At least that’s what it felt like, as the thick fog that had hung precariously over Pairc Esler all day thickened even further, completely obscuring any visibility of what was happening on the other side of the pitch. .
Why and how this match went ahead is a separate matter from Glen reaching a second successive All-Ireland final, and an element of revenge against Kilmacud Crokes after last year’s ’16th man’ controversy. But there was.
They deserved the win and Crokes manager Robbie Brennan echoed that sentiment afterwards, praising how they dealt with the fallout from last year’s final.
But that chance almost snatched away from them in the final minutes, when Crokes awoke from the fog that had enveloped them for so long and put the Ulster champions on the line.
Crokes were twice behind by 7 points in the second half, but in the 55th minute, substitute Hugh Kenny scored after a great pass from Shane Walsh and a sharp run, bringing the score level from 1-9 to 0-12. Ta.
To their credit, Glen didn’t panic and took the lead again via Alex Doherty and scored what could have been a goal before Crokes goalkeeper David Higgins tied the score again and set up a grandstand finish.
A break from Conleth McGuckian freed Emmett Bradley to retake the lead and Glen looked to have secured it, but pressure from the intimidating Conor Glass on Andrew McGowan created an opening and Higgins Ethan Doherty scored from off the line. Additional time was 4 minutes.
That was supposed to be it, but there was more. When Walsh punted into Glenn’s goalmouth, goalkeeper Conlan Bradley was unable to track the flight and the goal put Crokes back to the minimum. Absolute chaos, most of it invisible to those who were there!
Walsh had a chance to tie the score from the kickout, but missed his shot, giving Glenn the win they so desperately needed.
“We said let’s throw off the shackles and get serious about it,” Brennan recalls. “I think Glenn probably just pitched himself in a little bit, as opposed to us doing something.”
Partly that was true. But there were other factors as well, such as the huge squeeze they put on Glenn’s kickout, which had previously been running too freely.
It was also important that Ryan Dougan, who had been kept scoreless as Paul Mannion’s marker, was sent off injured in the 40th minute. But Mannion made a huge impact in the final 25 minutes, scoring from left and right.
Neither team was consulted beforehand as to whether the fog had put the match in jeopardy, with referee Conor Lane ruling that visibility was sufficient at pitch level and within the path of the ball. It was speculated that.
However, from the stands, and obviously from most camera positions, it was very difficult to identify the players, and the situation worsened as the match progressed.
If it had been a league match, we might not have made it through, and we might have had to withdraw in the second half. However, a compact calendar leaves little or no room for delay.
“It’s not an excuse to get punched all over the park, but it was a bit of a joke that they did that to me,” Brennan said. “It wasn’t playable.
“I literally couldn’t see this top corner from the bench, so the ball could have been turned over. We could have won.
“We literally didn’t know, but obviously Connor, the referee and the players said they could see it.
“It’s the same thing for both sides. It’s fine, but if it was a Division 2 league game or a championship game, it wouldn’t have happened. I can see why that would be the case,” he said, referring to scheduling issues.
Malachy O’Rourke expressed similar concerns about what is invisible.
“Visibility was so bad that I couldn’t really see what was going on in the bottom corner. I think we were on the brink of whether or not we should really play, but if the match went ahead I would give it my all and try my best.” All I had was the feeling that I was going to do it. It wasn’t perfect by any means, but I think I’m happy now.”
The Glen were leading 0-9 to 0-4 at the break and could have been more with Ciaran McFaul and Michael Warnock pushing up from the back and Glass dominating.
Their industry was also booming. In the 26th minute, with Glenn leading 0-6 to 3-0, Dugan and Glass set a trap right on Mannion’s sideline, which was the real rallying point for Glenn’s partisans.
Glenn continued to push after the break and went from 0-12 to 0-5 by the time Crokes began his recovery efforts.
McGowan may have given up possession for Glenn’s goal, but he had a great game, while Craig Diaz also improved and finished well.
“They certainly died with their boots on, that’s their proof,” Brennan said. “They know they weren’t playing well, but they didn’t let us play. They had our number there and they gave us trouble in a lot of areas. We let it happen, and it’s all thanks to them.”
Mr O’Rourke said Glen, who will face St Bridget’s in the final in two weeks’ time, had never prepared with last year’s controversy in mind.
“We didn’t really think of it that way,” he said. “We stopped playing last year a long time ago. We just wanted to perform really well. We looked at what areas of our game we needed to get better at to win against Kilmacud. It had nothing to do with Kilmacud last year.”
Scorer – Glenn: D Talon 0-5 (4fs); E Doherty 1-0; E Bradley 0-3 (2fs); M Warnock, C McFall, C Mulholland, C Glass, E Mulholland, A Doherty 0 wins and 1 loss each. Kilmacud Crokes: S Walsh 1-2 (0-1 45); P Mannion 0-4 (2fs); H Kenny 1-0; D Higgins, C O’Connor, L Ward, M O’Leary all 0 wins and 1 loss.
Glenn: C Bradley; M Warnock, C Carville, R Dorgan. J. McDermott, C. McFall, C. Mulholland. C Glass, E Bradley; E Doherty, J Doherty, E Mulholland. C. McGuckian, D. Tallon, T. Flanagan. Subs: C. Convery for J. Doherty (22, India), A. Doherty for Dougan (43, India).
Kilmakad Crocs: D. Higgins. J. Murphy, T. Clancy, de O’Brien. Morleary, Ro O’Carroll, A. McGowan. B Sheehy, C Diaz. S Horan, S Cunningham, D Mullin. P. Mannion, L. Ward, S. Walsh. Subs: C. O’Connor of Ward (ht), H. Kenny of Sheehy (ht), D. Dempsey of Cunningham (43), P. Purcell of Marine (61).
reference: C Lane (Cork)