Moran delighted for his troops

Mickey Moran said that his Leitrim side proved the pundits wrong by coming through their Connacht SFC semi-final against Sligo with a shock victory.

Morans men were 5-1 outsiders heading into the provincial quarter-final date with their neighbours, but by the time the full-time whistle sounded at Markievicz Park it was 17-year-old Conor Beirnes goal that had separated the sides, handing the visitors an unexpected 1-10 to 0-10 victory.

In his post-match interview, Moran lashed out at RTÉ over predictions of a Sligo-Roscommon semi-final and lauded his players attitude and spirit which helped earn the victory.

"There were battles won across the field," the Derry man declared.

"Roscommon are one of the best teams in Connacht. We have met this last couple of years and they have beaten us. It will be a tough one. But let Leitrim players and people enjoy this because RTÉ had scheduled Roscommon and Sligo for three weeks time."

He added: "It is nice to see the sun shine on Leitrim people after a match. We worked hard and they bought into training. It did help because they had an open mind to training."

Corner-forward James Glancy dedicated the win to his late father, Michael, former team-mate Philly McGuinness, along with Moran, who he praised for his commitment to the team.

"I dont know what to say. There are so many emotions going through my mind but to put it coldly it is six years to the day since we beat a Connacht team," said Glancy.

"Mickey Moran has always put faith in us. We stood up for Mickey today. This win was for a lot of people: It was for Philly (McGuinness), it was for my father but it was ultimately for Mickey. He is the one who travels 300 or 400 miles to train us."

 

 

25-May-11 by Colette Fox – PRO