Niall Murphy of Sligo pictured with the Tailteann Cup at the launch of the Tailteann Cup at Croke Park in Dublin. Photo by Sam Barnes/Sportsfile.
By Paul Keane
So what exactly is success and how is it to be measured?
It's only a privileged few afterall that get to speak the language of All-Ireland wins and All-Stars, of National League and provincial title successes.
Where does a group like Sligo fit into it all?
It's an interesting question given that Tony McEntee, one of the most highly rated coaches in the country before he took over as manager for the 2021 season, is now in his fifth campaign.
Sligo haven't won a provincial title, nor a Tailteann Cup and have operated in Division 3 for the last two seasons.
Which mightn't seem overly impressive until you consider that McEntee inherited a side stuck in Division 4, that didn't play a Championship game in 2020 and which was hammered by Mayo in their solitary 2021 Championship game.
Since then, Sligo have won a Division 4 title, stabilised themselves in Division 3, contested two Tailteann Cup semi-finals as well as a Connacht final. Not bad going when you consider it in those terms.
"When Tony came in we were a low-end Division 4 team at the time," said captain Niall Murphy, who has been there every step of the way. "We got out of that. In his first year we played Mayo (in the Championship) and got beaten by 20-odd points. We played Galway then maybe a year or two later and we were well beaten as well.
"In the last couple of years, we've brought Galway and Mayo into the last few minutes of games so there's progress there. Definitely there was disappointment at not getting out of Division 3.
"Since he came in, we're a different team in my opinion anyway. We're comfortable playing any team whereas when he first came in, we were light years away from the likes of Mayo, Galway and Roscommon."
In attendance at the launch of the Tailteann Cup at Croke Park in Dublin is Uachtarán Chumann Lúthchleas Gael Jarlath Burns, centre, with back row from left, Sean O’Connor of Tipperary, Tighe Barry of London, Callum Bolton of Kildare, Ronan Wallace of Westmeath, Killian Roche of Laois, Mark Diffley of Leitrim, Dean Healy of Wicklow and Dermot McAleese of Antrim. Along with front row, from front to back, Cillian Fahy of Limerick, Paddy Fox of Longford, Niall Murphy of Sligo, Conor Murray of Waterford, Mikey Bambrick of Carlow, Lee Pearson of Offaly and Declan McCusker of Fermanagh. Photo by Sam Barnes/Sportsfile.
Sligo's latest strong showing was a three-point defeat to Mayo in the Connacht championship. The men in black give the impression of a team just waiting to lift off and the Tailteann Cup appears to be the perfect platform.
Sligo will begin their group campaign this Sunday, against Tipperary, at the Tubbercurry GAA club. Their traditional Markievicz Park base is unavailable due to upgrade works on the pitch. Kildare and Leitrim are also in Sligo's group.
"We had three losses at the start of the league and then we finished off with three wins," said Murphy. "We carried that through to the Connacht game against Mayo. So if you look at Sligo, you'd probably think that they're on an upward trajectory but who knows. It's so hard to know. We've had four or five weeks off since the last game so you're in no man's land again really and wondering where you're at. Things are positive in the group at the minute so hopefully that will continue."
Sligo are many people's dark horses for Tailteann Cup success, partly because of the momentum they possess but also because they took eventual champions Down to extra-time in their semi-final encounter last year. What's certain is that it wasn't a hard sell for McEntee when he asked his players to regroup and to refocus after their provincial championship exit.
"No, it wasn't," agreed Murphy. "I would have had those worries when the competition started up a couple of years ago. But no, to be fair, lads buy into it. The first year we had a decent run, we got a trip to Croke Park, a lot of new lads on the team.
"Personally, myself, I'd love to be playing in the Sam Maguire competition so it's an avenue for that. We all buy into it. Nobody has left the panel or anything like that. You see that in different teams, players dropping off, but we haven't had that and we haven't experienced that over the last couple of years.
"Last year was probably one we looked back on against Down (with regret), it went to extra-time. That was the one that you look back on with a bit of regret but hopefully this year we can right those wrongs."
