FRANK FARRAGHER

MANAGERS generally try to adopt the Kipling philosophy of treating the ‘two impostors’ of triumph and disaster just the same, but before he spoke a word last Sunday evening at Celtic Park, the beaming face of Galway manager, Alan Mulholland, said it all.

He had seen his side battle their way to an unexpected 1-15 to 1-11 National League victory over Derry and on the way off the pitch, his charges were given a rousing reception by the hard core of Galway supporters, who made their way north last weekend.

Of course it’s nothing to get too worked up over, it’s only one small step on the road to rehabilitation, but after two quite horrible seasons of league and championship football, this win did mean a lot to everyone who supports the game in the county.

The vast majority of those who travelled to Derry went in hope. Being competitive and putting in a good performance probably would have satisfied most supporters, and there was always a little fear of what might happen, if such a young team took a hiding the first time out.

“Ah, there’s no two ways about it, but we’re delighted with the win. There hasn’t been too much optimism around for the past couple of years and it really was quite a thrill to see the reaction from the supporters afterwards. They were really great – the warmth of their support really gave us all a great lift,” said Mulholland.

He admitted that he had little other option for the Derry match but to go with a young team but he was confident that they would all give it 100 per cent and would put in a really honest effort.

“I suppose one of the most encouraging things about this performance was the way the lads reacted to adversity. We were under pressure in the opening minutes, we were under pressure again when we conceded the goal, we were under pressure after missing a few chances early in the second half and again when Derry brought us back to one point with seven or eight minutes left.

For more, read this week's Connacht Sentinel.