Everything about the second act of Galway footballer Seán Armstrong is so far going to script. Not that he was ever sure how that might be written.
At age 31, Armstrong ended his two-year retirement at the start of this season with no guarantee he’d even get to wear a Galway jersey again. In Sunday’s Connacht football semi-final win over neighbours Mayo, it was like he’d never been away.
Armstrong shot 0-6 in Galway’s one-point victory, three frees and three 45s, two of which were converted against the battling elements at Salthill – and better still into the end of his clubhouse Salthill-Knocknacarra.
It’s leaves Kevin Walsh’s team preparing to defend their Connacht title against either Roscommon or Leitrim on July 9th, and what is certain is that this time last year – when Galway also beat Mayo – not for one second did Armstrong ever think he’d be involved at this level again.
“Of course not, and I’d be lying if I said otherwise,” he says. “I knew I was taking a risk, but it was one that I was willing to take. High risk, high reward, you know. I had a terrible start to the league and I was probably wondering ‘what am I after doing’.
“With Kevin there was constant communication and after I came off once or twice he said to me ‘don’t worry, you are just not up to the speed of it yet’.
“It is a bit like coming off a regular road and getting back onto a motorway and there are cars just whizzing by you. It took me a while to get up to the pace and when you are over 30 it is a little bit harder to get up to it, but thankfully I am getting there, I am getting there. There is still more to go, it is early days yet.”
Truth is that after two years away from the county game, few people expected to see Armstrong back at this level either. He retired at the end of 2014, citing a quite profound loss of “grá” for the game, only now he’s playing like he’s in love for the first time.
Talent, however, doesn’t go away. Armstrong first declared his when shooting the lights out with Michael Meehan in Galway’s 2005 All-Ireland under-21 triumph over Down; between them they scored 6-03 in the 6-05 to 4-06 victory. A year later, he won an All-Ireland senior club title with Salthill-Knocknacarra, only for Galway’s county fortunes to enter a slow period of decline.
Work hard
Winning last year’s Connacht title possibly planted to the seed of a comeback, although it was the Galway manager who first made it sprout.
“I was not involved last year, but I have a good relationship with Kevin and I was always in contact with him, Brian Silke, Seán Conlon (the selectors). They dropped me a text and asked if I fancied meeting for a coffee before Christmas.
“I have said it before, it’s old news, but when I said that I would, I was guaranteed nothing. I knew I had to work hard because competition is rife in there. You see Gary Sice, Eamonn Brannigan and Danny Cummins coming on [on Sunday] and it generates a massive impact to have players like that come coming in.
“You have to be good to go again on Tuesday because those are the kind of guys you are competing against. We have a very good panel and you need to have 21 players on the line now.
With Fiontán Ó Curraoin also back on board this year, along with Meehan, that competition for places is real. Armstrong further proved his value by taking responsibility for the frees on Sunday, a decision that was only made late in the day.
“You have to give credit to Barry McHugh. He’s a dead ball specialist and then you have Meehan in there kicking frees, you have Shane [Walsh] who can kick frees. I was lucky enough to be asked if I would take them. I said ‘yeah’.
“We have loads of free-takers on the team and if it was not going well for me, I would just hand over to Shane and vice versa. I was just feeling good and Kevin asked me if I fancied taking them and I was happy enough to take them. You are always practising anyway because you don’t know when you are going to be called upon.”
Gary O’Donnell, the Galway captain, also spoke of what Armstrong has added to the team: “Everyone knows what Sean brings to the panel; he is a natural corner-forward. He takes marking and he has added to the set-up since he came in. He is two-footed, he is a very good forward.”
Galway’s ambition goes beyond beating Mayo again, however. The loss to Tipperary in last year’s quarter-final, even though Armstrong wasn’t there, still hurts.
“Absolutely, that one game is not going to define our season. Maybe last year it got to us a bit. We beat Roscommon after a replay and then fell flat against Tipperary. I don’t think any of the boys will let that happen again.
“Obviously we are going to enjoy this, but we will be back training on Tuesday and start getting ready for the Connacht final. If you beat Mayo here and then go on and lose the final, it means nothing.
“Everyone forgets about this if that happens. Look, I think we are around long enough, I think we are experienced enough to know that this is not going to define our season and we are going to give it all to retain our Connacht title.”
