It was not Kerry’s first defeat of the league, so the win must be viewed in perspective. And it is not Mayo’s first time to emerge successful from Tralee. Neither, however, have they beaten Kerry when the kingdom so pressingly needed the points.
Credit where credit is due then. This was a win hewn from hard work, as if all of Kerry’s attributes, all their guile and skill and toughness were suddenly discharged into the Mayo men . . . a reversal of roles, in a way.
And it was as welcome as it was unexpected.
There were a few scary moments when it seemed Kerry might do to Mayo what they had done to Galway the previous week. No more than five minutes had passed when the defence was split in classic kingdom fashion, but the goal was disallowed for a passing infringement.
And early in the second half when Kieran Donaghy — called from the bench at half-time to yelps of delight from the local audience — set up a couple of wasted goal chances, you worried whether the defence was up to it.
But they were. And what a day it was for Kieran Conroy! Restored to full-back to deal with Donaghy, he was in fact confronted with Declan O’Sullivan in the first half, a more dangerous opponent.
The Shrule man performed creditably on both, and fitted well into a durable defence in which Keith Higgins virtually obscured Colm Cooper, and Liam O’Malley, Donal Vaughan, Trevor Howley and Kevin McLoughlin all vital cogs in the mechanism.
Having rested their regular midfielders, in anticipation of an easy ride, it wasn’t long until Jack O’Connor was forced to call on Seamus Scanlon and Micheál Quirke to bring some balance to the midfield exchanges.
But Tom Parsons and Seamus O’Shea — whose work-rate was once more extraordinary — ensured that Mayo maintained a powerful grip at midfield, and with help from an attacking half-back line that pressed forward relentlessly.
The two midfielders delivered the coup de grace in linking up on the right wing before Parsons, strolled almost casually through a gap and calmly planted the ball in the far corner of the net.
Before that, Conor Mortimer, replacing Mark Ronaldson, had stolen Enda Varley’s thunder with a series of brilliant points from all angles that took the wind out of Kerry. In fact between the 9th and 25th minutes of the second half Kerry failed to score while Mayo hauled in a total of 1-6.
The Kerry goal came with the second last kick of the game, scored by corner forward Kieran O’Leary while, it seemed, the referee was still booking Conroy for something. In other circumstances it could have been controversial.
Everyone had a hand in this win. Because of the commitment of every player you could not choose a man of the match. In effort, each excelled the other, and the manner in which they frustrated Kerry’s vaunted scoring machine was their reward for high-octane team endeavour.
No wonder a special ovation was given them by the small band of supporters as they left the field in Tralee, a response straight from the heart, for a performance of heart . . . what followers welcome even in defeat.
But we have learnt from experience that Mayo never cease playing around with our dreams. So we’ll wait until Monaghan visit next Sunday for further evidence.
Full-back spot proves a very tough decision
FULL-BACKS are special. They operate in an area where mistakes are generally more costly than most other positions on the field.
Good corner-backs help. Paddy Prendergast attributes his success as perhaps the greatest full-back of all time to the men on either side of him . . . John Forde and Sean Flanagan.
Every one of the 58 Mayo men who has occupied the position over the past fifty years will attest to the imperative of having dependable corner men side by side in order to survive.
One of those young hopefuls was Seamus Reilly from Lacken who won All-Ireland minor and U-21 medals with Mayo in 1971 and ‘74 respectively.
He played senior for Mayo and later as a garda sergeant in Donegal won two Ulster senior titles with his adopted county. He was manager of the Donegal U-21 team at the time of his untimely death, and a memorial cup, for a Garda competition perpetuates his name.
Of his 108 appearances in league and championship for Mayo, David Heaney, who has just retired from inter-county football, played full-back on 41 occasions, and is among more than half dozen or so many would choose as their choice of best full back.
Peter Ford lined out 65 times, and as a tough, no nonsense defender stands any stern test of scrutiny. Former Mayo manager John Maughan occupied the position more than adequately, and Pat Holmes who as manager, guided Mayo to their lone national senior title in over thirty years, had many notable performances in that position.
Other names that stand out are Jim Fleming, who held a number of different positions, Sean Reilly, Anthony Egan, Brendan Keane, Jim Timoney, Denis Kearney, George Golden and Tom Nallen.
But in the opinion of this writer two others excel the rest . . . Kevin Cahill from Ballaghaderreen, and Ray Prendergast of Castlebar and Ballintubber. Cahill represented Mayo on 76 occasions, while Prendergast made 62 appearances.
In style and technique, they were complete opposites. Whereas fielding (with a pair of hands big enough to cover the ball) was Prendergast’s forte, Cahill was more adept at ground play.
The Ballagh¹ man, who had his first outing in the 92/93 league, grew into the position as a sturdy, perceptive defender. There was no flamboyance, but he had the ability to deal quickly and efficiently with awkward situations. He was vigorous in the tackles, fast off the mark and fearless in keeping his line intact. By any measurement he was a full-back of sterling quality.
Ray Prendergast suffered somewhat from comparisons drawn between him and his more famous brother Paddy. He never managed to fully shake off that shadow. In the sixties when Ray was in full flower, memories of Paddy’s heroics were still fresh. Measured against the best full back of all time exposed Ray to all sorts of analyses.
They were different types of full-backs. Paddy, although less tall, could reach higher for a ball. A natural ability to spring cat-like into the air was his most notable characteristic. In one photograph the number 3 on his jersey can be seen above the crossbar.
Ray was taller, but to reach as high as his older brother, required a run to the ball and, therefore, inch-perfect judgment. In time he did perfect that feature of his game, and when he crowned his career with an NFL medal in 1970 Paddy was no longer a haunting legacy.
I’m torn between him and Cahill as my preferred full-back, but because of the confidence he always exuded, and his ability to deal with any situation, especially in the air, the nod goes to Ray . . . who died at the age of 42.
NEXT WEEK LEFT-CORNER BACK
Just a thought …
Who would have thought it? A Sligo/ Roscommon Connacht under 21 final. The wheels of suffering are slowly turning. Forget their respective NFL positions, this is a great result for the underdogs.
