CONNACHT SFC SEMI-FINAL: Galway 2-14 Leitrim 1-13: THE PARTING shot from Leitrim in this year's All-Ireland championship ought to have caused a few blushes for the GAA powerbrokers yesterday.
In the end, there was no seismic shock and for all their ambition and effort, Leitrim found Galway simply too rich for their blood.
But the lasting impression about this match was the All-Ireland lost a small but glittering jewel in Leitrim. Already, the first round of the qualifying series is shaping up as the weekend when the football competition will truly come alive.
And no county would look forward to a visit to Carrick-on-Shannon after Leitrim's display here. It is a shame they don't get a chance to participate. They may have faded in the end, after working in a kind of collective fever to push themselves within a single point with 15 minutes to go.
But they went toe-to-toe with a team that is frequently mentioned as All-Ireland contenders and played some wonderful football in the process. From the stands, we could see the Leitrim men flinch after Cormac Bane made hay with a seer's pass from Pádraic Joyce, ebulliently firing the goal that put lasting daylight between the teams.
That 55th-minute score was savagely timed, negating all the fine work Leitrim had done to put themselves in a position from where they could push the favourites all the way.
And even then, they staggered without ever buckling; there would be no flurry of late scores to embellish the score for the Tribesmen. Galway were given an honest game here and it is one that may stand to them when it comes to deciding the honours in the West.
"These Leitrim boys are very proud," testified Des Dolan afterwards, standing in the bright sunlight in Pearse Stadium.
"They have given it everything. I have great admiration for them. I am disappointed, yeah. But you have to be realistic. Galway were a better-balanced team than we were. We were patching up from the word go and playing catch-up. Several of the fellas played outstandingly well but we had a few weaknesses in our team. And Galway showed them up well today."
Dolan could hardly have asked for more. He saw hugely big-hearted and skilful performances from Leitrim defensive leaders John McKeon and Michael McGuinness.
Emlyn Mulligan, the highly rated young place kicker from Melvin Gaels, was flawless in his duties and made all of his 10 points look simple. Declan Maxwell caused havoc up front and smoothly finished the first-half goal that set Leitrim in motion.
But what was most impressive was that Dolan sent out a team to play football against a team that have, at their best, elevated the attacking game to an art form.
Leitrim were fearless and imaginative and, with a bit more luck and composure, they could have stung Galway for three goals here. And in order to win, they would have needed to bury those chances.
This was not the most convincing Galway performance. Yet just 15 minutes of it was enough to deepen the Pádraic Joyce legend around the strongholds of east Galway.
Not only was the Killererin man's uncanny shooting in evidence, he also showed a turn of speed that some observers believed he had left in the last century. It was at the heart of his goal, a move that started with the Galway goalkeeper and involved a patient build-up.
Mark Lydon carried possession along the wing in front of the stand and then Nickey Joyce played keep-ball until his cousin arrived. The elder Joyce took the pass on the turn and took off like a bullet.
It was clear he had goal in mind and he skipped inside the Leitrim cover before picking his spot. The finish was thrilling. A minute later, he appeared on Michael Meehan's shoulder to bring his tally to 1-3 after 12 minutes of play.
"Sure he is a class player and you can't beat class," acknowledged Galway coach Liam Sammon. "He had a brilliant game. His ability to read the game, to get into the right positions and to score. He is playing very well. He is enjoying his football, he is injury free and I suppose that he is captain and getting on well with the players and management, it is working well."
You cannot, as they say, legislate for genius. What you can do, in Gaelic football, is deliver a well-aimed kick at its ankles. And Leitrim never resorted to that. They played it admirably clean. It was as if they decided that if they were going to stop Joyce and Galway, it would be through football. John McKeon moved in on Joyce.
They dug in and won small battles that added up. Shane Foley popped up to land a beautiful point. Barry Prior got a hand to the football as Michael Meehan was about to pull the trigger, a split-second intervention that saved the game. Then Maxwell scored his goal and Mulligan began floating over his frees.
Leitrim were just two points adrift at the break and they weren't about to disappear either.
Galway had problems, under the cosh in defence at times and requiring the bulk and aggression of Barry Cullinane to restore some order at midfield. But they brought in quality men as the game reached its critical point.
Bane was at hand to deliver the crucial score. Then Michael Meehan directed a long-range free that was like a dagger. Leitrim had not got the legs to come back from 2-12 to 1-10.
"You are always worried when any team is that close, " said Sammon. "But I felt that we still had the forwards and it was just a question of being patient. Any time we moved the ball at pace, we were very dangerous, but when we slowed it down and deliberated, we got nothing out of it."
But once again, Galway posted a significant score and even if they stood back to admire themselves once or twice, they never lost their grip on this match and they have the look of a team that will become stronger as the competition demands.
Leitrim crash out, with applause - for what its worth - ringing in their ears. Des Dolan may not be pleased to find his team in the Tommy Murphy Cup.
"The most stupid thing I ever came across," he said of the ruling.
But Leitrim will probably give it an honest run anyway. They don't know any other way.
GALWAY: P Doherty; G Bradshaw, F Hanley, D Burke; D Meehan, G Sice, D Mullahy; N Coleman (0-1), M Lydon; P Conroy, P Joyce (1-4, one free), N Joyce (0-2); M Clancy (0-1), M Meehan (0-4, one free), F Breathnach. Subs: B Cullinane for M Lydon (half-time), C Bane (1-2)for P Conroy (half-time), M Comer for D Blake (42 mins), S Armstrong for F Breathnach (46 mins).
LEITRIM: E Lyons: D Reynolds, M McGuinness, J McKeon; S Foley (0-1), B Prior, G Reynolds; G McCloskey, M Duignan; E Mulligan (0-10, frees), P McGuinness, D O'Connor, D Brennan (0-1), D Maxwell (1-1), M Foley. Subs: D Duignan for D O'Connor (half-time), J Glancy for M Foley (48 mins), B McWeeney for D Reynolds (58 mins), C Duignan for D Brennan (66 mins).
Referee: B Crowe(Cavan).
