to View - Griffith College Dublin

sport |
sport |
Pat Gilroy will
be around for
a little while
longer.
By Mark Corcoran
The end of the 2011 championship at least to be slightly less vague. After the Kerry
mauling many people, including myself, thought that might have been the end of the
big man. How we were wrong. Not only have the powers that be decided to stick by
their man, they have decided to offer him a further 1 year on his contract which Gilroy
of course accepted.
“the public
aren’t buying it
anymore, simply
because Gilroy
doesn’t have a
plan. There is no
grand scheme of
things, no light
at the end of the
tunnel.”
www.reservoirdubs.com is the place to go to vent your fury or exclaim
your joy at all things Dublin. It is always interesting to see various
topics, results and rumours discussed on the forums. All done with
the unique humour of the Dub. Through last years car crash of a
season there were many murmurs of discontent at the management
set up. These were easy to dismiss when the team was wining but
not so when all the worst nightmares of Dublin fans came through
from about 30 seconds into the All Ireland quarter final against the
kingdom. The aftertaste of that game left Dublin fans feeling as
comfortable as a passenger on a Ryanair flight to hell.
The humour had gone and the feeling of resignation was palpable.
The message boards had started picking through the wreckage
looking for ways that maybe Dublin could improve for next year. But
for the first time in many years the conversation was rarely about how
the Dubs were going to win their first All Ireland since 1995, it was
damage limitation talk. Suddenly the talk of the Dubs being better off
in the qualifiers cessed. Suddenly the talk over inches turned to talk
of miles. Suddenly the Leinster championship didn’t look such a bad
prize after all.
So when Gilroy agreed the new contract extension all hell broke loose
on the ResDubs forums. It was beyond funny. It was difficult to find
one person happy with the decision. The best he got was fans saying
it was a done deal now and that all there was to do was row in behind
the team.
Now I admit that I was open to the idea of Gilroy and Whelan
being a success when they first took the job despite many facts
pointing to disaster. The thinking was that Gilroy’s inexperience, and
Whelan’s first poor spell would be counter acted by their hunger and
enthusiasm. Unfortunately, Gilroy does look the new Staunton.
So why keep him. Was it the improvement that he promised The All
Ireland final in his first year that he all but guaranteed Hardly, what
he delivered was a worse defeat and humiliation in the championship
then the year before and a total disregard of the league and O’Byrne
cup.
All the signs are that he has lost the dressing room. Not picking Ciaran
Whelan or Shane Ryan (an All Star from the previous year) got up the
fans noses but there are many more issues. Leaving Bryan Cullen in
the cold, throwing Cian O’Sullivan into the deep end against Kerry,
dropping Paddy Andrews and Alan Hubbard after one game of the
championship despite picking them consistently throughout the
league, cutting Mark Vaughen from the panel, playing Rory O’Carroll
despite knowing he couldn’t possibly be the answer to Dublin’s
defence problems as he was going travelling, the list goes on and on.
The reasons behind the extension are
obvious. Gilroy and Whelan are Vincent’s
men. The Godfather of Dublin football,
Kevin Heffernan (also a Vincnets man) holds
a massive influence on the Dublin county
board. Gilroy also includes Heffernan as
a personal friend. The hat drops and the
contract is extended. Gilroy didn’t even need
to convince Heffernan that he has a plan
although this is the line he continues to sell
to the public.
But the public aren’t buying it anymore,
simply because Gilroy doesn’t have a plan.
There is no grand scheme of things, no light
at the end of the tunnel. How could there
be when major players are walking and very
little is coming through to replace them.
What the players think of the contract
extension is obvious. Shane Ryan has gone
to the hurlers, don’t be surprised if Conal
Keeney or Diarmuid Connolly go too and
Ciaran Whelan has retired. There is a real
sense that this team is a sinking ship and
these players are the preverbal rats.
The real travesty at the time of writing
this is that Anthony Daly, manger of the
hurlers, who actually had a decent season
by all accounts, has not been offered a
new contract extension and could easily be
snapped up by one of the stronger hurling
counties. If you have to question the work
of Daly ask yourself when was the last time
more Dublin hurlers won All Stars then
footballers.
Gilroy has announced that he will be holding
trails for new hopefuls (similar to last year).
His first competitive match will be against
Wexford in the O’Byrne cup in Januray.
Once again the circus will start up again in
preparation for championship opener, again
against the model county, although the
team are unlikely to carry the same hope
and eagerness from the fans as years gone
by. It is likely to be another bandwagon with
square wheels, stuttering and staggering
along until ultimate failure. Remember this
is a team that has failed to beat a real title
contender in championship football in almost
fifteen years.
So I will finish this article the way I always
finish while writing about Dublin; roll on the
champo, I will be watching through the gaps
in my fingers.
35