John Finn Adding a touch of valuable experience to Jacko's Mayo. And the half back is not the only footballer in the Finn household. John Finn reacted with a witty remark when I expressed surprise in a rather unprofessional way that he is only 29 years of age. My mistaken belief that he is on the other side of 30 was born from his longitude of service, rather than any obvious signs of greying, balding or slowing, the usual indications that the big three-o has been reached. John has been on the Mayo team since 1984, and won an All-Ireland under 21 title back in 1983. After selling a neat verbal dummy (I'm sure he didn't buy it, he's not in that habit), we got on to talking about his career. John Finn has lived and played through the most successful period of Mayo football for over 40 years, and he takes pride in what he and his peers have accomplished. But there's that ubiquitous feeling of disappointment at the failure to actually win the All-Ireland title. That dream came closest of all to reality in 1989 when John and Mayo were beaten by Cork in the All-Ireland final. He has learned over the years to discern a good "Buzz" in a team and he knew early on in 1989 that something special was on the way. He had the inexplicable feeling in 1985 when Mayo went on to win the Connacht title and force Dublin to a replay in the All-Ireland semi. Very few outside the team group were similarly inspired in '85, after a defeat at the hands of lowly Limerick in an open draw game, pessimism of an unprecedented variety descended upon the county. John Finn started his football in Facefield National School, a few miles outside Claremorris, and in the parish of Mayo Abbey. When he was about 12, Mayo Gaels GAA club was formed and this provided him with organised football through his teens. This, coupled with his progression as a footballer of some note in St. Colman's College, Claremorris, ensured that the promising dark haired youngster had a good grounding in the game. In 1981 he was appointed captain of St. Colman's College, Claremorris senior a team, a singular honour when one considers that only four years earlier, the south Mayo nursery was the first day school ever to lift the Hogan Cup. The hero of that hour was another John from Mayo Gaels - Boyle, who kicked the match-winning point in the dying seconds. Nineteen eighty-one promised much too. The team marched out of Connacht and hammered Ballyvourney, the Munster champions, in the All-Ireland semi final. With seconds remaining in the final against Carmelite College, Moate, Sean Maher, still a team mate of John's in the Mayo senior set up, had to dive to keep the ball out of the Claremorris goal. Claremorris were two points up at the time and Sean had no option. The subsequent penalty was sent to the net and St. Colman's, who had departed the same Roscommon venue after beating the same team to take the title four years earlier, was distraught. That still rankles as one of the greatest disappointments of John's career. Holder of a Connacht minor title from 1980, John was left back on the Mayo team which won the All-Ireland under 21 title under John O'Mahony in 1983. They beat Derry in a replay at Irvinestown and that success formed the springboard for a number of years in which Mayo mounted serious challenges for All-Ireland honours. In most counties, matches and campaigns are not recalled in chronological order ... rather the memory bank refers to specific incidents of note from a game. John made his championship debut on the day tom Byrne's goal was disallowed against Galway. That was the 1984 Connacht senior final in Pearse Stadium and John marked Padraig 'Dandy' Kelly, a rangy half forward from Moycullen who was to go on to enjoy many more years in the Galway jersey. He has been a virtual ever present since then, missing only an occasional championship game through injury. He hit the national headlines in 1985, when his jaw was broken in an off-the-ball incident against Dublin in th drawn All-Ireland semi final. The John Finn incident sparked off a mountain of newsprint, and John's assailant was never identified. What's his mature thinking on the matter now? "My mature thinking is that though it's a sad thing to say, if you play intercounty football you are going to get injured. Nobody is going to come out of it unscathed and you must be prepared to take the good with the bad. It didn't make any different to me in later years. I would still be playing and enjoying my football if I hadn't got my jaw broken. Missing the replay was very disappointing, I can tell you," he says. John has an ingrained distaste for missing matches, simply because the "man in possession" rule can work against you. It can be difficult to regain your place if your replacement is playing well and the team is winning. In fact, that level of commitment is also a hallmark of his devotion to Mayo Gaels. He is the player they look to and he rarely misses a game. Last year he was out for a long period with an injury and the teams struggled without him. His excellence displays and fatherly influence are also vital in the team's current prosperity, they are atop Division Two of the Mayo senior league after defeating Bonniclonlon on Sunday last. "John gives us great service, and we really appreciate his efforts. He turns up as often as he can, and is always fit and in good shape," says one leading club member. The 1989 run to the All-Ireland final despite the attendant disappointment of the final - was a career highlight to be savoured, but John contends that there could have been a few other '89s. Injuries cost Mayo dearly in the 1986 and 1987 Connacht championship campaigns. This year, he expects the Connacht scramble to be as tough as ever. The suspected re-emergence of Galway is being taken very seriously all around the province, particularly after the sparkling display of their under 21s in hammering Mayo a fortnight ago. Then there's Roscommon and Leitrim, and Sligo who caused so much trouble for Mayo last year, and London who this year, fancy their chances of beating Sigo ,,, but John feels that morale is good in the Mayo camp. They are on heavy training at the moment, striding it out on the beach at Bertra, a few miles outside Westport. On Sunday next, they have a challenge game against Wicklow to mark the opening of a newly refurbished pitch at Garrymore. They say opposites attract: John, the left half back is married to Bernie McGrath, who lines out at right half back on the Mayo ladies team. "As long as she stays on the right wing, she's not a threat to my position," jokes the company rep. John didn't play in last year's All-Ireland semi final against Donegal, and for a while it looked as if Anthony McGarry and Peter Butler would remain the Mayo wing backs for some time to come. But Finn has waited patiently for his chance to reclaim his place, and some recent good displays seem to have secured his position with the onset of the championship. He'll be hoping to notice that familiar buzz before too long. Taken from Hogan Stand magazine 14th May 1993 Tweet

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