Football

Antrim can repeat dose on Sligo in All-Ireland SFC qualifier

Matthew Fitzpatrick looks set to start for Antrim after recovering from the ankle injury he suffered against Donegal. Picture by Cliff Donaldson
Matthew Fitzpatrick looks set to start for Antrim after recovering from the ankle injury he suffered against Donegal. Picture by Cliff Donaldson Matthew Fitzpatrick looks set to start for Antrim after recovering from the ankle injury he suffered against Donegal. Picture by Cliff Donaldson

All-Ireland SFC Qualifiers round 1A: Sligo v Antrim (Saturday, 5pm, Markievicz Park)

WHATEVER about the way things got away from Antrim in the second half in Ballybofey, there was enough about the opening 35 minutes to imbue them with optimism ahead of “the start of our Championship”, as Gearoid Adams put it.

What Antrim did well defensively in the first half against Donegal was they got bodies behind the ball. Those bodies were effective. They clogged up the middle of the goal and when a yellow shirt entered the scoring zone, they were hit.

It was clear that they had been well coached on their duties in that area. It was only through the psychological hit of missing a gilt-edged goal chance of their own and then being caught by a quick Donegal counter that they were eventually unpicked after 33 minutes.

What they did poorly defensively was tackle. In the first 14 minutes, Donegal never once broke the defensive line but six times they were awarded scoreable frees, five of which they landed.

That is where Division One and Division Three look miles apart. The conditioning of the Donegal players was such that Antrim had two options – to be physical, robust and risk conceding frees, or to do as they did in the second half and fail to make the same impact with the tackles and allow Donegal to score with ease.

Sligo are not Donegal.

They do have forwards. Of that, there is no question. If Antrim afford shooting space to Mark Breheny, Adrian Marren or Stephen Coen then they will pay the heaviest of prices.

But the signs from the Donegal game were that, when they meet a team at their own level, Antrim will not afford that space. Sligo will do well to open them up.

Unlike so many teams, Antrim also looked to have a plan for counter-attacking against Donegal. Their delivery into CJ McGourty and Tomás McCann in the opening half hour was early and it was quality. The 0-6 they scored in the first half could easily have been 2-9.

If they bring the same style and commitment to their attack in Markievicz Park then they will certainly cause their hosts trouble.

Having Matthew Fitzpatrick fit is a huge plus for the Saffrons, while Owen Gallagher is named to start upon his return from injury, though it’s not likely he’ll play at midfield. His scoring ability could be crucial.

Kevin O’Boyle also returns to the defence, but the line-up of the Antrim team is likely to see more than a few positional switches at throw-in.

This could come down to Antrim’s battle with their own minds as much as anything. After last year’s Corrigan Park defeat by Limerick at this stage, Gearoid Adams spoke of needing to bring in a sports psychologist to try and lessen the impact of conceding goals in particular.

That was arguably the most disappointing afternoon since Frank Fitzsimons stepped on board three years ago and if nothing else, they will be determined to leave Markievicz Park having produced a performance that does them justice.

The minds will have been hardened by the fact that they’ve kept the panel together. Nobody’s gone to America, nobody’s opted out. That in itself is a good sign.

Sligo were all set up for a fall in New York and while it wasn’t a vintage display, they had to show a great deal of resolve after Eugene McVerry’s goal early in the second half levelled the game.

That attacking quality edged them through and they troubled Mayo for longer than the final scoreline from their Connacht semi-final suggests.

David Kelly and Cian Breheny both look set to miss out while Niall Murphy, who top-scored during the League, is only fit for a spot on the bench as he continues his recovery from a shoulder injury.

One of the notable features of Sligo’s performance in Corrigan Park earlier in the year, where Antrim scored a 0-11 to 1-7 win that got them off the mark in Division Three, was how wasteful their forwards were.

It was a particular problem from dead balls during the League for Niall Carew.

“We missed a hell of a lot of frees against Armagh and we missed nine frees against Antrim. Antrim were full value for their win. We missed 11 against Longford, which is not like us.”

Antrim might just have enough about them to punish another off-day from the Sligo attack, and indeed enough defensively to force one.

THE TEAMS

Antrim: C Kerr; D Lynch, S McVeigh, M Sweeney; C Hamill, N Delargy, K O’Boyle; O Gallagher, P Gallagher; M Fitzpatrick, T McCann, CJ McGourty; P McBride, P McAleer, S Beatty

Subs: A Hasson, C Small, S McGarry, E Walsh, B Bradley, S Donnelly, C Murray, R Murray, J Dowling, R McCann, P Healy

Sligo: TBA