“We can have no complaints, the better team won” says Leitrim manager Garrity after Antrim loss

Not easy to put a brave face on a deeply disappointing defeat, particularly in a national final, but Leitrim manager Jonny Garrity was the first to point out that the better team had prevailed in last Sunday’s Lidl LGFA Division 4 Final in Parnell Park.

Antrim dominating display saw them score a 1-19 to 2-6 victory and Garrity’s first words summed up how the Leitrim camp was feeling: “Any defeat is tough, any defeat is difficult to take, all the more so when you are in a final. Disappointing, disappointing for the girls, they put a lot of work in to get to this point.

“But ultimately we can have no complaints, we were beaten by the better team. It will be all the more disappointing for us because we know that we are much better than we showed today but ultimately Antrim showed up and fair play to them.”

Impressive Antrim crush Leitrim's League Final dreams

LEITRIM 2-6 ANTRIM 1-19

A missed Leah Fox penalty just before halftime is one of those game changing moments but Garrity refused to indulge in any notions of ‘what might have been’ even if he did feel that an Antrim defender escaped what looked like a clear yellow card in taking down Fox for the spotkick.

“It would have been a nice time for a goal. I also thought that potentially that player could have been sin-binned for the challenge, somebody running through on goal to be wiped out the way she was, I thought it was a straightforward decision. 

“But look, I certainly won’t be complaining about decisions or anything else because, over the course of the hour, the better team on the day won.”

The Leitrim manager also felt that chasing the game was the root of his team’s problems rather than the occasion getting to his players: “I think that is fair, once we were a few points behind, we were constantly chasing the game and that makes every score you concede at that point all the more hurtful. 

“The more chased it, the more chances there were for Antrim so it just was a disappointing day but one that we will pick ourselves up from. Had we got the goal before halftime, the mentality completely changes at that point but because we are constantly chasing it, it probably leaves it a bit easier for Antrim in that they can keep it tighter, hit on the break and they did that very well.”

Garrity also agreed that Antrim’s use of the ball was far better than Leitrim’s as he rued uncharacteristic errors from his players: “Their use of the ball was much better than ours and that comes down to individual decision making on the day. They certainly did it much better than we did, we’re disappointed with that because we had tremendous footballers here that are making uncharacteristic errors, giving the ball away cheaply and it is not like them. 

“That is all the more hurtful whenever you are chasing the game and the other team is in the ascendancy. But that is the way the game panned out on the day, disappointing as it is. We have to take our medicine and improve from it, learn from it and that’s what we aim to do.”

Heartbreak for Leitrim as Antrim prove too strong in Lidl LGFA Division 4 Final - GALLERY

Bitter disappointment for Leitrim in the Lidl LGFA Division 4 Final in Parnell Park as Antrim stormed their way to a comprehensive 1-19 to 2-6 victory over the Green & Gold. Observer photographer Willie Donnellan was a busy man with his camera, see who you can spot cheering on Leitrim!

Yet even in defeat, there is plenty for Leitrim’s players to take from the game according to their manager: “It is a disappointment for them but I think another way to frame that is that this is a team who is getting to the semi-final, getting to a final on a yearly basis and it is important that we continue to do that and when the next one comes around, take our chances, show up on the day and perform to a very high level.

“Ultimately, they’ve shown consistency over the course of the last three or four years where they’ve been knocking on the door. If you look back, Antrim were similar, they’ve been knocking on the door for a few years and they’ve taken their chance today. I’d like to think we can use this as an incentive to go forward.

“There is plenty to work on but one thing we have to stress to the girls is that we were coming up against a team there riding the crest of a wave, that is just off the back of winning an All-Ireland, that has the solidity of having a management in place over the course of the last three or four years and they are very far down the road, you can see that by the fluidity of their play.

“We’re only in the door, this is our first ever defeat with the group, it is our first competition and by and large, it has been a positive one. We had a great win over Wicklow, two good wins in our first two matches, a battling draw with Limerick and a good semi-final victory as well so there is a lot we can take from it. 

“Ultimately it is disappointing and it is very raw at the moment but we can take lots from it, not least a lot of learning and we will be stronger for it.”