On Sunday the New York senior footballers take on Roscommon in the first round of the Connacht senior football championship. Though the Big Apple squad has been involved since1999, they have never won a game in the competition. On a few occasions they came close as they took Leitrim to extra time in 2003 and of course last year Galway just got through with a scare. Incidentally that scare got the attention of the Connacht Council as they have since modified the rules to make the back door option available in the event that the travelling team should lose in New York.
However despite the losing track record, there is a very palpable sense of optimism in the Big Apple squad this year. Though the New York team finished the competitive season rather poorly against Mayo in the FBD final, they rebounded well to give impressive performances against such opponents as Down and Louth. Those performances seem to have given their confidence a great boost and also an incentive to begin their preparations early for this upcoming game. With the maestro Seamus Sweeney at the helm and very ably assisted by his backroom team of Connie Molloy, Justin O Halloran, Mickey McMeel and Tony McTigue, the New York players have trained with great commitment and diligence over the last four months. In addition the management drafted in a slew of new players to increase not only the quantity and quality of the player pool, but it also intensified the competition for starting spots in the squad. Despite the fact that New York has been limited to two challenge matches in their preparation, they performed well in both against Boston, with their high levels of fitness being quite obvious as the games unfolded.
Though no team has been selected as this column goes to press, word from the camp is that the entire panel is fit and healthy. Alan Hearty and Gary Lowney will be jockeying for the keeper's spot but I expect Hearty to get the number one shirt. For the central defender spots expect to see Aidan Power, Brendan McGourty or Rory Stafford to man them. There are multiple options for the flanks with Joe Bell, Johnny Goldrick, Ronan McGinley, Paul Lambe, Ciaran Martin, Stephen Harold and Gary McCooey being all in contentions. Midfield should see Pat Madden and Adrian O'Connor start, though Mike Jim Fitzgerald would also appear to be a very viable option. The attack will be led by Captain Dan Doona from the forty while CJ Molly may be on the square as the target man and I'm sure Big Kenny will also enter the fray at some stage.
Filling out the wings and the corners will be Jason Kelly, Francie Cleary, Kevin McGeeney, Damien O Boyle, Conor Hogan, and Seamus Toner. Newcomers such as Kevin Walsh, Robbie Tesker and Roscommon man Rory O' 4-20 to 0-3 a Connor will no doubt see some action from the front lines as well.
Walsh is a former Mayo player and he was very impressive with Kerry last Sunday, as he showed great pace and score taking capabilities. Tesker is another exciting player who will give the local squad some additional options up front. In addition Mike Jim Fitzgerald could be very well deployed in a central defensive position or perhaps midfield especially, if Adrian O Connor is hampered by the residual effects of the injury that sidelined him in the fall. Stephen Harold is another player that has caught the eye of the selectors since he arrived in New York, as he was named player of the tournament in the Cavan sevens, while he was also reported to be quite impressive in the last game against Boston.
Roscommon's path to the first round is very different to that of New York's. Since January the Rossies have played in 13 games, winning eight, drawing three and losing two. They topped Division Four of the National League, just dropping a point to Longford. However on last Saturday at Croke Park Longford beat them by a score of 2-10 to 1-8 to claim the silverware though both teams were promoted to Division Three for the upcoming season. Incidentally Roscommon's only other loss was to Mayo in the FBD. According to reports the Rossies were not very impressive at Croke Park and they also have some concerns about injury. They were none too happy to have to engage with Longford so close to their trip to the Big Apple, plus they are mindful of how close Galway came to meeting their Waterloo. Still Roscommon are last year's Connacht Champions and they didn't go down without a fight against Cork.
Last year Roscommon' leading player was Donie Shine, however this year he hasn't shone to the same extent as a combination of injury and loss of form has blunted his effectiveness. Indeed some critics would say that he played above himself and now statisticians would depict his lesser performances as regression toward the mean. Still he can be the proverbial match winner if he strikes form, and he had good reason last year to feel miffed by being overlooked for an All-star award. At this stage no Roscommon team has been selected but I suspect that it will be similar to the team that started against Longford. Minding the net was Geoffrey Claffey, while on the full backline were Seanie McDermott, Peter Domican and Donal Ward. On the halfback line were Niall Carty, David Kennan and Sean Purcell. Roscommon are very strong in the middle of the field where Karl Mannion and Michael Finneran will attempt to dictate matters. The forwards were Conor Devaney, Kevin Higgins, Cathal Cregg, John Rogers, Senan Kilbride and Donie Shine. Other members of the panel include Jonathon Dunning, Enda Kenny, Seamie O Neill, Sean Kelly, Ger Henihan, Fintan Cregg and Cathal Shine. David O Gara , son of former star John, has definitely ruled out through injury.
Meanwhile Roscommon will be extremely cautious about New York as they never had it easy on previous visits here. In addition the closer confines of Gaelic Park will suit New York, plus physically they will be able to match the Rosssies. However at the end the greater experience will probably tilt the odds in favor of the Rossies, and I'm sure the poor performance against Longford will want to be purged quickly from their system. However this is a New York squad with a lot of self-belief and quite a bit of individual talent. It certainly will not be from lack of effort from Power, Donna, Madden, Kelly, McGourty and the O Connors that will let the Big Apple Boys down. New York no doubt will be the underdog in this contest but as the scribe Con Houlihan so astutely noted, it is not the size of the dog in the fight that matters but the size of the fight in the dog that counts.
It is also a pity that more New York GAA folk do not support their local team as it is ironic that the travelling team usually has more support than the home team. The Roscommon exiles will be out in force and perhaps more than the usual quota of young damsels, so as to get a good view of O Donnell's boys as they were denied the opportunity at the dance. Well I expect plenty of fight in the New York lads as they have nothing to lose and plenty to gain from this match. Anyway the manager of the Roscommon team, Fergal O Donnell, is absolutely taking no chances with his team as they are not allowed to attend the banquet that was arranged in their honor at the Astoria Manor on Friday night. This is literally a right slap in the face to all the Roscommon people here in the Big Apple who have gone to great efforts to plan and organize this event. It is basically equivalent to having a wedding reception without the bridal party.
Managers have generally tended to be a rather controlling and often dictatorial class, but this is taking control to an absurd level. The whole purpose of the banquet was for the players to meet the exiles, who not only so ardently follow the fortunes of the county team, but no doubt also contribute financially to support the team. Perhaps Fergal is concerned that their caloric intake might go askew with the various entrees, or perhaps his players might get distracted with the flirtatious glances of young damsels. Anyway apparently controlling the appetites of the athletes has worked for Manager O Donnell as so far he has won a Minor All-Ireland and a Connacht Championship with the senior team.
Such restrictive behavior is almost reminiscent of the shepherding of the athletes from behind the Iron Curtain in the era of the Berlin Wall lest they would defect to the free world. Perhaps O'Donnell is afraid that Terry Connaughton or John Cox would lure a few of his players to stay on and help the Roscommon Club in New York. If these managerial trends continue soon anything that is perceived to distract the attention or diminish the energy levels of the players will be prohibited. In the lead up to the last World Cup one manager forbade players from been involved in any conjugal or copulatory activity. Don't be surprised if some manager comes up with the idea of housing his team in a monastery prior to a big game as all elements of temptations will be removed. Anyway the Roscommon manager will be hoping to lead his team to victory and consequently away from all possible sources of temptation.
