Dunning now looking to Tyrone test
It was a breathless Roscommon manager Noel Dunning who reflected on a stunning victory after the action finished last Saturday evening.
“It was tight at half-time and it looked like it was going to be that way all the way through, but what a second half, it was unbelievable”.
Dunning said he was always confident that Roscommon would find a way to win it.
“We knew it was in them, we told them at half-time that we’d got off to a good start but unfortunately we just made a couple of mistakes.
“They got scores off turnovers when really we were in control and dominant. We allowed them back into the game, gave them a foothold and gave them belief.
“We kind of wilted a little bit, so we told them at half-time that we just had to go back to doing what we were doing well, and in fairness it was all shoulders to the wheel in the second half. It was great shooting, unbelievable”.
The manager hailed the contribution from the bench, and Ethan O’Reilly in particular, a player who had a superb game when brought on at half-time.
“He did very well for us when he came on, he battened down the hatches a bit when we were losing our way a little. He brought that bit of security and he gave us that drive going forward as well.
“But look, it’s no coincidence that we’re getting that impact from the bench, we’ve gotten it in every game so far and there was no reason that it would be any way different at all today.
“They know that if they get the opportunity or we need them, they’ll be put in there to give the impact we want and that was what brought us over the line at the end there”.
The St Aidan’s man says that the team have improved this year with every outing.
“The team is kicking on, they’ve improved with every game. The rate of improvement has been accelerated because weather conditions are better and pitches are better.
“I’ve said it before, we could see ourselves when we looked back on the videos that there were things that we were going after, and they were getting better. It might not have looked outwardly like that because conditions were so bad (in previous games) and it was difficult to play football.
“These lads are young, they just want to play football in proper conditions. I don’t know what it was like for the neutral but it seemed like a very good game of football to me.
“We are just thrilled to have won here today but now we must quickly re-focus and look ahead to next Saturday” he concluded.
