Division One/Galway 1-8 Kildare 1-6:Galway's revival continued in yesterday's Allianz NFL Division One B encounter in waterlogged Pearse Stadium. Peter Ford was a relieved man to see his team rack up a second win, coming as they both have on the basis of one half's football in each fixture.
Two weeks previously Armagh had left his team scoreless in the first half before they launched a rousing recovery after the break; yesterday they did it in reverse, establishing a six-point lead in the dire conditions before doing their best to surrender the advantage as Kildare thundered back into contention in the second half.
"We were very good in the first half and probably should have been more ahead," was Ford's reaction.
"There could have been another 1-3 or 1-4, but the second half was more to do with Kildare. Their pride was at stake and they responded. At times we over-elaborated, but, fair play to them, they upped their game big time."
His Kildare counterpart, John Crofton, was happy with the commitment shown in the comeback but admitted the first-half display to have been "abysmal".
Both tentatively approved the decision that the match should have gone ahead on ground that resembled a paddy field in places, although both were equally surprised that in other places the surface played quite well: "a curate's egg", according to Crofton.
Longford referee Derek Fahy was said to be tempted to call it off but decided to go ahead, prompting many spectators (in as much as the attendance was able for such an adjective) to speculate like some huddled, Millenarain cult on a mountain top that it could all end at any minute.
Early on, Kildare's brisk and cohesive play looked commensurate with their status as one of the division's top teams. Killian Brennan, gliding over the puddles free of his marker, shot them in front in the fourth minute.
But for whatever reason they lost their composure and the lead, and in the seventh minute Galway hit the front. Pádraic Joyce clipped a delightful pass over 25 metres in to his cousin, Nickey, who rounded Enda Murphy and slid in the opening goal.
The lead lasted only four minutes before Galway goalkeeper Paul Doherty endured a living nightmare. Damien Burke hassled Pádraig O'Neill into letting off a hopeful shot that dropped harmlessly into Doherty's hands but spilled out again for Murt Donnelly to bang home the loose ball.
But this improbable reprieve had no effect on Kildare whatsoever, and instead, the home side strung together a sequence of creative moves, largely uninhibited by the awful conditions.
Nickey Joyce was put through for another chance but the angle was too tight. Pádraig Joyce produced another slide-rule ball, for Derek Savage this time, but the shot on the turn arrowed just wide. Cormac Bane was proving the hot-shot in the home attack and three points from play helped Galway to a six-point interval lead, 1-7 to 1-1.
Whatever happened at the break completely drained the team's momentum and steadied Kildare, who by this stage were labouring without their most prolific forward, John Doyle, who went to hospital after sustaining what Crofton described as an "impact injury" after a collision.
It's not as if Kildare hit the turbo boost as soon as the ball was thrown in, because by the end of the first quarter the lead had hardly shrunk. Chief among the findings of a regretful Kildare post mortem was the number of chances they squandered when on top in the second half.
Replacement Jason Phillips was taken down for a penalty in the 49th minute, but O'Neill's kick, assisted by a goalkeeping touch and the crossbar, flew over for a point rather than the nourishing goal that would have really revived their challenge.
Galway were giving away astonishing amounts of ball and labouring at centrefield, where, despite Barry Cullinane's presence and Joe Bergin's energy, Kildare were beginning to build a platform for their late assault.
Point by point the margin shrivelled. Galway's only score had been a point from Bane in the 47th minute and that remained the only addition made to their total in the entire half.
Kildare had the chances but, with the deficit down to two, shot some bad wides and Galway managed to hang on for the win.
GALWAY: P Doherty; A Burke, F Hanley, D Burke; N Coyne, D Blake, M Comer; B Cullinane, J Bergin; D Savage, J Fallon (0-1), N Coleman; N Joyce (1-1, point a free), P Joyce (0-2, one free), C Bane (0-4). Subs: M Meehan for N Joyce (61 mins), P Geraghty for Cullinane (71 mins).
KILDARE: E Murphy; E Callaghan, D Lyons, E Bolton; A Rainbow, M Hogarty, M Scanlon; K O'Neill, K Brennan (0-1); J Kavanagh, J Doyle, B Flanagan; P O'Neill (0-2, one pen, one free), T O'Connor, M Donnelly (1-0). Subs: A McLoughlin for Scanlon (25 mins), K Donnelly for Doyle (29 mins), T Fennin (0-2, one free) for Donnelly (h-t), J Phillips for O'Connor (h-t), D McCormack (0-1) for Flanagan (52 mins).
Referee: D Fahy (Longford).
