West wing out to silence critics

AS winter turned to spring, Dessie Sloyan could hear the familiar whispers in the wind. They have been a constant of late in the Yeats County. Barstool murmurs abound about this being Sligo's last chance.

You could almost set your watch by the timing of such nuggets.

Now with the Connacht championship opener against Roscommon three days away, the whispers have magnified.

"You don't really listen to that kind of talk," says the corner-forward.

"Every year since I've been involved people have been saying 'this is the year when Sligo have to do it', and I've been playing since, what, 1997? Most of the players would look at it that way."

Truth be told, it's not such a great hardship to put up with. No, what Sloyan can't abide is the poisonous talk, the abuse from the sidelines and the doomsayers desperate for the county to lose so they can shout that they told you so.

Every county has them and Sligo is no different. The problem isn't that the team is no good it's just not good enough as far as some are concerned. Years of mediocre displays and low expectations memorably melted away during the memorable qualifier runs of 2001 and 2002.

But the inability to build on that breakthrough period has given the critics plenty of ammunition.

"You hear it a lot around the county, people saying they hope we get beaten, that they don't want us to do well, all that negative stuff. You couldn't pay much attention to it," he insists.

"I saw it close-up there this year when I was injured for a challenge match against Westmeath and I was sitting in the stands with a few other fellas.

"All through the game you had a group of lads shouting abuse and saying the team or a player were this, that and the other. I was pretty shocked to hear how negative so much of it was.

"These are the sort of guys who are first up to slap you on the back when you win. It's not everyone that's like that, and you get it in every county, but you still don't like to hear it."

Some might have thought last year's disappointing summer, which ended after consecutive defeats to Mayo and Donegal, would be the end of the road for this Sligo team. The story since paints a different picture.

While Roscommon were struggling to make an impression in Division Two, their western neighbours were making a dash for the top tier's semi- finals. Only an injury-time goal from Meath in the final round of games prevented them from making it on points difference.

In the middle of it all, they paid Mayo back for last summer's reversal by bagging the FBD League in a delayed April final. Nothing to write home about, but an important step along the road, claims Sloyan.

"People say the FBD is nothing and it was played at the wrong time of the year but it came at the perfect time for us," he points out. "We were going through a terrible time in the League when we beat Mayo in the final.

"It just took our minds off the League and gave us a trophy to play for as well. It probably helped our confidence and we didn't lose another League game after it. It's the small things that make a difference."

It could well be the small things that make the difference on Sunday too. Galway may inhabit the higher ground west of the Shannon but there are three teams jostling to topple the provincial champions.

Unfancied Leitrim in the semi-finals is the carrot for Sunday's winners but Sloyan knows from experience that anything can happen out west.

"I remember back in '98 when we played Roscommon and we were leading by seven points with five minutes to go. We needed a last-minute point just to get a draw that day and we ended up losing the replay.

"Connacht is awful hard to predict. There's so many rivalries up here that every team lifts its game for every match. Galway are hot favourites but you don't hear too many people in Mayo saying they've no chance of beating them. They're confident in Mayo too.

"It's going to be Roscommon, Mayo or ourselves playing them in the final but even if Galway are favourites, you don't know how it will go. It could be a one-point game or one team could run away with it. That's championship football," he says.

So what of Roscommon then? Marooned in Division Two for another dark winter next year but with an impressive trek through the qualifiers in last year's All-Ireland.

"They've been very quiet, actually. Waiting in the long grass maybe.

"We know them fairly well though. They're similar to us in that they've got a bunch of lads who have been at it for a while, the Lohans, Nigel Dineen and others.

"They have a high quality team and showed that with a good run last year.

"Take away the first 15 minutes against Kerry and they could have won that one. You can't take them for granted."

Same as it ever was.