Divided Loyalties - Mayo Vs Kerry
There’ll be no losers in our house this Sunday with both Mayo and Kerry credentials firmly established. My heart is with Mayo though, so often the nearly men, they’ve lost three heartbreaking all-Ireland finals since 1989. They bring great flair and excitement to the final with their flashy hairstyles and boots, and their open, honest football.
There’s the usual hunt for tickets around the county with rumours and innuendo flying about regarding their whereabouts and methods of distrbution. Usually, it all works out in the end despite (or maybe because of) the GAA’s arcane distribution method. If you want a ticket badly enough you’ll get one.
Tickets have been secured in our house but none for me. I could have probably got one if I pushed it but this year I’ve chosen to watch the match from the comfort of my own home. I’ve been at many finals in my time including a few of the Kerry four-in-a-row back in the seventies (where I was lifted over the ticket-stile by my father, that doesn’t happen today), the Mayo failures of 1996 (including the replay) and 1997, and the Galway victory of 1998, which brought the Sam Maguire cup west across the Shannon for the first time since 1966.
The atmosphere is great at the final but the game tends to pass you by as you’re swept along in the emotion. When your team wins it’s a great buzz but when they lose it’s devastating. You can physically feel the weight of the supporters’ disappointment upon you. Of the games I have seen live, I have only vague memories of the actual play and those are probably from watching highlights on the TV rather than being at the games.
This year I’ll be taking it all in from the edge of my sitting room couch. It should be a great spectacle. I can’t wait.
Mark Waters marked time at 12:33 pm on September 24th, 2004 .
