McEnaney passes the whistle onto McNally

By Maitiú Monaghan

What does success look like for a referee? It’s a thankless task, and if all goes exceedingly well, nobody takes any notice.

Recognition of your existence means that something, somewhere, has gone horribly wrong.

But the line between success and failure is remarkably thin, as Pat McEnaney knows all too well.

It’s 30 years since the Corduff man refereed his first All-Ireland final, and the subsequent replay.

The ‘Mill on the Hill’, just seven minutes into Mayo’s replayed tie with Meath, made McEnaney “famous for all the wrong reasons”.

“I’d refereed the first game, and it was a cracking game of ball,” the Corduff man told The Anglo-Celt.

“It ended level and I was the best thing since sliced bread, the best referee in the country. In the space of two weeks, I was the worst referee in the world.

“It’s a small step from a clap on the back to a kick on the arse.”

Referees, like players, often relive and scrutinise every decision they make. Most are alone in doing so, some will get harsher coverage from nitpicking managers or all-knowing pundits.

Few have had their performance put under the microscope by Pat Spillane on The Sunday Game:

“Here we have John Casey jumping in to readjust John McDemott’s head a little bit… Here Liam McHale arrives, jumps in and a wonderful gap opens up. He hits no-one at all and goes straight through. Unfortunately, the whole county of Meath seemed to come in on top of him.”

Of course, McEnaney would go on and have an illustrious career refereeing the biggest games, but aspects of '96 are still on his mind.

“Drawn match you’re a great fella, everything went well. Second match you send two players off; all hell breaks loose.

“Most people wanted Mayo to win, that’ll probably be the same on Sunday as well, but Mayo are beaten - and the rest is history.

“If I could do it again, I would have gone with four, but that’s all in the past.”

As they prepare for another All-Ireland final this weekend Mayo fans can (surely) let bygones be bygones.

This weekend, another Corduff man will attempt to keep some semblance of order on the All-Ireland Final.

Martin McNally is one of Gaelic football’s best referees and will be rewarded as such this weekend.

He will be accompanied by four umpires from Corduff: Ben Woods, Niall Reilly, Mark Gilsenan, and Anthony Marr.

All four have played for Corduff, and McNally is still involved coaching the club’s ladies’ team.

As anyone who has ever played against Corduff can attest to, the club doesn’t produce shrinking violets.

McEnaney himself knows it all too well, describing his club's record in producing high-quality referees as a “poachers turn gamekeepers situation”.

“We’re noted for being tough boys, aren’t we? We’re not known as ‘full of gentlemen’. We’ve been described as robust - to put it nicely.”

Still, he isn’t oblivious to the impact that he has had on the next generation of referees.

“We have four referees in Corduff. When I was younger, I didn’t think I was influencing people. It’s when you get a little bit older.

“Paddy Collins was an excellent referee, and he was someone I would have looked to. So, I’m sure there are people that looked at my style of refereeing.

“It’s like the inter-county players, Conor McManus, Micheál Bannigan, Conor McCarthy- they do have an influence on a lot of young people. Sometimes you need to be a little bit older to appreciate that.”

McEnaney admits to speaking to his club mate, and neighbour, McNally most days, be it up at the pitch or in the village.

Given all he knows about refereeing the All-Ireland finals - the good, the bad, and the ugly - who better for McNally to turn to for some tips on handling the big one.

McEnaney’s message is clear: “Nothing changes. He’s well used to the big game. He doesn’t need to move away from his rhythm. That’s the main thing.

“The other thing is to get all of his stuff sorted the week before; tickets, where you’re staying, all the arrangements.

“From Monday on you’re concentrating on yourself, keeping your fitness topped up. It’s not complicated.”

In 1996, Pat McEnaney walked onto Croke Park, hoping his performance wouldn’t capture all the headlines.

Thirty years later, Martin McNally takes to the same stage, hoping for the exact same thing.