When winning isn't enough

After hearing the groans from Ardán Mac Samhrain and exhortations to get the ball forward from increasingly frustrated fans last Sunday in Avant Money Pairc Sean Mac Diarmada, I thought I'd start this week's column with a quote: “I thought we won playing poorly, which was great too. But there's an awful lot to work on so I wouldn't be overly pleased.”

No, those words don't come from Andy Moran as he analysed Sunday's dour 1-8 to 0-6 victory over London but rather from another manager who saw his side win, Ger Brennan, the former Dublin star now leading Louth, and who saw the Wee County somehow work out a way past Cork in Ardee thanks to a 2-9 to 0-12 scoreline.

Winning when playing poorly is one of those great sporting cliches, as old as sport itself. It speaks of attitude, heart and courage and an ability to do the right things at the right time under immense pressure. But it is not something that coaches like to rely on - rather it is 'control the controllables' and the mantra of 'focus on the process' that has probably led us to the sort of game we witnessed last Sunday. 

Not every day out is going to be a champagne affair - just ask this Dub 12 months ago if I thought Dessie Farrell's team would be in the mix-up for Sam and I'd have probably bet my house against it! Labouring past Clare and Kildare, Dublin looked a long way from contenders but maybe they were timing their run that little better than most of the other contenders, keeping the heat off themselves before hitting full stride in the championship.

I'd like to think Leitrim were doing something similar  but probably not. It wasn't too hard to quip that the first half in particular was a good cure for insomnia but perhaps what we witnessed was not so much a consequence of teams with an eye on a bigger prize but more of trying to ensure the Green & Gold wouldn't get caught out as they so famously had in Bekan two years ago.

THE LAST POINT: ANOTHER VENUE TICKED OFF THE LIST

London don't quite have the same cutting edge they did on that blustery, rain-swept day  in the Connacht Centre of Excellence but their game plan was eerily familiar - pack the defence, hope to break down Leitrim's attacks and hit on the break. Where the Exiles struggled this time was that they lacked a target man they could hit the ball long to as a side low in confidence played just like that.

Two years ago, Michael Maher's side repeatedly punched holes in Leitrim's defence and went long frequently but here, even deep into added time as they chased an unlikely goal that might have rescued  a draw, they opted to play risk-adverse possession football on the periphery - instead of getting the ball to where it could hurt, London stayed around the edges and that suited the Green & Gold.

That's all part of the control the controllables - teams don't want to turn over the ball so instead of contesting kickouts, it is sprint back to set up in defence - maybe get an attacker to slow down the opposition coming out with the ball with the odd well-timed foul but making yourself difficult to break down and hitting on the break is now the be-all and end-all and both teams tried to execute that tactic in Pairc Sean.

For all that, what will worry Andy Moran was not so much the amount of wides London kicked, albeit they did hit more than the home team but rather the Exiles missed relatively simple shots from good positions, the sort of shots that had Leitrim missed them at the other end, we'd have been tearing our collective hair out with apoplexy.

I wouldn't underestimate the resolve and character shown by the Leitrim lads one bit  - conditions were much more draining than  they looked from the stands and nobody was found wanting in terms of application  but the same can be said of London and isn't that the minimum managers would expect of their charges?

Maybe in anticipating  London's tactical approach - sitting back and hitting on the break -  Leitrim  over-compensated to ensure that exactly that didn't happen? 

Instead of trying to force the issue, Leitrim  endlessly recycled the ball, protected possession, becoming a mirror image of London - an approach that ultimately worked  but also robbed the home side of the sort of momentum they thrive upon.

In the end, that leads to a never-ending circle of possession football, frankly boring the life out of spectators.  Interestingly, in a first half as dour and as draining right up there with the Roscommon Dublin bore-fest last year, it was two long accurate deliveries from Shane Quinn that led directly to 1-1, virtually the entire winning margin as Leitrim finally made use of the wind.

You'd have thought we'd have made more of long deliveries with the wind that was blowing - we have  poachers in the two O'Rourkes and Darragh Rooney and we certainly have big men in Barry McNulty and Donal Wrynn who can get their hands to the ball but when you're ensuring you won't get caught out at the opposite end on the counter-attack, it is hard to actually get the bodies up the field to utilise the long ball approach.

I said  to several people after the game, thank God for Darragh Rooney - Sunday's victory wasn't a one-man show but at the vital moments, the Kinlough man took on the London defence, particularly in the second half, driving  at them, creating scores or winning frees and that was literally the difference between the teams.

THE LAST POINT: LEAGUE IS THE GAA'S PROBLEM CHIILD

That sort of incision and derring-do attitude is priceless - Ryan O'Donoghue had it for Mayo in their win over the Dubs on Saturday. He might have got a few fortunate frees but O'Donoghue's attacking presence created those situations where a referee has to make a decision and with the game gone the way it has, that is literally the game right now.

 Managers will rightly say, both in defeat and victory, that the result will take care of itself if you get the basics right - Sunday was an extreme version of that, Leitrim got the result we all wanted  but it certainly wasn't entertaining and I can't imagine it was enjoyable for the players or management either. Conditions played its part but perhaps the stakes of trying to get out of Division 4, the utter imperative of not dropping points told on both teams.

Sometimes winning is not enough - you want to see adventure or a focused attacking plan and while everyone was delighted to pick up the victory, it was a game to be endured rather than enjoyed.

The way Sunday's game panned out did not suit this Leitrim team but they've got to come up with ways of countering what London put up to them - otherwise it will be a long, long year!

CONGRATULATIONS ST CLARE'S

The final word this week is one of congratulations to the young footballers of St Clare's CS Manorhamilton who claimed the FAI Schools Senior Girls B National Cup title on Wednesday January 31, in Athlone. All-Ireland titles are rare, rare things for Leitrim schools but St Clare's were well worth their victory, delivering a performance full of technical ability, passion and sheer determination.

In awful conditions with a wind much stronger than we saw in Pairc Sean on Sunday and driving rain, St Clare's believed in playing football, keeping the ball on the ground and staying true to their principles  and boy did it pay off - perhaps a lesson for many a team! Congrats to all involved and manager Anthony McDonald on a truly wonderful achievement.