Packed Sportsground shows GAA how itÕs done

IT’S something of a sporting phenomenon what is happening at the Sportsground these days. Supporters tend to gradually desert teams which lose on a consistent basis but, to say the least, Connacht are bucking that trend. Over 7,000 turned up at the College Road venue last Saturday night which is a record crowd for a league match at the venue since rugby went professional.

Granted, visitors Munster represented a big draw in their own right and they do have a strong travelling support base, but many of their marquee names were missing, including Ronan O’Gara, Paul O’Connell, Keith Earls and Donncha O’Callaghan. Still, the fans flocked to the Sportsground and the venue was heaving with both excitement and atmosphere before the kick off.

Did we ever think that we would see the days that the attendance at a Connacht match would exceed – by some distance – the combined crowd which turned up to see the Galway hurlers and footballers in action on the same weekend? Sure, Alan Mulholland’s squad had to face Monaghan in the neutral surrounds of Pearse Park on Sunday, but there was scarcely 600 people at the Longford venue, while the crowd in Pearse Stadium for the hurlers’ league battle with Waterford was less than 4,000.

There is no question now that Connacht have managed to capture a dedicated and growing support base despite their lack of success on the field of play . . . and you have got to admire the local branch of the IRFU and their marketing department for making it fashionable to head to the Sportsground on a Friday and Saturday evening, especially in a difficult economic environment not to mind an unenviable losing record.

Take this season, for instance. Connacht have played 18 Rabo Direct Pro12 games, but have only won four of them, while their sole success in six outings in the Heineken Cup came at home against Harlequins. On average, they are being beaten in four out of every five matches, but still the fans come and whether local GAA people like it or not, Connacht are currently the best supported team in the county at this time of year.

Sure, as already outlined, they don’t win very often even against teams who are shorn their international contingent and their squad has a fair sprinkling of overseas players, but that misses the point. There is an acknowledgement that Connacht continue to punch above their weight despite their restricted budget, while the ‘match day’ experience at the Sportsground tends to be a rollicking evening out. 

The floodlights create atmosphere in their own right, while the overdue revamping of the grounds had enhanced the experience of supporters as well. Of course, we can’t lose sight of the fact either that nine times out of ten, the Connacht players push themselves to the point of exhaustion in trying to overcome overwhelming odds. They tend to be heroic in defeat and fans like to see players repeatedly putting their bodies on the line even when they regularly keep falling short.

Though Connacht’s results are getting no better, they have been consistently been more competitive this season than ever. They performed better than expected in their historic Heineken Cup venture and have been somewhat unlucky not have picked up three or four more wins in the Rabo Direct Pro12. Last Saturday night was the latest example as they ought to have beaten an admittedly understrength Munster in terms of possession and territory alone. It was a contest of high intensity and Connacht fought bravely to the bitter end. In other words, supporters again got their money’s worth.

For more, read this week's Connacht Tribune.