A beautiful summer’s night in Marlay Park, with the smell of freshly cut grass in the air, acted as the backdrop for a wonderful contest between 30-plus talented ladies from BSJ and St Brigid’s Gaelic clubs.

This was a contest that started slowly but soon developed into a humdinger of a game. In brightness parlance, it moved from a little candle in a dark room to a fireworks display over Westport on New Year’s Eve. The tension and excitement in the final 20 minutes had the crowd pushing onto the pitch in anticipation of a classic comeback. More on that later.

In the first 15 minutes of the game, a grand total of two points were scored, and the ladies were struggling to even light the candle. After the first water break, St Brigid’s rose to another level and scored two goals and a point. Whatever was in their water—we needed a drop or two! Despite having at least 50% of the possession, BSJ suddenly found themselves 8 points behind with the score at 2-03 to 0-01.

We followed their lead, and the BSJ fire began to burn as we started to dominate play with some sweet, passing football. We attacked with style and panache, but St Brigid’s were wise to us and switched to a blanket defence that limited our attacking opportunities. On the counter, St Brigid’s were dangerous. They kicked into space left and right from midfield, giving their forwards room to attack and time before our team could retreat. The half ended 2-03 to 0-02.

Experience counts at this level, and the St Brigid’s ladies had more senior football grey hairs. The BSJ ladies were fighting hard, but burning more calories than their opponents—with little return on the scoreboard.

I was standing beside a French scholar from Ballinteer as the second half commenced, and he quoted French politician Charles Du Bos:
 “La seule chose plus importante que gagner, c’est de vouloir gagner.”
 I smiled unknowingly and waited for the translation:
 “There is only one thing more important than winning, and that is wanting to win.”

Given the deficit, he questioned could they generate that desire. That question was answered very quickly as the hunger to win brought the game to life. The tide turned as every BSJ player took ownership of every possession, every kick, every pass, and every attack. They clearly wanted to win this one, despite playing a more experienced outfit.

The ladies won balls they shouldn’t have, robbed possession that seemed safe, and passed like the Harlem Globetrotters (for readers under 40—YouTube them!). My French scholar clapped his hands and said, “Nous avons un vrai match maintenant.” ("We have a real match now.")

Our super subs came on and gave us a burst of energy that fed into the comeback mindset. Despite wave after wave of BSJ attack, the scoreboard needed a goal.

With just two goals between the sides, we won a free and went for glory. Alas, a ferocious strike was repelled—and in a cruel twist, Brigid’s broke away and, against the run of play, scored another goal! A very harsh ending to a superb contest—the final score did not reflect the general play of two well-matched teams.

This BSJ team wants to win—and with more experience, there is little doubt it will. I predict, in time, it will become a very hard team to beat.