Smyth happy to be a statistic

AS he says himself, Jimmy Smyth went from being a quiz question to a statistic on Sunday afternoon, when Armagh finally managed to lay their Croker demons to rest.

Smyth was the captain of the 1977 Armagh side, which were steamrolled by Jimmy Keavaney and Dublin in the final, but who were also the last Armagh side to win a match at headquarters.

“I went down to the Armagh dressing-room before the match, something I don’t usually do because the dressing-room is a sacrosanct place. But I just wanted to say to Kieran (McGeeney) that I didn’t want to be known as the last Armagh captain to lose in Croke Park. It is a great thing for this county that the team have made it into an All-Ireland final again, but I don’t think it has truly sunk in yet.”

Smyth is somewhat of a legend in Armagh football, playing alongside Joe Kernan, in the great team of the late Seventies and early Eighties, a side that the Orchard County felt would deliver on their elusive All-Ireland title. That never transpired, with the ’77 final being the only time they got past the All-Ireland semi-finals.

However, he feels this side, because they have been in the latter stages for the past four years, are more equipped to redress history.

“Sunday was about refusing to give in, and they could have easily given it and being excused for doing it because they were playing Dublin in a tight game in a packed Croke Park, but they were behind three times when the match was nearing its end, and came back every time.

“That’s a huge boost to any team, that they know they have the ability to do that. When they were two points down with a few minutes to go, there was an awful lot of character expressed by that team. They took their chances, they tried things, weren’t afraid to try things that worked, like Oisín’s clinching point.”

While Joe Kernan will be seen as the main architect of this particular dream, the big Crossmaglen man has being in the game long enough to know spade-work by others has helped him achieve his fairy tale first year.

“Joe and Tommy are remarkably similar, they have both come through the club scene and were fairly successful there. Joe knows his football inside out, and he brought that to the team, but when you look at it, you can’t take any of the previous management out of the equation. Joe knows that better than anyone.

"The two Brians were unlucky, but they created the hunger that spurred Armagh on Sunday. Without the heart break of the past three years, if the team hadn’t lost to teams like Kerry and Galway before, they mightn’t have had the mental resolve to come back against Dublin.”

Looking ahead to the final, Smyth is expecting a close game. While Kerry have produced some of the most beautiful football of the summer, they haven’t faced a team as driven, as hard-working or as tireless in defence as Armagh. It is set up for an interesting afternoon.

“The teams haven’t changed all that much from the games in 2000. New players have come in on both sides, particularly young Cooper in Kerry, but the main men are the same. Guys like McGeeney, Moynihan, Ó Sé, McConville. So I don’t see how anyone could think it will be a one-sided final.”

And while most of the hype this summer has centred on a young forward, with an eye for goal, just out of minors, it is not Colm Cooper they are talking about in Armagh. Like Cooper, Clarke was playing minor football last year, and his discovery this year has given the Armagh full forward line a more formidable look.

“Ronan is just a cub, and look at the job he did on Paddy Christie on Sunday,” Smyth said.