I watched Oasis deliver a magical Croke Park show – unfortunately a fan near me had the opposite experience

The Irish Sun

a day ago

Croke Park had already seen a few notable reunions this year before the Gallagher brothers came to town
PAUL DOLLERY I watched Oasis deliver a magical Croke Park show – unfortunately a fan near me had the opposite experience
BY the time I reached my perch in the upper tier of the Davin Stand on Sunday, the chap assigned to the position beside me was already unsteady on his feet.
While Richard Ashcroft told Croke Park that The Drugs Don't Work, my man-marker was proving that the drink sometimes misses the target too.
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Oasis put on two phenomenal shows over the weekend
Credit: Big Brother Recordings
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Liam and Noel Gallagher have proven they still have on this tour
Credit: Big Brother Recordings
Thankfully for his own sake, beer and wine were the most potent beverages available from the bar.
Any attempt at a shot from this fella would almost certainly have yielded a resounding Níl from Hawkeye.
It was a classic case of going too hard in the warm-up or peaking too soon. As Jack O'Connor might attest, timing your run is essential.
Nobody bemoans a group-stage defeat to Meath when you can go faster than a cannonball during Champagne Supernova.
As Croker curtain-raisers go, the pairing of Verve frontman Ashcroft and Liverpool indie cult favourites Cast will be hard to top.
But when Oasis took to the stage, they attacked the occasion with as much vigour as Gavin White tearing up the field and teeing up Dylan Geaney to kick Kerry into the lead after 11 seconds of an All-Ireland final.
The brilliance of David and Paudie Clifford that day looked set to go down as the greatest display ever put on by brothers at Croker.
Just three weeks later, Liam and Noel Gallagher raised the bar.
The noise and colour of GAA HQ for an All-Ireland showpiece is special and unique. But there was something truly enchanting about the effect Oasis had on the great venue.
Nodding approvingly as he surveyed the surroundings, Liam remarked: 'It's a nice gaff, this Croke Park. You look after it and you're very proud of it.'
Henry Shefflin among GAA stars at Oasis gigs where Man City tradition made its Croke Park debut
The home of the GAA will continue to host great games that will define seasons and careers, while inspiring the ones that are still to come. Still, it might never see another show quite like this.
As a teenager who was captivated by their every move in the 90s, no apologies will accompany the admission that I would have been content to be fleeced for the pleasure of seeing a band of over-the-hill heroes going through the motions to squeeze the last drops from their earning power.
However, like Michael Murphy defying his hiatus to prove that he is more important to Donegal than ever, Oasis have seldom sounded as fresh and formidable as they do now.
Had there been a media briefing afterwards, Noel may have channelled his GAA background like an embittered bainisteoir by sending a message to the critics who wrote them off: 'Go away and teach a guitar class! Go away and coach a song-writing lesson!
'The CCCC should be ashamed of themselves too. How can we be expected to do our recovery and preparation in time to go and get a result in Toronto with just a seven-day turn-around?'
SKELETON OF THE BAND
A word of praise must also go to the other founding member of Oasis with Irish roots.
Paul 'Bonehead' Arthurs has remained the unsung hero, overshadowed by a pair of brothers despite consistently delivering top-class performances. He must know exactly how it feels to be Joe O'Connor.
For Oasis, it's somewhat apt that this long-awaited tour took in a couple of dates at Croke Park in a year of GAA reunions — Murphy and Donegal, Tipperary and Liam MacCarthy, football and entertainment.
With more rule changes being considered — including one that would prevent players from bringing the ball back into their own territory once it has crossed the halfway mark — perhaps even Jim Gavin and the Football Review Committee have been inspired.
Don't pass back in anger?
As for the Oasis fan whose night was shaped by Rockshore instead of Rock 'n Roll Star, he eventually gave himself the curly finger midway through the Oasis set.
Regrettably as a Corkman, it was not the first second-half no-show I've been at Croker for this year. Meanwhile, down at the Hill 16 end, Oasis never let their standards slip.
Although the stage was located inside the 40-metre arc, never was an effort more deserving of a bonus point.
If the next group of Mayo men to play there can reach that level, the legend of Andy Moran will live forever.