Dempsey stripped of his shirt and shoes as he rues many missed chances

LOSING the game was bad enough but Luke Dempsey’s mood was not helped when he returned to the dressing room to find his shirt and shoes had been stolen.

Talk about kicking a man when he’s down. Ever the gentleman, Dempsey paused the search into the crime to react to his side’s defeat, his bare feet left exposed to the concrete floor.

So Luke, a chance lost? “Definitely. We prepared very well for this, we introduced a lot of young players and knew that we would have a right good rattle. We had no injuries, unlike last year, so it was a real chance to have a go at Dublin.

“In counties like this, to lose a Leinster U-21 final and then today is utterly disappointing. We need a breakthrough and hopefully we’ll get it, but sooner rather than later.”

Regrets. They have quite a few and Dempsey admitted that the missed goal chances, the missed frees and the poor defending for Dublin’s crucial goal will replay in his mind like a video caught on loop for weeks to come.

The Longford players won’t see it this way, but the day held any number of positives for the midland county. The bottom line is that, in the space of a year, they have reduced the difference between them and Dublin by 17 points.

“I was delighted with the lads in the second half, with the way they didn’t allow that predictable gap to develop,” said Dempsey. “I am really proud of the players, the subs, county board and especially Martin Skelly, the way they worked like Trojans to get this place ready to provide such a great atmosphere.”

Paul Caffrey gave very little away, but the Dublin manager did accept that the venue had served as a great leveller.

“We didn’t expect anything different. Everyone underplays the role of the underdog but that is what sport is all about — people who live the dream. Longford very nearly lived the dream today.

“All the plaudits go to Longford. They put up a fantastic show. They were 5-1 up playing all the football. We had to adjust things quite a bit on the pitch, but that’s what you do when it isn’t going for you.”

Selector Dave Billings declared: “A win is a win is a win,” and in fairness, Dublin had travelled to Longford in a lose-lose situation. Lose and their world would cave in, win easily and people would say ‘so what’. Win unconvincingly, as they did, and people would nitpick every minute detail of their performance.

Longford, on the other hand, approached yesterday knowing they were virtually bullet-proof, as Caffrey said.

“Luke played a great game saying it was a draw they dreaded. Anyone who is in management or any of you smart guys will know it was going to be easy for Longford to get up for this.

“They did their county great credit. I’d like to complement the Longford county board. They did a great job on the ground and created a great atmosphere. It created a great environment.”

Strip away the trimmings though and Dublin have some serious cramming to do before their next exam in three weeks. From here on in, the questions are sure to get much harder.

“There are a lot of lads in that dressing room who will be disappointed with their performance, although Conal Keaney will take a lot of plaudits today,” Caffrey said. “He stood up tall. It’s about learning the lessons and moving on.”