WHAT WAS that about the bounce of a ball? Just an old cliche? Images of the O'Neill's leather football bounding like a gazelle off the Croke Park turf and over the crossbar - to keep the Sam Maguire homeless for another two weeks, at least - occupied Mayo minds in the aftermath of yesterday's drawn All Ireland Final.
"It was like something you'd see in an under 12 match," mused Mayo's Liam McHale, reflecting on Meath's Colm Coyle's late act of defiance.
Shortly after referee Pat McEneaney eagerly blew the full time whistle, a steward approached Mayo goalkeeper John Madden. "Never mind," the steward told him, "it could have been worse. The ball might have finished up in the back of the net."
"I suppose that means he thinks I should have gone for it," said Madden. "But you have to make an instant decision. There were four men around the ball, Dermot (Flanagan) and Pat (Holmes) and two Meath players. It was a one in a million chance for all four to miss the ball. It also happened six yards out and that is not my territory." The doors to the Mayo dressingroom were kept locked for just over 20 minutes, giving players and selectors enough time to digest the implications of a match which seemed to be in their hands for so long. When Mayo words were spoken, they were philosophical ones. As Madden added: "We just have to reverse the clock by two weeks. Our approach to this game was good, so I imagine the build up to the replay will be similar enough. We just have to stay focused. And I believe we can.
McHale, for one, didn't believe it was a matter of the one that slipped away. "Maybe we should have put them away, but we are still in the All Ireland Final and that's a better position than 30 other counties," said the Mayoman. "We have a lot of work to do, and two weeks to do it. In the last 15 minutes, we just didn't get the ball into our forwards and some of our passing was dreadful. Yet, it was typical of Meath. They never give up. I know Meath a long, long time and I certainly wasn't looking at the Sam Maguire up there in the stands and thinking it was ours.
"There is a good mood in the camp. We might be back to square one, but at least we have another chance," said McHale. "Some key players didn't play particularly well today and we had some woeful wides in the second half, so we know we can do even better. We probably lost our composure a little bit when Meath did come at us but 13 of the players had never been in an All Ireland Final before and a semi final appearance is just not the same as the final."
It was arguably McHale's finest performance in Croke Park. But that was little solace. "This is a team game," he said. "It is important to contribute, okay, but there is nothing to be happy with except how the team fares out."
Dermot Flanagan was another who emphasised that Mayo must learn from the game. "It is fantastic that a young team like this now has All Ireland Final experience - and not as losers."
Flanagan insisted there would be no problem motivating the team. "It's simply another two weeks of effort after six months. Every day is a new game, a different match. The worse thing anyone can do is take any preconceptions with them. In an All Ireland Final, you take it ball by ball.
"Looking back on the second half, there was probably too much loose play. We probably should have sought to retain possession more. However, there is too much quality on both sides to dominate for an entire game. We probably had most of the play, but I am glad that Meath's dominant spell at the end wasn't extended from 10 minutes in to 12 or 13," he said.
