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To say I am lost for words after Kilkenny’s dismal display last Sunday is putting it very mildly. The defeat is one thing but the manner of it is of more concern. First things first, hats off to Dublin on winning their first National League title since 1939 they were truly magnificent on the day and thoroughly deserved their victory.

Davitt College student captains gymnastic team at the World Championships

Galway reached the All-Ireland football final for the first time in 1919, when they were beaten by Kildare by 2 – 5 to 0 – 1. In 1922 they were beaten by Dublin by 6 points to 4. In 1925 they won it for the first time, beating Cavan by 3 – 2 to 1 - 2. In 1928, the Sam Maguire Trophy was presented to the GAA, and ever since, it has been the dream of every county in Ireland to hold it aloft in Croke Park on the third Sunday in September.

Just over six months since Mayo last played a senior inter-county game the road is opening up in front of them for another year. On Sunday in Ballinamore in Leitrim the newest version of the Mayo senior team will take to the field under the guidance of James Horan for the first time. Since his appointment at the end of September, Horan has only been able to run his eye over his new charges a handful of times, the last time last weekend in a series of inter-squad challenge games and previous to that in a number of trial games in November.

Paul Kinsella Chairman of the Kilkenny County GAA Board welcomed all delegates to O’Loughlin/Gaels GAA club earlier in the week to mark the 126th year of the foundation. Each year the annual convention takes a look back over the past successes and future plans.

One week after James Horan’s appointment as Mayo senior manager, I think it is fair to say that his appointment, and that of his back room team, has been warmly received by Mayo supporters. The immediate objection from some quarters might be that he is without senior inter county experience. In the current situation in which we find ourselves, I doubt that the GAA public in Mayo regard inexperience as an insurmountable issue after the summer we have just had. Horan will bring a fresh approach to proceedings, something that is needed right now. The players will trust and respect him. The younger players will remember his terrific talents on the field and will be looking forward to new training methods and a new mantra. I hear that no member of the new management team has travelled with the footballers to New York for this Sunday’s FBD final. I think that is a smart move. This weekend’s match in the Big Apple can best be described as a fun game with nothing of any significance at stake. A number of players playing out there this weekend will not be part of the new squad, and with a type of party atmosphere circulating about the place, it is best that a new manager meets his panel of players in a different environment.

A week, they say, is a long time in politics. A week in football can be an eternity. Wee James McCartan was being championed as the Messiah last week before the final, the man who resurrected the fortunes of a Down side whose season was full of mediocrity up until the back door stage. He was being hailed as the man who re-energised his troops after they were beaten in the Ulster championship by Tyrone. In fairness, his Down side were liberated once they went in through the back door to begin their tour of the country and there was an incremental improvement in each and every performance as they progressed towards last Sunday’s final. This week McCartan’s performance as manager is being scrutinised in great detail with many in his native county questioning some of his decision-making on the line. I can understand why, as a narrow defeat normally means a huge post-mortem of the losing team’s performance. Before last Sunday’s match everyone suggested that the midfield sector was going to be crucial. It was generally perceived that if Down could manage a supply of decent ball into their pacey forwards, they would be in with a mighty chance of success. Last Sunday they were annihilated in this crucial sector. Cork won 70 per cent of the kick outs and the scale of their dominance was key to their triumph. The Down goalkeeper, Brendan McVeigh, on the other hand, never varied his kickouts throughout the afternoon and it does beg the question why he persisted in making heroes out of both Nicholas Murphy and Aidan Walsh. A more puzzling decision was the substitution of Paul McComiskey with 15 minutes remaining on the clock. He was playing brilliantly all afternoon, kicking three points and giving his opponent the run around. That decision left many perplexed.

When I got involved managing teams a number of years ago, I was occasionally like a headless chicken running up and down the line, cajoling players, kicking every ball, often shouting at backs and forwards to get out in front, telling players where to kick the ball, etc. I recall coming home from some games totally wrecked. In fact I often came home years earlier having played a match feeling much fresher. Managing a team can milk you dry. Thankfully, and I am sure much to the relief of the players I am involved with, I have calmed down a little in recent years. But for some strange reason, I found myself getting rather excited and agitated on the line last Sunday. Crossmolina are trying to win the senior league in order to take something positive out of our season. We had a home league game against Ballina Stephenites and after the first fifteen minutes I realised that this was a game we were desperately trying to lose. We were playing absolute crap! One of our players had celebrated his 21st the night before and I could see that a number of others had helped him with the celebration. We eventually got our act together though and just about managed to hang on and win the match by two points. It was mediocre stuff, but at this stage of the season, we would be happy to pick up two points from our remaining two matches and win the league.

I know what it feels like to lose, having been there on several occasions throughout my sporting career. It never gets any easier and you just cannot prepare for it. I was in the losers’ enclosure with the Crossmolina football team again last Sunday, having come up short against Knockmore for the second year running. It is standard practice that the manager of a team would say a few words on such occasions and it is not an easy thing to do. I tell them that the hurt they are feeling can help to push them on for next season. The ugly feeling can propel them to greater heights if channelled in the right direction, and there is no point in apportioning blame on anyone or anything just now. It is not a time to be feeling sorry for themselves, but I can and do fully understand why they look so weary and broken-hearted. I tell them how proud I am of their efforts and in my eyes they are not losers. These lads prepared as professionally as any inter-county team. They are ordinary lads with ordinary jobs who made an extraordinary effort over the past eight months. Many postponed holidays, left building sites hours ahead of schedule to train with the club. I acknowledge that enormous effort, but at the same time I tell them that there are no guarantees in sport. Winning a county title does not come easy, irrespective of what people might think. I mention the enormous effort and sacrifices men made decades earlier just to get to see a football match never mind play in them. There is no point lamenting what might have been, but the preparation for next year must start now. It is important that young footballers continue to grow and develop and equally important that they do not give up after a defeat. Crossmolina are top of the league table with four games left and we will be doing our best to win that title. It is important that we do not throw away the opportunity to continue to progress.

Tipperary's emphatic semi-final victory over Waterford last Sunday guarantees us another mouth-watering All-Ireland final. Hurling fans worldwide will be looking forward to September 5 for Kilkenny v Tipp Part II. During the noughties it was Kilkenny and Cork who went head to head on a couple of occasions. The Cats are still going strong but the Rebels have passed the baton onto the Premier county. This is the first back to back final between these two counties. When you talk of sporting rivalries they simply don't come any greater than Kilkenny and Tipp. The colour, excitement and raw emotion of last year’s decider is a testament to this.