Soccer

TV View: Richmond Rock and youngsters’ role light up FAI Cup final once smoke clears

RTÉ's commentators might as well have gone to the dogs for the first few minutes, but St Pat’s celebrations at end were a sight for sore eyes

Bohemians fans get in the mood before kickoff in the FAI Cup final. Photograph: Bryan Keane/Inpho
Bohemians fans get in the mood before kickoff in the FAI Cup final. Photograph: Bryan Keane/Inpho
Mary Hannigan's picture
Mary Hannigan
Sun Nov 12 2023 - 21:08

The Civil Defence folk in their high-vis jackets who were attempting to clear the pitch of flares before kick-off were doing Trojan work, but their task fell in to the ha’penny place next to the one facing Des Curran and Graham Gartland.

A sizeable chunk of the playing field was not visible to the naked (or camera’s) eye, the smoke enveloping the stadium, leaving the pair wondering how they could provide RTÉ’s viewers with any form of commentary on an early happening in the FAI Cup final that they couldn’t actually witness.

“I’m hoping we don’t have an early goal down on the right,” said Des, fearing he might have to utter the immortal line, “someone scored – I think”.

Luckily, the early happening came down on the left, Jonathan Afolabi winning a penalty just seven-ish minutes after a record crowd of 43,881 took to their seats. He drilled it home. This, clearly, was going to be Bohs’ day.

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Alas, for Des and Graham, more flares were ignited to celebrate Afolabi’s conversion, so for the next five minutes or so, they might as well have been commentating on the terriers’ section of Crufts.

It called to mind a fight scene in Saving Private Ryan that was supposedly staged on Omaha Beach but was, in fact, filmed in Curracloe, it being as easy to decipher a Ryan in the heat of that battle as it was to spot a celebrating Afolabi at the Aviva on Sunday.

Frankly, Des and Graham displayed as much heroism as any of the people on that Omaha/Curracloe beach did that day. In relative terms, of course. “There’s Afolabi celebrating, apparently,” Des almost said.

The overriding theme of this final was youth. “He’s 18 years of age and he’s thinking this is just the norm,” said Bohs manager Declan Devine of James McManus, while St Pat’s had Mason Melia up their sleeve. He’s 16. So he was born in 2007, ie yesterday.

And then there was Tommy Lonergan, another teenager, who settled the game with that nifty finish in the closing minutes, making it 3-1 for St Pat’s. “His wrong foot, too,” said Graham, leaving you wondering what he could do if he applied his right one.

On yet another dodgy weekend for the FAI, Graham saluted them for their efforts in promoting the game, noting the billboards and sundry advertising around Dublin for the final. “I didn’t think I’d see it in my lifetime,” he said of the record attendance, “if you build it, they will come.”

Note the youthfulness of the crowd too, “we support our local team” possibly proudly tattooed on all their chests. It’s been a hell of a season for the local game.

And a hell of a final for Jake Mulraney’s left foot, its precision setting up a couple of Pat’s goals. Deadly, like.

Full-time. Brian Kerr beaming in the stands, and a flood of tears on the pitch. From Pat’s manager Jon Daly’s daughters, and from his captain Joe Redmond.

And in the build-up to the game, few stood out quite like Redmond, his story so typical of a heap of gifted young Irish players who were snapped up by English clubs and then churned out.

He was asked as much in the past week about playing alongside Jude Bellingham in Birmingham City’s youth team as he was about his own career. Understandable, of course, Bellingham being a phenomenon, but still, he has his own story.

Based on his pre-match interview, he’s the finest of young men, not shy about talking about the need to speak out and seek help when times get too tough.

So, seeing him fall in to a heap on the pitch and dissolve into tears at full-time, after captaining his team to FAI Cup victory, you couldn’t help but be a bit on the emotional side yourself.

“I’ve heard of the Rock of Gibraltar, but never the Rock of Richmond,” said Alan Cawley of Redmond. “I prefer the Rock of Richmond.”

Richmond’s Rock should party long. The Civil Defence folk might even be needed to clear the flares from his hooley.

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