JEKYLL AND HYDE YEAR FOR SENESCHALSTOWN. BUT THEY’LL BE BACK.
Fixtures Committee do them no favours
1997 will not hold too many fond memories for the followers of Seneschalstown. A year which promised so much at the beginning, deteriorated rapidly into the realms of embarrassment. A quarter final mauling at the hands of Simonstown drew the curtain on their participation in the championship, which prior to that had been topsy turvy to say the least. It’s difficult to comprehend why a team which boasts players of the calibre of Colm Coyle, Graham Geraghty, Alan Finnegan, Mattie McCabe and Padraig Coyle consistently flatter to deceive.
One Seneschalstown supporter in the aftermath of the defeat to Simonstown suggested that they relied heavily on the big names to save them from troubled waters. This is hardly the case. Right corner back Paul Finnegan is one of the most under rated footballers on the Meath club scene, and not too many forwards will recall being marked by Paul fondly. Kevin Macken has been a model of consistency for the Yellow Furze outfit at full back for the past number of years. A tight marker, Kevin gives little away and has been a tremendous servant to the club. In attack,the tireless efforts of Tony McDonnell have often resulted in scores, and few are more commited than the wing forward.
On the bright side, the emergence of Ciaran Macken was a plus for the Seneschalstown G.A.A. fraternity. A rare prodigious talent, he has the ability to initiate panic in opposing defences.His strength and speed combined with his knack for scoring separates him from the mediocre, and he looks to have a bright future in the game. Add in others such as David Dillon, Paddy O’Brien and Paul Donohue and that particular Seneschalstown man’s theory goes straight out the window!
Anyone looking for answers should point to the ludicrous decision by the fixtures committee to have the 1993 championship winners out on four Sundays in a row. Seneschalstown were forced to play Trim, Dunderry, Walterstown and Simonstown on the trot, and this proved to be the rock on which their title aspirations perished. The Senschalstown management quite rightfully sought the postponement of the quarter-final tie with Simonstown, but the request was refused. The irony of it all is that these very same people which sit on the fixtures committee, along with the rest of us witnessed the detrimental effects of congested campaign had on the Meath team this year. Yet they insisted on dishing out a similar fate to Seneschalstown. One can just speculate as to whether or not the outcome would have been any different in the Simonstown encounter, it’s all pie in the sky at this stage, but there’s no doubting that they wouldn’t have capitulated so easily against the Navan side had they been allowed sufficient time to recuperate from the previous week’s exertions.
Fatigue was apparent in the lethargic display against the 1995 intermediate champions, and the fresher opposition ran them into the ground. Seneschalstown failed to do themselves justice, and many of their supporters left the ground struggling to come to terms with how badly they played. Of course, Seneschalstown have only themselves to blame for their earlier round form which saw them open their campaign with a shock defeat to Summerhill. In a game which was far from a classic, the Yellow Furze side succumbed to a fitter, faster and more determined Summerhill outfit on a score line of 1-15 to 1-9. The eventual winners took the early initiative and Seneschalstown were always playing second fiddle for the remainder of the clash. Seneschalstown folk’s misery was compounded when Tony McDonnell received his marching orders for two bookable offences.
Next up were neighbours Walterstown, and Seneschalstown got their Keegan cup challenge back on track. Although the manner in which they achieved their 0-10 to 1-3 was less than impressive.The blacks were guilty of some sloppy finishing, and if they had been a little more accurate they could have stolen three points. Against Carnaross, last years beaten finalists at last displayed the clinical finishing which is required to win the championship. Five forwards and centre-back Alan Finnegan and Graham Geraghty, who was at midfield got on the score board. It was player/coach Colm Coyle who took the scoring honours with 2-1 of his side’s 4-9 total. With a date with Trim looming over the horizon, confidence was high that they could increase their unbeaten record to three games and secure their place in the knock out stages. But, Trim forgot to read the script and in the biggest upset of the year, the town club struck late to snatch a one point win over their more illustrious opponents, 0-18 to 3-8. That loss left Seneschalstown requiring a win against Dunderry to savage their faltering championship ambitions.
They gave themselves a lifeline courtesy of a 0-17 to 2-8 win over the 1994 Meath champions, and set up a mouthwatering play-off with Walterstown A powerful first half performance from the team in blue and gold gave them a 0-10 to 1-3 interval advantage, and, although Dunderry threatened to make a comeback in the second period, Seneschalstown never looked like being denied. So the team and their supporters made the eight mile trip to Navan for the third consecutive Sunday. Walterstown entered the game optimistic that they could reverse the earlier round result, and after fifteen minutes they had secured the lead. But it was short lived as Ger Geraghty’s men began to stamp their authority on a game which would make or break their championship dreams. It was a bruising encounter, and the violent element which has crept into gaelic football raised it’s ugly head when Graham Geraghty tussled with Walterstown centre-back John McCarthy. Geraghty received his marching orders for his misdemeanour and in the process ruled himself out of the remainder of his team’s matches in the competition.
In the county man’s defence he had been subject to some very close attention himself prior to his dismissal. Referee Joe Harlin failed to give him sufficient protection so he decided to take the law into his own hands. But he can have no complaints about the ref’s decision. He wasn’t the only player to step out of line and could easily have been joined by two or three others for the early shower. As it as he was made out to be the villain in the piece, and left to rue the consequences of his actions. As things transpired on the field of play, his team mates soaked up the anticipated Walterstown pressure, and inspired by the promptings of Colm Coyle finished the stronger to score a fully merited 1-14 to 0-8 success. But, even then the signs were on the wall, this lack lustre performance left a lot of room for improvement. And so onto that ill fated quarter final clash with Simonstown. The road from Kentstown to Navan was rapidly deteriorating by this time-something similar to the Seneschalstown team!
On the day they were simply outclassed and outplayed by the new kids on the block.Simonstown assumed control from the throw in and never looked like relinquishing it. The previous three matches had taken their toll and Seneschalstown who appeared a tired, weary team met their championship Waterloo. Had circumstances been different and Seneschalstown been given a fair throw of the dice this story may have had a happier ending. As it happened, Simonstown themselves and the fixtures committee successfully combined to end another year of unfulfilled promise.
