The holy grail awaitsPreview
Mike Finnerty
THE tragic events of the last ten days will be weighing heavily on the hearts and minds of everybody involved in next Sunday’s Mayo SFC Final; especially, of course, Alan, Richie and John Feeney, and Tom Cunniffe, as well as their extended families.
Most of us cannot even begin to imagine what they have gone, and are going, through. All, of course, against the backdrop of a County Senior Final that would have been the ultimate celebration of all that is unique and wonderful about family ties, parish pride, and GAA culture for the Feeney family, in particular.
Both Alan and Richie Feeney, and Tom Cunniffe, played for Castlebar in last Saturday evening’s comprehensive league win over Garrymore and, by all accounts, they turned in commanding displays.
As captain and vice-captain respectively of this Mitchels team, the Feeney brothers will undoubtedly lead from the front next weekend too.
The same can be said of their first cousin, and Ballintubber captain, John Feeney, who has been an inspirational figure all season along for the first-time senior finalists.
Neither camp seems to have any major injury worries and both seem well-versed on each other’s major strengths. And weaknesses no doubt.
“Castlebar are a very strong team,” said Ballintubber manager James Horan last week. “They have pace, height, strength. They’ve got the mix. They’ve got fast wing-backs, Barry Moran inside, very tight at the back with the Feeneys and Pat Kelly.
“They’ve got the mix that you need to be a very successful team. They’re going to be very difficult to beat.”
“Ballintubber have had a great year,” responded his Castlebar counterpart Peter Ford. “They’ve only lost one match, to Knockmore in the league. They’ve become very hard to beat.
“They have an advantage over us in that they’re playing in a higher division in the league, playing better quality teams. They’re conceding hardly anything in any game either.
“Okay, they’re not scoring an awful lot but they’re obviously setting themselves up to play a defensive game, keep the score down, and just try and get a few more scores than the opposition. And it’s worked for them so far.
“They obviously believe in their system. It’s a northern, Tyrone-type thing and it’s worked for them. They’re not going to change it now so I think they’ll be trying to win the county final by conceding very little to us.
“They’re going to be hard to break down. They have some good young players, and a core of experienced lads. They’re there on merit and they have every right to expect to win, the same as we do.”
So, what is the message to the two squads going to be? “Pretty much just go out and play,” said Ballintubber manager James Horan.
“The work is done, the preparation is done, they’ve given the commitment and made the sacrifices you need to be successful. Now it’s a case of bringing that on to the field on Sunday. The hard work is done.”
“When the final comes into view, lads are going to remember all the sacrifices they made,” said Peter Ford. “They’re going to give it everything to try and make it happen.”
Hopefully, next Sunday’s match will provide some semblance of comfort and solace for all those who are grieving this week.
It is often said that tragic events of this nature put things like sport into perspective. However, it also brings into focus the importance of friends, family, and the local community.
When John Hughes throws in the ball next Sunday, this game is likely to take on a life of its own as all concerned will throw themselves headlong into the fray for sixty minutes.
Everybody is hoping for a good, clean, tough championship battle between two clubs that have been part of the Mayo GAA story for over 100 years. This is their time again.
May the best team win.
