The past may be a foreign country but it is frequently within sight of GAA presentation podiums. Roscommon’s Dr Hyde Park was in that frame on Sunday.
The past was recognised by Roscommon captain Diarmuid Murtagh in his acceptance speech. The team’s 2001 predecessors had been honoured at half-time on the silver jubilee of their achievement. He made a point of naming the three members of that team who had since died, Don Connellan, Conor Connelly and Ger Michael Grogan.
Murtagh said that he was sure they had been “looking down with eight minutes to go – and we needed every bit of it”.
The captain spoke later about the bonds of community and how proud the team were now to be associated forever with the men of 2001, as they had all stepped forward on May 10th, 2026.
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In a fit of exuberance he may be regretting, Paul Earley came to the press box afterwards and has been widely quoted as saying it was the greatest performance ever by a Roscommon team. He later clarified that he was referring to Connacht finals but that didn’t detract from the weight of the opinion.
The GAA’s original AFL recruit, Earley is a repository of coaching qualifications and an excellent broadcast analyst. His late brother Dermot is the county’s most revered footballer and Paul also played and managed Roscommon. In other words, he knew what he was talking about.
Thirty-six years ago, he captained his county to Connacht final success in the very same ground against the very same opponents, but in different circumstances. Having been in control, Roscommon watched their opponents nearly close the gap.
Then manager Martin McDermott said afterwards when asked for his favourite moment of the afternoon, “the final whistle”. Man of the Match, Junior McManus, who kicked 0-5 from play, reckoned, “if we hadn’t won that, I think a lot of us would have retired.”
The Galway manager on the day was John Tobin, former All-Star and in time a stellar coach in the province. He was also on the pitch at half-time on Sunday, as the manager who had led Roscommon to the title that day 25 years ago. He too visited the press box afterwards but, understandably given his dual allegiance, was less effusive than Earley.
He would have appreciated the quality of the match, though. For those sceptical about Mark Dowd’s team going into the Connacht final so highly regarded, there was that question mark about how they would handle expectations of a performance that would at least test Galway.
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After all, when they were impressing everyone in the league, the county welcomed Dublin – later relegated – who came to town in March and beat them comfortably.
Unlike other years when Roscommon apparently had to make the choice between league and championship – getting relegated from Division One in both 2017 and 2019, years they won Connacht – this provincial title came after a campaign they finished in the top half of the table.
Sunday’s opening quarter did however see them under pressure, as Galway, who played very well throughout, racked up the points. But the facility with which they responded with two goals in a minute restored confidence as well as scoreboard balance.
The period after Damien Comer had scored what was presumed to be the clinching score in the 61st minute was the pivotal phase and it demanded a lot from the team chasing a six-point deficit.
That Roscommon kept their opponents scoreless for the rest of the match, and in the nine minutes remaining shot eight themselves was in many ways a tribute to the FRC changes. And not just in the obvious sense of the two-pointers, although they are a great resource for teams trying to get back into matches.
Coincidentally, when St Brigid’s looked on the verge of taking the club All-Ireland back to Roscommon, one particular score with 20 minutes left, looked to have tilted momentum – Ruaidhrí Fallon’s goal. But shortly afterwards Dylan Geaney kicked a two-pointer for Dingle to redeem most of the goal’s value and keep the match as a back-and-forth contest.
On Sunday, shortly after Comer’s goal, replacement Paul Carey produced a two-pointer to cut the margin to four. Those scores are invaluable also because they fire up the chasing team and its support.
When Daire Cregg kicked his two-pointer after an ultra-calm 18 passes in the build-up with the clock bleeding away to put just one between the teams (Conor Carroll had kicked a 45 before that), the Roscommon reaction was frenzied.
Galway couldn’t get the ball. Their last three kickouts went astray. Captain John Maher stood up conspicuously at this stage. He won a kickout in the 65th minute to slow the trend, was fouled but the resulting free went nowhere. Three minutes later, he was just short of retrieving Conor Flaherty’s restart, which went over the sideline and led to Murtagh’s final score.
Maher was also there in the last minute working to orchestrate Shane Walsh’s two-point attempt to force extra-time and it wasn’t far wide.
The broader FRC influence is that the rules are a huge assistance in teams reaching a flow state. Opponents can’t take endless conservative, short kickouts because the ball has to travel and neither can they block and delay free-kicks to slow down the game.
Comer, who has missed a lot of football with injury, wasn’t sufficiently alert to this when tangling with Cian McKeon in the 67th minute. The result was a free extended by 50 metres, which Murtagh lined up outside the arc to push Roscommon decisively in front.
So, the county had for the first time managed a clean sweep of minor, under-20 and senior titles.
In his speech, the captain earnestly looked for the support of the crowd in two weeks when Tyrone arrive for the first round of the All-Ireland. As he concluded: “I want you to enjoy it and we’ll go again.”
It’s already an unforgettable season. Can they make it even more memorable?
sean.moran@irishtimes.com
