False promises will bring future problems

When the final whistle sounded at Tolka Park, and the celebrations started to break out, part of me said to myself - this is a bit much. Then again, when you really think about the consequences relegation to the First Division would’ve had, it all starts to make a lot more sense.

Job done on playoff night, not something we’re too used to saying in these parts. A deserved victory on a tense evening - played on a Tolka Park pitch reminiscent of the third day of the National Ploughing Championships - but it’s all behind us now.

Having shown two managers the door; having had spells where a win seemed as unlikely as winning the lottery; to simply have survival was of the utmost importance.

Can this season be deemed a success? No, no it cannot. If the club were to follow the same blueprint next year, they’ll finish bottom and be in the doldrums for the foreseeable future. There’s a lot of soul searching to be done in the months ahead.

Looking at the game itself, it was a deserved win but again one Waterford made hard work of when it could’ve been far more straightforward. Credit to Bray, some of their defensive interventions were top class and befitting for the magnitude of the occasion, but realistically the Blues should’ve strolled out of Drumcondra with four or five goals and far less sighs of relief.

The mistake for the first goal was reminiscent of pretty much every single defeat in the League of Ireland Premier Division itself, another mistake - and requisite punishment. To their credit, the reaction afterward was excellent - Conan Noonan’s goal was as good as any that the club scored all season and Sam Glenfield’s late intervention was a goal worthy of winning any game of football.

He has had his clangers this campaign, that’s not me being harsh, but a word of thanks has to go to Stephen McMullan too as were it not for the odd crucial save, the Blues could’ve been punished for their own profligacy in front of goal.

Winning is all that counts in games like these, it doesn’t always matter how. The result was what mattered most and if you told me 2-1 Waterford earlier in the week, of course I’d have snapped your hand off.

For Matt Lawlor, his second intervention period yielded two wins and two draws from five games and he did the job he was entrusted to do - keep the club up.

We all know it won’t be Lawlor on a permanent basis, and while the club owes so much to him, I pray to God we don’t find ourselves in a situation where he’s back on the sidelines at any point next season because it means we’re in the mire once more.

Who do you point the blame at for what went wrong this season? Unfortunately, there wouldn’t be a shortage of suspects.

What went horribly wrong was recruitment. I don’t even need to go back over that old chestnut because I’ve said it a thousand times, but I’d imagine Friday was the last time we’ve seen a lot of players wear the blue shirt and in some respects that won’t result in much sadness, for the player and the supporters alike.

The club knew ever before the season started that it wasn’t working with Keith Long, and they knew before the season began that they wouldn’t be ending it with him irrespective of what happened on the pitch. Holding on to him in the interim was a waste of his time and a waste of everyone else’s and that seven game losing run which saw him sacked could’ve had far graver consequences.

The John Coleman era had the initial new manager bounce but it didn’t take long to implode. With the exception of a remarkable night in Galway in July, there won’t be many memories of note from those few months.

So, it begs the question - who next, what next?

It annoyed me to be bluntly honest that the minute the final whistle went, the owner Jamie Pilley was straight up the steps to speak to WLR. He couldn’t arrive up quick enough. I wonder if he would have been willing to do the same in the event of a defeat but nonetheless, he did try and offer some accountability for this season’s shortcomings in the immediate aftermath.

Ray Scott was right to put it to Pilley that Waterford have gotten away with murder this season because that’s exactly what has happened. Were the Blues not to get away with it, it would be Pilley and the Fleetwood Group with the blood on their hands. He didn’t beat around the bush, he made bold statements and promises - and that’s fine, but go and deliver them.

Pilley says he’ll be announcing a new manager this week. At the time of writing, I don’t know who that is - I’m led to believe it’ll be John Russell and that remains to be seen, but regardless whoever he is, he needs to be the manager.

He needs to be in charge of recruitment. He has to be allowed to sign the players that he wants to sign. He has to be allowed to sign proven League of Ireland Premier Division players and he has to be given the best resources available to facilitate success. Other coaches have not been afforded that luxury.

It might seem that I’m being overly negative and that maybe it’s not the time to put the boot in, but the truth is that Waterford got out of jail at the last viable opportunity. A loss on Friday would’ve set the club back years and the fact they found themselves in that position to begin with isn’t good enough. It’s great to have hope for the future and to be preparing for the Premier Division again - but the methodology needs to be torn asunder and assessed all over again.

It’s great to not be in the graveyard, but causes for celebration should be for far greater things in future. A special hat-tip to Padraig Amond to sign off; play “God Only Knows” by The Beach Boys.