There was no fairytale ending in the Aviva Stadium in Dublin on Wednesday 31 May when our 5-a-side heroes came up just short in their quest to be crowned All Ireland Champions. However, what a day we had and what inspirational support we had from nearly 300 children and parents who came to cheer on their team.
The records will show that we were beaten in our three games but this does not do coach Mr Mc Comish or his young charges justice. Fine margins between victory and defeat and the vital rub of the green were what cost us dearly. On another day and with a favourable bounce of the ball either way this result could have been much different.
Six buses, organised by Jim Dunne from JF Travel, pulled out of Dromiskin shortly after 9am, reaching the home of Irish soccer at approximately 11.15am. The team was introduced to rapturous applause, cheering, singing and waving of banners at 11.45am as they ran on to the famed Aviva turf. Their first game with Scoil Mhuire Gan Smál from Sligo began at 11.55. Here, they were beaten 2-1 in a match dominated by the decision of the referee to disallow what video footage later showed to be a perfectly valid goal. This was to prove very significant in deciding the Medium Schools B section.
Their second game was against Dooish NS from Donegal and again we had heartbreak as they were pipped 5-4 in a high scoring, ding dong battle. The Dromiskin side played some excellent football, scoring some top class goals. However, defensive lapses were to prove costly in a game that, most observers agreed, we were unlucky to lose. Effectively this result meant that we were out of the running.
Our last game was against Scoil an Athar Tadhg from County Cork. Despite the result not making any difference, our loyal supporters excelled themselves. They raised the roof of the Aviva with their infectious singing and chants and this meant so much to coach, players and staff. Such support saw the lads produce their best football of the day as they ran their opponents ragged, creating loads of chances and dominating possession. Incredibly, despite all this, the Cork team manged a 4-2 victory, totally against the run of play. This just about summed up our luck on the day!! Overall Scoil Mhuire Gan Smál, the Connaught Champions, emerged victorious and we offer them sincere congratulations on this wonderful achievement on the national stage.
Nonetheless this was an occasion to savour, where the whole school community came together in the capital carrying the banner for Dromiskin proudly where,as provincial champions, they represented Leinster in the national decider. Thank you to all involved on this special day especially the players and coach Mr Mc Comish.