Armagh 0-19 Wicklow 2-13:ARMAGH'S ATHLETIC Grounds was supposed to be the site of Mick O'Dwyer's last stand on Saturday night but someone forgot to pass the memo to the Waterville native.
The eulogies on a career spanning over 55 years in Gaelic football will have to wait for one more game at the very least as Micko’s Wicklow secured the unlikeliest of replays against overwhelming favourites Armagh. A trip to Aughrim is not something Paddy O’Rourke’s charges are likely to relish.
O’Dwyer pumped his fists, signed autographs and basked in the adulation of the Wicklow faithful at the final whistle and in that moment any thoughts of retirement could not have been further from the great man’s mind. He was caught in the thrall of championship football and said as much himself.
“Sure, I loved that and I enjoyed that, every moment of it. It was a terrific game of football. It was the best display from a Wicklow team since I came to Wicklow, there’s no doubt in the world about that,” he said
The effort from the Division Four outfit in securing a draw was herculean, twice coming from seemingly unsalvageable situations to almost win the game, both in normal and extra-time. There were some superb individual performances, notably from James Stafford and Leighton Glynn but at the final whistle the jubilant cluster of Wicklow fans surrounding the tunnel lauded one man above all others, their manager.
Wicklow positively bullied Armagh for large parts of the game. After 31 minutes they led by seven points, 0-9 to 0-2. Glynn was tormentor in chief but Wicklow were stronger all over the pitch.
Stevie McDonnell and Malachy Mackin reduced the deficit to five by half-time and when Jamie Clarke began a scoring spree in the second half, an Armagh victory seemed inevitable.
Yet Wicklow did not give up. With two minutes remaining they got the reward for their endeavour as Seánie Furlong twisted and turned before finding the net. He may have taken too many steps but, as was pointed out by O’Dwyer afterwards, he was being fouled at the time.
Armagh substitute Gavin McParland scored a late equalising point to send the game into extra-time. The chance it seemed had been lost. O’Dwyer’s farewell speech was surely being readied.
The pattern of Armagh pressure repeated itself and just like normal time Armagh were two points to the good up with only minutes to play. But again Furlong found himself in the right place at the right time as he blasted the ball to the Armagh net again. This time it was Aaron Kernan who saved Armagh with a point late on.
A draw was the result but O’Dwyer and his players celebrated it like a victory. Once again Mick O’Dwyer had achieved the unexpected and doing so in Armagh was the most pleasing aspect of the performance for the charismatic bainisteoir.
“You know, you’re inside the heartland of football here with teams like Crossmaglen and all those teams around us. Whereas we haven’t even had a good minor team, we haven’t had a good Under-21 team in Wicklow. These fellas have come from nowhere and now we’re playing well.”
In the post-match analysis the word “heart” was repeatedly mentioned and not just because the Wicklow team showed it in spades but because, at 75 years of age, Micko’s ticker was made to work on overtime for in excess of 90 minutes of football. O’Dwyer dealt with the questions with his usual charm, humour and zeal.
“Well, if the heart can stand up to that, this heart of mine must be pretty good, even though I’ve had stents and all.”
A septuagenarian he may be but his enthusiasm and passion for the game remain undiminished. Whether it proves to be the last hurrah of a glittering career is a question for another day.
ARMAGH: P Hearty; A Mallon, B Donaghy, P Duffy; A Kernan (0-3), C McKeever, F Moriarty; J Lavery, C Vernon (0-1); K Dyas, B Mallon, M Mackin (0-3); M O’Rourke (0-1), S McDonnell (0-4, one free, one 45), J Clarke (0-5). Subs: D McKenna for Duffy (36 mins), J Hanratty (0-1) for Dyas (41 mins), T Kernan for Mallon (44 mins), J Murtagh for O’Rourke (53 mins), G McParland (0-1) for Murtagh (71 mins), P Duffy for McKeever (84 mins), Dyas for Moriarty (90 mins).
WICKLOW: J Flynn; C Hyland, A Byrne, S Kelly; A McLoughlin, B McGrath, D Hayden; J Stafford (0-1), R Finn; JP Dalton, T Hannon (0-3, one free, one 45), N Mernagh (0-1); P Earls, S Furlong (2-4, 0-3 frees), L Glynn (0-4). Subs: C McGraynor for Mernagh (45 mins), A OMalley for Dalton (52 mins), D Siney for Hannon (65 mins), P Dalton for Hyland (70 mins), P Higgins for McGrath (88 mins).
Referee: P Fox (Westmeath).
(AET – 0-13 to 1-10 after normal time)
