Tierney heads into Mervue folklore
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History has been made in many shapes and forms in the Mervue area of Galway in recent times. The parish's Gaelic football team graced Croke Park recently after capturing both county and provincial titles, while the suburb now also has political clout in Dáil Eireann following the election of its first TD. On Friday night the spotlight shone on Mervue United AFC, in the midst of celebrating 50 years in existence, as they welcomed regular season League of Ireland football to its' Fahy's Field home for the very first time.
Walking through Sullivan Park, named after the recently deceased club legend Jimmy 'Skip' Sullivan, towards the newly erected turnstiles, thoughts turned to my own time at the club some twenty years ago as a juvenile. Staggering is the only word that can best describe the efforts that have turned what was a multi-purpose Council field with the most basic of facilities into a venue capable of hosting such an event.
Club Chairman Declan McDonnell, present at the foundation of the club in Hyacinth Darcy's sitting room in McDonagh Avenue all those years ago, has been the driving force behind so many of the initiatives that have thrust the club into the national limelight, and he expressed his gratitude in the programme to all who had made the big occasion possible.
Visitors on the night were Cork City, who themselves are no strangers to historic occasions in the West, having provided the opposition for Galway United when The Tribesmen used their floodlights for the first time at the refurbished Terryland Park in 1994. The Rebels may not be the force they once were in Irish football, but this was still seen as a stern test of Johnny Glynn's side's mettle.
Glynn, suspended from touchline duty, has strong connections with the Leeside club, having had two spells at the club as a player in the 90's and he would have hoped for an energetic start from his troops in front of what was a decent crowd considering the arctic conditions and lack of cover, which forced the small band of drenched City followers to proclaim that they'd "rather be in Cobh."
Their side made a bright start, though, and could have been ahead in no time, Mervue 'keeper Ger Hanley thwarting two efforts inside the first minute. The immaculate, slick surface made for an ideal passing canvas and the Rebels made hay down the left hand side on a number of occasions, but the scoreline remained blank and the home side finally began to string a few passes together.
Jason Molloy ploughed a lone, frustrating furrow up front and was isolated far too often as a deep lying midfield tried to cut off the supply lines to Graham Cummins and Vinny Sullivan. Happy to be level at the break with Hanley and centre half Martin Conneely to the fore of their resistance, all thoughts of clinging on for a point were banished two minutes into the second period when a calamitous error by Eric Browne saw him slice an attempted clearance of a harmless long ball and leave Hanley in no man's land; Greg O'Halloran claimed the plaudits for a bizarre goal.
The goal, thankfully, forced Mervue to abandon their containing tendencies and with Rory Gaffney sent on to cause havoc, which he did, Cork were soon playing second fiddle and looked devoid of ideas on how to kill off the contest.
The equaliser duly arrived fourteen minutes from time and was beautifully crafted as Dan Cunningham sped down the left wing and picked out the run of Mike Tierney with a delicious cross which the captain calmly headed past Mark McNulty from close range, to spark the first "Fahy's Roar" of 2011, which included contributions from residents of the adjacent Walter Macken flats who had been enjoying the contest from the cosier surroundings of their sitting rooms.
The referee added to the tension at the end by forcing five minutes of injury time onto proceedings. Cork forced a number of corners but, in a sign that this Mervue side may be a much tougher proposition for opponents and are growing from the experience garnered over the previous two seasons, the deadlock was not broken.
Extratime's Terry Flaherty had earlier announced an attendance figure of 407, but obviously a recount was called by Fidelma Healy-Eames as Terry confirmed this figure again a short time later. While this may not seem a spectacular attendance for an opening night, it was probably four times more than they would have gotten had Terryland Park continued as their base and on more weather-friendly evenings one could easily see 500 or so coming through the gates on a regular basis should the side continue to show improvement.
For now, the club will plough on with their League of Ireland adventure come what may, as they continue to provide an outlet for the youth of the area to fulfil their potential, an aspiration that was at the heart of the club's foundation half a century ago.
Mervue United's Roots Academy continues every Friday night from 5.30pm to 6.30pm at Fahy's Field for Boys and Girls from 6 to 10 years of age. All are welcome.
Walking through Sullivan Park, named after the recently deceased club legend Jimmy 'Skip' Sullivan, towards the newly erected turnstiles, thoughts turned to my own time at the club some twenty years ago as a juvenile. Staggering is the only word that can best describe the efforts that have turned what was a multi-purpose Council field with the most basic of facilities into a venue capable of hosting such an event.
Club Chairman Declan McDonnell, present at the foundation of the club in Hyacinth Darcy's sitting room in McDonagh Avenue all those years ago, has been the driving force behind so many of the initiatives that have thrust the club into the national limelight, and he expressed his gratitude in the programme to all who had made the big occasion possible.
Visitors on the night were Cork City, who themselves are no strangers to historic occasions in the West, having provided the opposition for Galway United when The Tribesmen used their floodlights for the first time at the refurbished Terryland Park in 1994. The Rebels may not be the force they once were in Irish football, but this was still seen as a stern test of Johnny Glynn's side's mettle.
Glynn, suspended from touchline duty, has strong connections with the Leeside club, having had two spells at the club as a player in the 90's and he would have hoped for an energetic start from his troops in front of what was a decent crowd considering the arctic conditions and lack of cover, which forced the small band of drenched City followers to proclaim that they'd "rather be in Cobh."
Their side made a bright start, though, and could have been ahead in no time, Mervue 'keeper Ger Hanley thwarting two efforts inside the first minute. The immaculate, slick surface made for an ideal passing canvas and the Rebels made hay down the left hand side on a number of occasions, but the scoreline remained blank and the home side finally began to string a few passes together.
Jason Molloy ploughed a lone, frustrating furrow up front and was isolated far too often as a deep lying midfield tried to cut off the supply lines to Graham Cummins and Vinny Sullivan. Happy to be level at the break with Hanley and centre half Martin Conneely to the fore of their resistance, all thoughts of clinging on for a point were banished two minutes into the second period when a calamitous error by Eric Browne saw him slice an attempted clearance of a harmless long ball and leave Hanley in no man's land; Greg O'Halloran claimed the plaudits for a bizarre goal.
The goal, thankfully, forced Mervue to abandon their containing tendencies and with Rory Gaffney sent on to cause havoc, which he did, Cork were soon playing second fiddle and looked devoid of ideas on how to kill off the contest.
The equaliser duly arrived fourteen minutes from time and was beautifully crafted as Dan Cunningham sped down the left wing and picked out the run of Mike Tierney with a delicious cross which the captain calmly headed past Mark McNulty from close range, to spark the first "Fahy's Roar" of 2011, which included contributions from residents of the adjacent Walter Macken flats who had been enjoying the contest from the cosier surroundings of their sitting rooms.
The referee added to the tension at the end by forcing five minutes of injury time onto proceedings. Cork forced a number of corners but, in a sign that this Mervue side may be a much tougher proposition for opponents and are growing from the experience garnered over the previous two seasons, the deadlock was not broken.
Extratime's Terry Flaherty had earlier announced an attendance figure of 407, but obviously a recount was called by Fidelma Healy-Eames as Terry confirmed this figure again a short time later. While this may not seem a spectacular attendance for an opening night, it was probably four times more than they would have gotten had Terryland Park continued as their base and on more weather-friendly evenings one could easily see 500 or so coming through the gates on a regular basis should the side continue to show improvement.
For now, the club will plough on with their League of Ireland adventure come what may, as they continue to provide an outlet for the youth of the area to fulfil their potential, an aspiration that was at the heart of the club's foundation half a century ago.
Mervue United's Roots Academy continues every Friday night from 5.30pm to 6.30pm at Fahy's Field for Boys and Girls from 6 to 10 years of age. All are welcome.
About Alan Dooley
is one of Extratime's longest serving contributors. Based in County Galway, Alan has been following the League of Ireland since the mid-1980s. His first memory of the drama of domestic football was Vinny Arkins, then … View Full Profile