Byron still as passionate as ever

Keith Duggan talks to the Laois goalkeeper who is happy to be getting another shot at an All-Ireland semi-final

Fergal Byron can shout instructions and shape his defence but confined to the primary duty of defending his goal, there was only so much the accomplished Laois goalkeeper could do during Mayo's storming comeback last Sunday. The late points that took an absorbing All-Ireland quarter-final into a replay came from far outfield.

"Well, we would be unhappy at giving away a two-point lead," Byron admits, "but the bottom line is that we are glad to have another chance.

"With five minutes to go we had that lead and we did let them come through the middle a bit easy and we will have to look at that and try to counteract it the next day. But we are learning from every game we play.

"When we were beaten by Dublin here seven or eight weeks ago or so, nobody would have given us a ghost of a chance of being able to put it up to any other team in the championship. And we have bounced back and it will stand to us. It is not a defeat, it is another stepping-stone towards another All-Ireland semi-final and we will take it."

One of the most highly rated goalkeepers in the game, Byron kept another clean sheet on Sunday, for the fourth successive time in the championship. There were moments, however, particularly in the first half, when the fast Mayo forwards had breached the Laois defence but failed to pull the trigger. Byron agrees that the drawn match was tailor-made for forwards.

"Both teams were creating room and it is very hard to mark space and when you have forwards like Mortimer and Padden and those guys, it is going to be dangerous. Croke Park probably suits teams like Mayo and Laois, I suppose a tighter pitch might be more restrictive but in fairness we created the goal chances in the draw. Brendan Quigley's shot came off the post and then Ross's (Munnelly) effort was taken off the line by a good back clearance."

And in the second half, Laois's attacking game became rechannelled through the speed and intelligence of Donie Brennan, who made a nuisance of himself operating in Dermot Geraghty's corner despite tight shadowing by the Shrule man. With big names like Colin Parkinson and Ian Fitzgerald in reserve, the baby-faced Arles-Killeen man repaid the faith of Mick O'Dwyer with a sustained second-half performance.

"Yeah, well, this squad is big, we have 30 players. And every week at training, after a game like this, somebody else seems to pop their head up above the water to put themselves in with a chance of being picked or being a substitute. And Donie Brennan was showing well in training and deserved his chance. And he did cause havoc when he went in there.

"And also for Noel Garvan, the one man who has taken the most criticism in this team over the whole year, he bounced back with a tremendous performance. Nobody can take that away from him. He did it at full forward and, when we needed him at midfield, he came out and caught a few balls when we were under pressure and he showed the kind of player that he is. And if he can keep doing that, we will definitely be in with a shout."

That seems beyond doubt. After their first championship encounter, Laois versus Mayo is a tighter call than before last Sunday. They are similar teams and play the game with a commendable spirit. Laois, though, are the runaway success story of this year's qualifying system, going into their fifth match since that 3-17 to 0-12 capitulation against Dublin in early summer - the last time Byron picked the ball from his net.

However, the replay means Laois are facing their third match in as many weeks, and should they win on Sunday, they will meet the kingpins of Leinster just a week later. Meanwhile, Dublin will have had time to repair and prepare and will go into the semi-final in perfect nick.

"They are a very professional team at the moment and seem very focused. They would probably have liked more time to prepare for whichever team they are going to meet, and at this stage they are only going to have a week. I know they probably have their homework done on us at this stage.

"But look, Dublin is a far cry from where we are now. If we can beat Mayo at the weekend, then we will worry about Dublin. But between now and the weekend, we will look at trying to put the things we got wrong to right. Getting to an All-Ireland semi-final is still the big goal for this team at the moment."