If it’s goodbye Mary Lou, then SF faces Stalingrad south of the border

THINGS are bad for Fianna Fáil: on that much the opinion polls are agreed. But are they really behind Labour? Are the Greens going down with them, or holding up well? That’s opinion polls for you: they summarise popular views on a particular day or couple of days.

The longer trends are what count and, on that score, the only party with something to celebrate is Fine Gael. It is 27 years since FG won a general election and the party feels it keenly. At last, more than one opinion poll suggests the spell might finally be broken next time.

The other noticeable trend — less frequently remarked upon — is the continuing slump in Sinn Féin fortunes. This weekend Sinn Féin gathers for its annual árd fheis after what party stalwart Rita O’Hare admits has been “a difficult year” for the party — and it’s not the first.