It was with a heavy heart that I went for my half time chips yesterday. The signs were ominous. It seemed that the city players and manager thought all they had to do was turn up, and the cup was theirs.
Either that, or the decision to take a coach up on the morning of the match left the players tired.
Or maybe the poxy heavy pitch and freezing wind suited the Louth players who live much nearer the North Pole than we do.;)
Or maybe a bit of all of the above.
Or maybe Drogs were just too bloody good. They seemed to have 10 Joe Gambles playing for them. They certainly did not seem to have big egos. They played for each other. They were fecking everywhere. Their fans cheered them on louder than I ever heard an opposition team's supporters.
It was so different from the last league game of the season against Derry City. That was a great night for Irish soccer which Damien Richardson described as “no winners or losers just first and second.” This cup final was meant to be, and could have been, a great showpiece to attract youngsters into the game, and increase gate receipts. It wasn't.
There has been a lot of comment about the possible factors that make us wait until another year for the league and cup double. Here is my two Euro worth . . .
Mick Devine 7. The wind played up with his kick outs a few times. Called the back four to order several times in the match when Drogs started to find gaps. Left down by his players for both goals. Made an outstanding save in the one - on - one incident about 20 minutes from time.
Dan Murray 6. Solid enough performance as a player, but in his role as captain he could have done more to rally the troops, in particular when there were delays due to injury.
Greg O'Halloran 5. This should have been Greg's type of game. Physical, with a referee determined to allow play to go on. Some of his touches were awful. The Drogs attacks down the right tell their own story. Even without comparing him with Danny Murphy, he was weak. For the first goal, he looked completely lost.
Alan Bennett 6. Apart from his mistake for the second goal, he looked out of his depth, with poor linking play.
Neale Horgan 7. Hoggie did enough to limit Drogs' progress down the left. He seemed to anticipate long balls well, and coped with the swirling wind.
The City team that won the league did not turn up at Lansdowne Road. Pity he did not risk a few runs forward on a night when we lacked penetration and finish.
Joe Gamble 9. I felt so sorry for the guy. He burst his gut all afternoon. It must have seemed a nightmare for him that Drogs seemed to have enough players to crowd out Fenn and Georgie every minute of the game. Still, against fierce pressure this tenacious little man looked dangerous every time he got the ball.
Neale Fenn 6. Normally able to dribble and jink his way out of traffic, the heavy ground meant he could not cope with the close marking. Consequently his passing was as bad as I have seen, with balls either going too short or too long.
George O'Callaghan 5. Oh Georgie! If you had a brain you would be dangerous. Put your ego away in a box next time I bring a squad of kids to sit in the scrotumtightening Upper East Stand. Please.
Liam Kearney 6. If heart and effort scored points, he would get 8, but his performance was not in character. Someone said in another thread that after the knock from their number 6 (which was a stonewall yellow) he did not do much. To be honest, there was precious little to show for his play before that either.
Billy Woods 5. His selection for this game was strange. Was it Richardson giving Billy a chance to end his career with a cup medal, after which he was going to announce his retirement? I agree with Conor George in today's Irish Examiner, where he said he would have put Billy in left back to replace the suspended Danny Murphy, and put Colin O'Brien in at right wing instead.
John O'Flynn 7. He could be running into space still, and the passes to his golden feet would still not be coming on a night when nothing went right for He deserved better in return for his audacious shot on the near post, which hit the upright. Dan Connor knew nothing about it.
