Down using history as their ally
And so it proved yesterday in what was another terrific All-Ireland semi-final.
Perhaps it was the three or four inches of the crossbar to deny Robert Kelly a last-gasp goal or the inches wide of the post to deny Eamon Callaghan a second-half goal – or the 48 inches Benny Coulter was standing inside the square for his disputed goal.
Robert Kelly’s attempt was as good an effort to score with the last kick of the game as I have seen and it followed a massive Johnny Doyle catch from a kick-out to set up the chance. Anything could have happened in that last minute as Kildare threw everything at Down. There was no denying Kildare’s spirit and their backs made three brilliant blocks to stop a goal and two points when Down were threatening to pull away in the second half.
They can rightly point to an Alan Smyth attempt early on that looked like a point but was waved wide and the Benny Coulter goal which clearly was a square-ball. This score was crucial in that it gave Down the lead for the first time, a lead they never subsequently relinquished. Some square ball decisions are difficult to call as you have to watch both ball and man at the same time but this was clear-cut as Coulter was quite stationary in the square before the ball arrived. I would just prefer a rule where you are either allowed in the square or you are not. Although Hugh Lynch landed two massive points for Kildare when they were needed, Dermot Earley, on his form of 2009, was a massive loss and he probably now faces surgery.
The main difference between Kildare’s performance against Meath and yesterday was the impact of Doyle and James Kavanagh. In the Meath game, Doyle was on the ball 20 times and scored five points from play. Kavanagh was on the ball 18 times and scored a great goal from play. Contrast this to yesterday: Doyle had nine possessions and just one point from play while Kavanagh had just eight possessions and only a single point from play. Credit to the Down backs for restricting the input of these two.
Down’s own marquee forwards, Benny Coulter and Martin Clarke, made a huge contribution. Coulter had 15 possessions from which he filched a controversial goal, two points from play, plus he was fouled for a pair of coverted frees.
Clarke was brilliant, with a massive 23 possessions. He landed one point from play plus two frees and gave the final pass for points for Ronan Murtagh and Peter Fitzpatrick. Clarke is very difficult to mark because he constantly shows for the ball and with Down excelling at recycling possession, eventually Clarke will get himself on the ball. The other player that impressed me (not for the first time) was Danny Hughes. He chipped in with two points from play and won five breaking balls including an important one after Kildare had cut the lead to two points. He was also fouled for two frees that were pointed. Hard working wing- forwards that can win breaks and frees and score are rare currency and Down have a gem here.
APART from Hughes’s contribution around the middle, James McCartan will be pleased with his two midfielders Kalum King and Peter Fitzpatrick, who each won five kick-outs. Fitzpatrick found time to get a score from play as well. The loss of Ambrose Rogers was hardly felt on the day. A mention too for centre-back Kevin McKernan who managed two points from play in the opening 13 minutes at a time when Down were finding their feet.
Cork will be concerned after this display from Down as they’re meeting a team with far more momentum than themselves. Down have never lost an All-Ireland final and the current team seem to be feeding off the county’s history. They have in Coulter, Clarke and Hughes three marquee forwards. No team has won the All-Ireland in the last 20 years without two or three marquee forwards. There is no question over Cork’s fitness but fitness is different to speed and have the Cork backs the speed for some of the Down forwards? It is going to take a performance from Cork that will have to be better than anything they have produced in the championship thus far. Still fore-warned is fore-armed and if you told Conor Counihan at the start of the year that they would meet Down in the All-Ireland final, he would have gladly taken it.
I still think if Cork produce the form this team is capable of, it will be enough to win.
PS: Well done to Brian Cuthbert and his Cork minor team on their astonishing comeback victory yesterday. I was playing on a very good Meath minor team in 1993 that included Darren Fay, Ollie Murphy, Paddy Reynolds, Barry Callaghan and Hank Traynor among others. Brian, although looking about 25 at the time, captained that Cork side and had a good final including scoring an important first-half goal in what was a well deserved win.
A similar display from his team in next month’s final will suffice.
