FOCUS ON ROSCOMMON: Keith Duggan on how the Roscommon players and selectors arestruggling to come to terms with the death of Gerard Michael Grogan

In a better world, Gerard Michael Grogan would have been on the Roscommon bench tomorrow at Parnell Park. Almost a month ago, the 23-year-old lost his life in a car accident and while the local community have gathered around his devastated family members in Roscommon town, his team-mates have attempted to find some sort of solace in routine.

"We met on the Sunday that Gerry died, as arranged, before the Galway game and told the players of what had happened and we basically spent most of the day talking with them after that. Of course the match was postponed so we just talked about Ger Michael and paid our respects to the family. Being involved over the following days was of massive importance and I think has helped people come to terms with the awfulness of the thing," said Jimmy Flanagan, a selector with Roscommon.

Grogan's sad passing was terrible and heartbreaking - not, of course, because he was a gifted footballer but simply because he was a life, a son, a vibrant spirit. But he had, over the last year, dedicated himself to John Tobin's promising Roscommon side after arriving on the scene with refreshing independence.

"In a way, he was one of those players that managers are delighted to see coming along. Because he had played relatively little football at underage, he had matured nicely and didn't suffer at all from burn-out. And he was also just a great athlete, 6ft 4ins, a lean 15 stone, very comfortable on the ball. He was a find."

And his brief chronology is quite startling. Grogan was announced as one for the future in the tail-end of the All-Ireland quarter-final lesson delivered by Galway. Despite being just three weeks in the panel, Grogan was given 15 minutes and within that period convinced his assessors that he had the right stuff.

"He didn't score but was centrally involved in us scoring a goal and two points. Although he was new to that scale of play, he slotted in so easily, which didn't surprise because that had been the way from the first night he came training."

Prior to last summer, he had dabbled in football, preferring basketball in school. Against Kilbride in the Roscommon county championship, though, Grogan's ability was irrepressible and, in true fantasy style, he eliminated the cup holders with the winning goal and was called up to the senior squad by Tobin.

"He was immediately comfortable, with no notions of himself but not fazed either. I mean, Ger Michael just had really good interpersonal skills and the other players warmed to him. After a couple of weeks it was as if he had been there as long as the rest and the reason we used him so soon was that his fitness was surprisingly high - he could almost compete with lads who had been training solidly for nine months."

It's not as if Grogan had no pedigree. His father Christy played with Roscommon in the 1962 All-Ireland final and his brother Chris served as an intercounty goalkeeper in the 1990s.

That the younger Grogan didn't automatically try to emulate those feats at an early age, preferring to go his own way and concentrating on hoops hints at an admirably strong sense of self, he was nonetheless thrilled by his sudden elevation. "You know any player is understandably proud when they are selected to play for their county and I know it was a source of great pride to Ger Michael and for his family," says Flanagan.

While it is easy to speculate as to how good Grogan would have become in happier circumstances, the feeling around Roscommon is that he was the real thing. Flanagan, not a man given to hyperbole, says the sight of Grogan along with Roscommon's established midfield sensation Seamus O'Neill, was something to behold.

"I firmly believe Ger would have been very much central to our plans this summer. The Achilles injury he suffered kept him out all winter but he had been swimming and lifting weights and had returned to full training the Tuesday night before the accident. We had envisaged using him either against Dublin or in the last game. It's all very, very sad."

Fr Liam Devine, the county PRO, said that Roscommon's stunning comeback against Galway last week, when they hit 1-1 in the last couple of minutes to earn a draw, was remarkable to behold, given the backdrop of the tragedy. You could definitely sense an extraordinary spirit about the players."

Flanagan agrees but adds that the current squad has long had a deep reserve of such mental fibre. Hollow as football seemed on the day of the cancelled game against Galway, the panel have thrown themselves back into routine in the weeks since.

Tomorrow's visit to Parnell Park is a potentially pivotal game for Roscommon, an away win ushering them close to the semi-finals. With Galway due to visit Hyde Park on what will be an almighty day on May 19th, Roscommon need all the competitive football they can get.

"And the standard in this year's league has been great, it really has been approaching championship intensity. Now we beat Dublin in Parnell Park last year but Tommy Lyons has come in and altered the team and I'm sure they are going to be approaching this with a lot of enthusiasm."

Whether Roscommon come to games now with enthusiasm or a deeper sense of purpose is something only they know. What seems fair to assume is that this season, however gloriously or prematurely it ends, will be like no other for Tobin's young side.

"Ger Michael's loss is a motivating factor for us, of course it is," says Flanagan.

"All I can say is that his presence stays with us and that he won't be forgotten in our dressing-room as long as this group of players is around."