Shell-shocked Ó Cinnéide has nothing but praise for An Ghaeltacht players

SPORT can be so beautiful and yet it can be so cruel.

Probably nowhere was that more illustrated than in Thurles last Saturday in how it ended up in being a crushing defeat for An Gaeltacht after being in control for seven/eighths of the dour struggle.

When he emerged from the dressing room right at the end of the right hand side of the Kinane Stand, the low pitch in selector and Club PRO Dara Ó Cinnéide‘s voice probably said as much as any words could.

“We lost a strange game in a strange manner but that is the nature of sport. I’m trying to think of the last time that we were on the right side of the result in a game like that, but banging on tables or closing dressing room doors shut isn’t going to change things now,” he said initially after the west Kerry club’s loss.

Ó Cinnéide agreed that it was the ideal situation for the club to be three points up heading into injury time, but An Ghaeltacht’s undoing was a move that is actually a personal favourite of his according to Ó Cinnéide .

“I would be of the school of liking to send a long ball into a full-forward line when you need to find a goal so it is a bit tough to take when their goal comes from such a move. We did so much right in that game especially when we went down to 14 men in playing the way we did [holding on to possession].

“Three points is a big lead in a game like that, but a goal can be just as crucial and that’s the way it turned out and the fairy-tale is ultimately in the dressing room at the other end of the corridor now,” the three time All-Ireland winner with Kerry said.

No blame was apportioned on any player for defeat, Ó Cinnéide saying that the lack of protestations from Éanna Ó Conchúir on the sending off spoke enough of the incident while hoping that PJ Mac Laimh can pick himself up and learn from the chance he missed to salvage matters.

“Young players will always have a mind for goal in a situation like that and we had something similar on the other side in the County Final with Templenoe when they went for the jugular in injury-time and nearly got the better of us.

“However the important thing to stress about today is that this is a young side who have suffered probably their first major disappointment out there. How they respond to it will define them as players down the line.

“The disappointment and where it all went wrong is talk for the barstools in 10 or 20 years’ time and we have to change our focus to senior level now,” the club’s selector feels. Ó Cinnéide knows all about losing All-Ireland Finals for both club and county but agrees that while a form of rest is needed by the players, it can’t be a long rest with the fixture changes.

“April is such a big month now with the changes that have been made so we need to hit the ground running when we do come back again as senior club as with only eight teams it is going to be very competitive.

“The wind has been knocked out of us with the kick we got in the stomach today, but when we get our wind back hopefully everyone will respond in the right way to the challenge that is now in front of us (senior),” he said.

“Life will move on, no one died today, it’s all those clichés you can think of but they are true in these circumstances I feel in dealing with a loss like today.”

Wrong place and wrong time to be asking about anyone’s future, on or off the pitch, after such a harrowing loss but whether some of the elder statesmen on the team decide to walk away from the stage and leave it to the younger generation in the club is a decision you would not begrudge them a bit of space to make.