You don't always get what you deserve

If I were a betting man, I'd put a large wager on the fact that the footballers of Kiltubrid Ladies and St Kiernan's Men both know exactly how the other is feeling right now after both suffered heartbreaking injury time defeats in Connacht action last Saturday afternoon.

Social media and modern communications meant that the fans cheering on Kiltubrid Ladies in their Connacht LGFA Intermediate Club Final  in St Croan's superb pitch in Roscommon were following St Mary's struggles with St Kiernan's in the AIB Connacht Club SFC from McGovern Emerald Park almost as much as they were the acton in Ballintubber last Sunday, the world is a hell of a lot smaller and easier to navigate than it once was.

Cruel, cruel heartbreak for Kiltubrid as Charlestown sneak injury time victory

KILTUBRID 0-12 CHARLESTOWN SARSFIELDS 1-10

I don't know if the drama in Ruislip matched that of what I witnessed in Ballintubber but if it came anywhere close, it must have been mesmerising as Kiltubrid turned in a monumental effort to gradually reel in a six point Charlestown lead with just over a minute of normal time remaining only for the Mayo side to snatch victory in added time, breaking Kiltubrid hearts in the process.

Over in Ruislip, it was St Kiernan's who saw their dreams of history snatched from their grasp in added time as first Paul Keaney stroked over a free to tie the scores before two late killer goals from sub Jack Barnes and captain Nicholas McWeeney saw a relieved St Mary's across the line.

Two sides of the same coin only in Ballintubber, it was the cruel side of sport as their dreams turned to dust in an instant, something St Kiernan's footballers know all too well.

I wrote a couple of weeks ago that there was nothing better than a last gasp winner and that still holds true as Charlestown and St Mary's players can tell you but from the devastation I felt, and I'm not even remotely connected with the Kiltubrid camp, at the final whistle in Ballintubber, I can't imagine how Kiltubrid's valiant players felt when the final whistle sounded.

Just up the field, Charlestown players and supporters celebrated wildly as Kiltubrid players were consoled by family and friends, the contrast so striking that the distance between the two camps illustrated far better than any words I could use the difference between winning and losing.

St Mary's players Jack Barnes and Oisin Bohan celebrate with Barry Singleton after the final whistle in Saturday's AIB Connacht Club SFC First round clash in McGovern Emerald Park, Ruislip

In that strange GAA way of things, the Observer's online report of Kiltubrid's game seemed to raise some hackles among Charlestown supporters with one comment on the Connacht LGFA Facebook page saying “Leitrim unobservant  cruel headline!! Charlestown never in doubt, superb game management” while another wrote “You’d think reading this that Kiltubrid were robbed of the game. They never were ahead in this game.”

Got to admit, I laughed quite a bit at the “Leitrim unobservant” tag - I wish I could come up with puns like that -  but when you throw away the partisan blinders, it was painfully obvious that this was a game that got away from Kiltubrid and that is taking nothing away from Charlestown.

Truth be told, I was fiercely impressed by Charlestown's ability to raise their game in those final minutes. From the second Michelle Guckian fired over an incredible 11th point of the day, it was like a switch was suddenly flipped in the Mayo team's camp and the way they went from a team who couldn't keep a hold of the ball for 20 minutes prior to that to one who simply didn't let Kiltubrid have a sniff of the ball.

Late injury time goal blast sees St Mary's through St Kiernan's scare in Ruislip

ST KIERNAN'S 1-8 ST MARY'S KILTOGHERT 3-8

Deirdre Doherty, Nichola Meehan  and   Cailin Durkan in particular demonstrated real character as they demanded the ball, broke through seeming dead ends and won the game for Charlestown - yet none of that negates the fact Kiltubrid were desperately unlucky for all of Charlestown's remarkable resilience. 

My partisan blinders naturally had me wanting a Leitrim win, both in Ballintubber and Ruislip, but the neutrals from host club St Croan's and a few others with Mayo leanings were   firmly of the opinion that Kiltubrid had thrown away the chance of a Connacht title - that's tough words to read but I can assure you that nobody knows that better than those in the Kiltubrid camp.

Credit to Charlestown for the way they dominated the first half but I don't think I've seen a Kiltubrid team so lethargic and off the pace as they were last Saturday. It got me thinking that while Charlestown were playing the game, Kiltubrid may have been playing “the final” as they made uncharacteristic errors all over the field.

Missed chances at one end were compounded at the other by an inability to hold onto the ball but the game flipped on its head in the second half as Charlestown became the team seemingly wilting under the pressure, bending but crucially not buckling under wave after wave of Kiltubrid pressure.

Again, honesty compels me to admit that perhaps the Mayo side are one of those hard nosed teams that does just enough to get across the line as they won the Mayo Final by a point and showed a killer instinct most teams would die for once Kiltubrid drew level in that frantic second half.

The partisan blinders that wanted St Mary's to win in Ruislip don't blind me, however, to the heartbreak St Kiernan's suffered in those final minutes and if there is one set of fans who should understand and sympathise with our exiled brethren in the English capital, it should be Leitrim fans.

Charlestown's Deirdre Doherty scores the game's decisive goal against Kiltubrid Picture: Willie Donnellan

How many times have Leitrim teams, both club and county, seen their dreams shattered in the dying embers of a game? It is 20 years ago next year but I still don't think I've gotten over Roscommon's winner in the All-Ireland Qualifier so if St Kiernan's are feeling a little raw right now, I know how they feel.

My colleague Damian Dolan writes elsewhere in these pages of the London side losing key players through injury and missing chances that would have allowed them to make history - words I could cut and paste for future Leitrim reports and it illustrates just what an achievement it is for this young St Mary's side.

 As much as other clubs in the county would support St Mary's in their Connacht endeavours or any other team representing the county at provincial level, I'm sure there would have quite a few barbs heading the Carrick team's way had St Kiernan's held out for their victory. And it emphasises the fact, maybe not fully acknowledged within the county yet, that this young team knows how to win.

That sort of cold blooded ice in their veins is something we usually associate with an Aughawillan rather than a St Mary's and given the pressure they were under, it is remarkable that it is the county's first win in the competition since Aughawillan shocked Tubbercurry back in 2014. Some will scoff and say it is only London but this is no typical London side, the manner in which they pushed Mary's and Tourlestrane last year tell us that.

With all that pressure, all those nerves and the whole stress of the trip across the Irish sea, St Mary's are now liberated for next Saturday's semi-final against Tourlestrane. The pressure is off now, the Sligo men will be hot favourites and everything from here is bonus territory  and that changes the dynamic of the game for the Carrick men.

Check out part 1 of our fans gallery from Kiltubrid's heartbreaking Connacht LGFA IFC Final loss to Charlestown - GALLERY

Kiltubrid suffered cruel heartbreak in the Connacht LGFA Intermediate Club Final in St Croan's GAA Club on Saturday when Charlestown Sarsfields scored an injury time winner to take the title in front of two very passoniate sets of fans. Observer photographer Willie Donnellan was there to capture some great images of fans in part one of our gallery enjoying the action .... see who you can spot!

Kiltubrid Ladies and St Kiernan's men didn't get what they deserved last Saturday but that's not to say that St Mary's men and Charlestown Ladies didn't get what they deserved too. They had the ice in their veins when it was most needed most so congratulations to them on their victories  and commiserations to the vanquished on a marvellous effort.