These are trying times for Roscommon and its manager Kevin McStay. Going into their penultimate Division 1 fixture last night, Roscommon had lost every game and had a woeful -28 points difference. Their second season in Division 1 has been marred by big beating and injuries.
Perhaps it wasn't the best weekend to play Dublin in Croker. It was certainly not the weekend to play a Dublin team in Croker chasing history and welcoming back a load of All-Ireland winners.
Still, McStay was a study in optimism before throw-in.
"It's certainly asking a lot of us to upset history tonight, but I don't think there's ever a good time or a bad time to play Dublin. All week the lads have been looking forward to making the trip to Croke Park. That's one of the great things about youth: most of the time they're looking forward. We're just going to concentrate on ourselves and put our best foot forward."
"The lads are really looking forward to it" - Kevin McStay spoke to Anna ahead of throw-in. #MatchNightLive https://t.co/1mqNc5oY3T
— eir Sport (@eirSport) March 25, 2017
Roscommon put their best foot forward and proceeded to lose by 21 points. It was an almighty beating - Spain vs Tahiti in the 2013 Confederations Cup comes to mind - and McStay looked ashen and defeated when interviewed by Anna Geary after the match. He put the defeat partly down to Roscommon's training regime, which has them targeting peak physical condition in the summer.
"Judge us at the end of the summer" - Kevin McStay spoke to Anna after his side's heavy defeat. #MatchNightLive https://t.co/cHdKnj7X6X
— eir Sport (@eirSport) March 25, 2017
What a contrast to the prematch interview. It's very likely the Eir Sport production team were utilising lower wattage lights in this second interview, but the video perfectly captures that torture that this Dublin team can inflict on well-meaning gaels. McStay, to his credit, does not hide from Geary's questions but the 'oooooh, well...' he voices when asked about his gut reaction to the game tells you everything you need to know.
Roscommon fans watching at home voiced their displeasure.
If I was Kevin McStay I might give RoscommonGAAFanTV a miss this evening 🙈🙉 #MatchNightLive #AllianzLeagues
— Kevin Campbell (@scunnerkc) March 25, 2017
If Roscommon want to make any progress they'd do well to show Kevin McStay the door before the championship begins. #AllianzLeagues
— Niall (@niallotuairisc) March 25, 2017
@TheSundayGame please make McStay an offer he can't refuse and take him back @padraicmulry
— Christy Dolan (@christyd1975) March 25, 2017
Roscommon welcome Cavan to the Hyde next weekend and McStay will be desperate for a result to keep supporters at bay during the bonkers three-month wait before they play their first championship game.
