A black day for Galway football in McHale Park

Date Published: {J}

FRANK FARRAGHER

A ‘SHARP difference of opinion’ that flared up between Football Board Chairman, John Joe Holleran and selector, Martin McNamara in the aftermath of last Sunday’s Connacht semi-final defeat at the hands of Mayo on Sunday now looks set to be ‘parked’ as ‘a heat of the moment’ exchange.

In what was for a very troubled day for Galway football, as the side bade a very tame farewell to the Connacht championship at the hands of their greatest rivals, tension simmered on the line in the second half. Mayo grew more dominant by the minute, Galway were being hammered in midfield, and we took off three forwards!

Galway’s failure to win any decent vein of midfield possession in the second half against the Mayo brothers of Aidan and Seamus O’Shea, allied to the management’s inaction in making any switches in this sector, drew the ire of chairman John Joe Holleran, and also it must be said the vast majority of maroon supporters present in McHale Park.

The chairman, clearly aggrieved at the nature of Galway’s meek exit from the provincial series, proceeded to make his views known after the match to the management and the players, an outpouring of feeling that then led to ‘strong words’ being exchanged between himself and selector, Martin McNamara.

The Corofin mentor, who certainly wasn’t found wanting in his sideline efforts to ‘rev up’ the side during the match, took umbrage at what was said but peace eventually prevailed before the players departed what eventually turned out to be a very silent dressingroom.

It now seems likely that the matter will be ‘laid to rest’ without any recourse to disciplinary procedures. At times, feelings do run high in the GAA and both individuals were at least fuelled by a bit of passion for the game in the county.

An all-round bad day for Galway was made worse when a number of players decided to swop jerseys with their markers, leading to an official of the Football Board being given the unenviable task of entering the Mayo dressingroom charged with the task of recovering the maroon colours. His mission was apparently only a partial success.

Galway do have an official policy of not swopping jerseys, and while this might to be erring on the side of pettiness, a set of jerseys can set a county back over €1,200 a go. Also the sight of Galway players entering their own dressingroom with a Mayo jersey on their backs, after such an inept overall performance, is also understood to have ‘fired up’ some of the officials the wrong way.

In essence though, those matters were only side issues on an absolutely abysmal day for Galway football but there was little outpouring of emotion from manager Tomás Ó Flatharta, as he left the dressingroom at around 3.45.

For more, read this week’s Galway City Tribune.