THE LAST POINT: A week best, but unlikely to be, forgotten

Post traumatic stress disorder, PTSD for short, is probably what we're all suffering from right now after the proverbial week from hell - four county teams took to the field over the past week and the closest any of them got to their opponents was 11 points! That's enough to cause a nervous reaction, particularly if you were unfortunate enough to witness all four games!

Myself and Willie Donnellan had that dubious pleasure as the County Senior, U20 and Minor football teams and County Hurlers suffered heavy and demoralising defeats of varying  degrees, so much so that I'm praying that the current malaise around the county's teams doesn't somehow contaminate the Ladies football team who face into their own make or break League semi-final next Sunday against Antrim in Kingscourt.

Capping it all off was the fallout from the decision to concede the Allianz NFL clash with Fermanagh - I don't propose to rehash what happened or didn't happen but there is no doubt that the shadow of that decision lay heavy over Leitrim GAA this past week, so much so that both hurling boss Mike Wall and Minor manager Danny Beck referenced it in their chats with the Observer after their own disappointments.

It is such a contentious subject that I almost got into a verbal barney in the press box in Markievicz Park last Sunday with one of my colleagues from Sligo, a journalist I've always  had great time for. We've swapped reports and photos when needed in the way that the provincial media do but I'll admit that his 'take' on the subject  grated  - so much for the impartiality of the press I guess but when your county is getting a battering, even for a transplanted Dub, it is all hands of deck !

I wasn't the only one to lose impartiality over the past week - the national media lost their collective minds over Leitrim, a county many seem to regard as some sort of exotic if somewhat neglected cousin to be pitied or patronised, depending on the time of the year - Willie Donnellan always quotes his brother Charlie that the only time the national GAA media pays attention to Leitrim is when there are pages to be filled in January or a controversy and, you know, Charlie is not wrong!

THE LAST POINT: NO WINNERS IN AN IMPOSSIBLE SITUATION

Lee Keegan had a fairly strong cut at Poacher on RTE, seemingly more annoyed that the Leitrim manager had made claims about the team culture in the county, the Mayo great perhaps offended because he felt the Down native had taken a cut at his former teammate Andy Moran.

Terry Hyland, who many implied that Poacher had also insulted, didn't seem to have a problem with the decision or the offending quotes, intriguingly saying that the decision didn't come as a shock to him given the challenges Leitrim face in terms of population and club size - an insight far more worthy of consideration given his three years at the coalface of Leitrim football.

Hyland, who also achieved promotion from Division 4 during his spell,  had strong remarks during his time with the County on commitment, culture and the standard of club football in the county, remarks that riled some within the county but didn't rate much coverage from the national media - strange that! 

Tyrone's Niall Morgan had a nuanced take on the affair when interviewed at the launch of the John West Féile last week, the keeper stating that it was disappointing that the game didn't take place but adding that Steven Poacher was appointed to do the best job he could for Leitrim and if the decision, controversial as it,  was what he thought was best, the decision was the right one regardless of what the outside world thinks.

That's a view that not many have taken but it is one that has been drowned out by the hysterical reaction to Leitrim's predicament, a strange position given that we had teams in Division 1 doing their level best over the past two weeks to not qualify for the League Final and not a word about integrity, other than a rueful shrug of the shoulders - then again, Leitrim are a much easier target.

I have no problem with anyone outside the county expressing their opinion on the matter but that doesn't mean I have to pay it any heed - I'd rather consider what people at the coalface of Leitrim football, club or county, have to say. I mightn't agree with them, they probably don’t agree with me but they are the people with the most skin in the game, as they say, and their thoughts are what matter.

But the strange thing is that my colleague in Markievicz wasn't wrong - this is one of those rare situations where I firmly believe that no matter what your opinion is, you are probably right! That might seem like a cop-out but given the potential for recrimination, I genuinely hope the whole saga is firmly put to bed as quickly as possible.

The only reference point I can think of is the civil war that engulfed Leitrim back in 2013 when four players were dropped for breaching team discipline. The fallout from that affair lingered for quite a few years and even now, mention it to one or two people and watch their expressions cloud over, anger coming quickly to the fore.

I'd rather talk more about what I witnessed in those four Leitrim games - the hurlers had one of those days when nothing went right, a collective off-day that leaves managers baffled. As for the Senior footballers, what we witnessed in Markievicz Park was no different to what happened against Kildare and Laois  as the player drain and injury crisis again bit hard - just 22 players togged out, including five of the six U20 players who were fit and played some role on Sunday.

THE LAST POINT: ST CLARE'S CS MANORHAMILTON RISE TO THE OCCASION

What happened to the U20 and Minor teams is harder to comprehend - both went into the game with optimism but both were made look somewhat ordinary by Galway and in strikingly similar manners. The intensity of the Tribesmen, their speed off the mark, accuracy in shooting and dominance in the middle of the park was both impressive and downright depressing.

Intriguingly, Galway profited from tackling the ball rather than a full bodied tackle on the man - something maybe to consider. Or perhaps both teams just suffered an off-day, both feel they are capable of so much better and thankfully, they have the chance to prove it in the coming weeks.

Perhaps then we can get back to discussing football and only football and not getting dragged into arguments or debates  and maybe, just maybe, we might get a bit of coverage from the national media for what we're doing on the field rather than off - that'd be a welcome change too!