ÔSickenerÕ at the Stadium

CIARAN TIERNEY

A “sickener”, and no doubt about it. Perhaps the Galway footballers have been in ‘bonus country’ for the past few weeks, but opportunities like last Sunday’s do not come around too often, as the Tribesmen were literally within seconds of promotion to Division One of the NFL and a glamour final against Tyrone at Croke Park.

How they conceded a last-gasp penalty, to allow Kildare a draw which looked beyond the Leinster side for most of a one-sided second half, is bound to cause considerable soul-searching in the Galway camp this week as they reflect on a decent League campaign which almost ended in unexpected glory.

Seldom has a draw ended with such contrasting emotions. The Kildare men, who have spent a few years trying to get back to the top division, celebrated with gusto while the disappointment etched on the faces of the Galway players was a testament to how far Alan Mulholland’s young side have come in such a short space of time.

Facing into the wind, and seemingly in trouble after trailing by four points at half-time, they thrilled the home followers in a crowd of 4,733 with as sparkling a display of football as Galway have produced in years, outscoring their rivals 9-1 between the 35th and 65th minutes before it all unravelled in heartbreaking style.

A bit more experience, a bit more guile, and Mulholland’s men would surely have held out for a hugely satisfying win. They led by three points three minutes into injury time and the Salthill venue was rocking with a fervour more akin to a knock-out championship tie in high Summer.

But the ball was given away cheaply out under the stand, the energetic Emmet Bolton was hauled to the ground in a crowded penalty area, and the experienced John Doyle stepped forward to fire home the penalty for a draw which felt more like a victory for the travelling Kildare supporters.

“It was a major sickener of a finish, we played so well in the second half,” admitted Galway manager Alan Mulholland afterwards. “We didn’t do too badly in the first half, either. I thought it was a really good game of football, there were some great passages of play, and I was really so proud of our lads in the second half.

For more, read this week's Connacht Sentinel.