No excuses for crunch game of the season
Enda Smith scores a late goal during Roscommon's seven-point victory against Cavan in 2015, the last time the counties met in the championship. Picture: INPHO/Tommy Grealy
For the first time this season in league or championship, Roscommon will play a Division Two team at Glennon Brothers Pearse Park, Longford, this (Saturday) evening at 5 p.m.. It will be fascinating to see how they get on against Cavan.
For all Davy Burke’s protestations about injuries and bad calls, the Roscommon manager knows that no excuses will be tolerated if his side don’t take care of the Breffni Blues in an effort to prolong their interest in this year’s championship.
Ahead of the counties’ first championship encounter against each other since 2015, there will have been plenty of talk this week about Cavan targeting Roscommon for a potential upset. But, like Saturday’s opponents this season, performance levels can’t be turned on and off like a switch. Given that Raymond Galligan’s men have lost out to Mayo and Dublin by a combined points tally of 28 points, it appears that they’ve hit a brick wall.
The loss of their top scorer, Paddy Lynch, to injury hasn’t helped, but if Roscommon had shipped a 5-17 to 0-13 battering at home to Dublin, would you put money on them to win their next game?
Even against Mayo, Cavan were extremely poor, so the momentum built up after seeing off neighbours, Monaghan, in the Ulster championship appears to have receded dramatically ahead of Saturday’s match.
Of course, it’s still up to Roscommon to do their stuff. Even if Enda Smith is ruled out through injury, although he's selected to start, there’s still enough talent within Primrose and Blue ranks to get the job done. Ben O’Carroll is a loss, but he shouldn’t be required to win this match.
And that’s what this game is all about — putting the foundation in place, with a victory, to give Roscommon some semblance of hope and encouragement before the following week’s All-Ireland preliminary quarter-final where they will be on their travels to a second-placed team from another group.
Deep down, Davy Burke knows that his tenure as Roscommon manager has reached a crossroads. Lose on Saturday evening, and he won’t need to be told that the green shoots from his first year at the helm will have well and truly withered.
He has gambled on Roscommon saving their best form for the business end of the season. Only a victory on Saturday will give any credibility to his plan.
First and foremost, his players must perform. Their experience in Division One over the past two seasons should give Diarmuid Murtagh, Daire Cregg, Conor Cox and company that extra split second to trouble the scoreboard.
Like all teams, Cavan will try and force Conor Carroll to go long on his kickouts in the hope that they can win the midfield battle, something Mayo managed very successfully on Saturday week last.
But if Roscommon can gain any sort of parity around the middle, they have the forwards to hurt the Cavan rearguard, especially if the full-forward line returns to the efficiency levels that saw the Rossies compete with Dublin for more than an hour in Croke Park.
The jeopardy involved should focus the minds this evening. All involved know that the consequences of a loss will be far-reaching, but that shouldn’t be part of the conversation at around 7 p.m..
If they’ve learned anything, despite their poor record this season, Roscommon will win. If they don’t, there’s a more deep-rooted problem that no excuse in the world will explain.
