73 thoughts on “All applicants welcome”

1. Think reading between the lines it’s Connelly or McStay, unless there is a surprise.

   I’m not sure what Anthony McGarry would bring to the role, but he certainly would not be my choice.

   If Noel Connelly wants it, I’m sure his brother on the County Board will be an advantage to him getting it, but a positive bridge between the Board and the team.

   Reading Mr McLoughlin’s comments his rebuttal reads more like spin but time will tell

2. Which job would you take? A team that gets to 4 semis in a row or a team that hasn’t been near a final in 30 plus years.
   I think mcstay will be the next manager, he has the time and knows the game inside out. I think it’s important too that the players have a say, they may not respond to the wrong man. It’s a delicate balance for this team, the right person can set them up to play to their real strengths and maybe land Sam in a year or 2. The wrong man will destroy them.

3. I assume there will be a few applicants from these parts? 😉

4. There’ll be names mentioned and lads interviewed but this is a massive job, only a select few would be nearly able for it. It’s practically a full time job

5. Should be lots of applicants . All we want is to build on the work of the last 4 years and bring us Sam. Simple job brief really . Hopefully the candidates won’t be scared off . JH really has increased my expectations after his 4 great years in the job . I admire anyone willing to give it a shot . Noel Connelly is a leader of men and it looks like being a 2 way contest with Kevin Mcstay . A lot will depend on the back room team the candidates can put together . Correct me if I’m wrong but JH was up against Anthony McGarry for the job before And Anthony had Kevin o’neill as part of his set up. Kevin would definitely add to our forward play .

6. Willie Joe, you refer to Sean Rice’s comment about JH’s achievements being a potential stumbling block. Another stumbling block may be the players themselves. Their achievements, their dedication their seriousness and no doubt their motivation for 2015 are
   there for for all to see.

   However, they are likely to prove a challenge to any new manager. Usually new Mayo managers have come in when things have hit rock bottom. This is a plus for a manager as he can wipe the slate clean and start afresh. This is not the case here. These guys are at the top of their game, and being part of a very professional set up, are likely to be critical of any manager who doesn’t measure up. A new manager won’t or oughtn’t to make major changes and so will have to be strong enough to win the dressing room.

   Connelly could fit that bill. I have mentioned Andy Moran, but there seems to be a touch of steel about Connelly that will be needed and his backroom team would have to surpass the current one, deal effectively with the County Board, and last of all with opponents.

   A tall order.

7. Talk in these parts is k mc lobbied hard for roscommon job, if for any reason j evans leaves ross next year and k mc living in roscommon , to turn his back on mayo, if he gets the job where are we then.he did try kildare.

8. In fairness “our man in Ross”, no one lobbies for the Roscommon job. Anyone who takes the post has usually been seduced by the promise of a few acres around Four Roads with some pretty ewes roaming the land or else they where blackmailed into taking the position by way of being caught in a compromising position with a rent boy out the back of the papal cross. If Kevin McStays ambitions are to manage the sheep stealers then I think we may have overestimated the man slightly.
   I think your “friends” might be telling you porkies.

9. Liam, its facts , but only time will tell and hope iam wrong.

10. Just picking up what D said about Connelly as a leader of men. Was McStay not an army officer? I think on that score McStay has the 5 of trumps.

11. Another major advantage that Kevin McStay has, is that he has been analysing in dept the strengths and weaknesses of all the top teams including ourselves over the past number of years. His predications on the Sunday Game before last year’s All-Ireland final came to pass. He predicted that the Dubs would try to run the legs off the two O’Sheas which they did. Himself and Joe Brolly are going to be on the Sunday Game this week-end in the build-up to the final, giving their analysis of both teams. It should make interesting viewing. I wonder will he mention the difficulty that Kerry had when high balls were played into their full-back line, Mayo’s three goals came from this. Kerry’s goalkeeper is quite small so you would expect Donegal to test this to the limit. Michael Murphy might do to Kerry what Donaghy did to us.

12. Connelly Is the Man for the job played for him in the u-21 he Is some motivator and he knows alot about about Football and new players and he would be fair to every player !!

13. It would be great to have Noel Connelly involved in the back room team even if Kevin McStay get the managers job.

14. Seems myself and Dr Tom Brett agree on ditching the black card, using the 10 minute sin bin and stopping the clock to stop playing acting and time wasting. He goes further with a video referee, but it would be awful expensive to have it at all championship games. He doesn’t go so far as to limit the game to the two sides, with no substitute unless a doctor confirmed a player couldn’t continue.
    I wouldn’t pretend to have the in-depth knowledge of you all about the strengths and weaknesses of the proposed managers. However, from reading the posts it stands out that Connelly is very highly regarded, as a hard man during his playing days and a shrewd tactician. Hopefully, either he or McStay will beappointed. Like so many of you I yearn for next year’s championship.

15. I have just listened to a podcast on off the ball ” where gaa meets basketball” It is very interesting to listen to when you consider Mc Stay & Mc Hale could be part of the next mayo management team, Mc Stay was also a handy schools basketballer himself. My point is coaching and tactics could be this management teams strong point.

16. If McStay managed a Roscommon club to All-Ireland victory, I am sure he’d believe he could emulate that success at senior level considering they have also contested two of the last 3 All-ireland U21 finals and have beaten Mayo at U21 in last 4 championship clashes. Plus he’d be considered a miracle worker even though he,d have great young tAlent to work with as JOM had when he went to Galway. But Evans not going anywhere.

17. None of that really means anything Dr Hyde as it relates to senior, Cork have dominated Munster and beyond in U-21 over the past 10 years or so, Kerry haven’t won a minor in 20 years and have’nt done alot more consistently in U-21. You do need to be producing competitive teams consistently at underage and Mayo have one of the best records in the country at minor over the past 10 years or so. Its the man at the top is going to make a difference, James Horan said it already and I believe it, Mayo nearly always have 15 to 20 players in the county capable of winning an All Ireland, the big imponderables are then the selection, the coaching, the tactics and God knows a bit of luck.

18. I’m too late for the poll, but I had totally forgotten about this lad, Pete Warren. Assistant to Johhno back in the Galway glory days, more recently led Mickey Conroy and the lads in Davitts to the All Ireland Intermediate final. Supposed to be himself and Walsh as the only two in for the Galway job, I’d say he’ll get it and he will make Galway good again. Another reason we need to get our decision right if we didnt have enough already

    http://www.tuamherald.ie/sport/roundup/articles/2014/03/28/4025117-will-peter-warren-be-the-next-mayo-senior-football-team-manager-/print

19. ^^^ You serious? Warren hasn’t a hope of getting it, Walsh is as nailed on as you’ll get

20. Hopefully you are right, as I wouldn’t have any real fear of him doing anything much with them, bar the first year bounce of course.

21. Will somebody answer me something that has been gnawing at me for years. Why would a mayo man go to a foreign county to impart his knowledge with a view to maybe beating his native county later on. This is beyond my thinking. I would do nothing to help another county over my beloved mayo. Why the hell would mc stay look for the Kildare job if it wasn’t for ego or money. If he wanted to manage a team why not go to a grass roots club in mayo and help the under age structure. I admire the local volunteers who give their time to help kids grow as footballers. The big ego comes in when the hard work is done and looks for glory on the backs of these volunteers. The sight of o mahony strutting along the side line sickened me. The sight of Maugham strutting along the side line of Roscommon and Fermanagh sickened me. What were these ” mayo”men saying to their teams about how to beat mayo. ” hit them hard lads they have a soft belly Go in hard lads. They’ll wilt. I know what they’re like”. Sickening beyond belief. We as fans would die for mayo but some of these so called managers are pure mercenaries. Anyone who went for an interview for a foreign team has only his own interests at heart. I would never consider him for the mayo job. It has to be Noel conneely

22. Kevin McStay has drifted slightly with Mullhollands (Galway) bookies, he’s now at 1/2 fav with Noel Connelley at 5/2 second favorite .

    The one thing that tells us imo is there is no strong rumor out yet, its still very much up for grabs, albeit a two horse race.

23. Reading over the last few threads has been interesting. My observations / opinion for what it’s worth…

    1. Honestly can’t understand Jack O’Connor and Pat Gilroy popping up in serious posts! Someone in response to a poster recommending JOC said ‘where is your pride’, maybe a bit strong a response, but I fully agree! This is a job for one of our own, for many reasons. Personally when we do win an All-Ireland, I want a Mayo man to be in charge, end of. Outside managers IMO are like trying to buy success. Secondly, you have to know and understand the Mayo club scene and underage set-up fully. Thirdly you have to have the natural in-depth want to win the All Ireland final for Mayo, I think only a mayo-man has that. I live in Dublin, it’s like if my Kids were winning AI’s with Dublin while Mayo were still without Sam, dunno, think I’d rather they played hockey!

    2. Yes the ref shafted us in the Kerry replay. Absolutely shafted us. But it was not a conspiracy, just a terribly inept ref. Two other observations that have been well made….Mayo were not smart enough on the day from the line particularly re Donaghy, Midfield, kick-out strategy and the actual team we had on the pitch at the end of the match. Finally, Kerry attacked our strength weakness areas very well plus ‘played’ the poor ref very well. Having said all that, if the Ref had played the game fairly, we would have won even though Kerry probably played a bit better than us on the day.

    3. Point 2 above is very difficult to accept and get over, but get over it we must. Some days things just go against you, it happens all teams. The galling thing is that things didn’t ‘go against’ us in the last two All-Ireland finals, we just didn’t have the know-how to win them and were out smarted. That’s what really gets me.. But let’s move on – the recent post ‘Why Us’, I agree with a lot of the posters, is a bit sad and I’ll timed. Let’s man up and march on.

    4. Think we need to get out of our heads that all the next manager has to do is take what Horan had created, tweak a few things (i.e. make the changes on the line that JH didn’t) and hey presto, we have an All-Ireland!! That’s way too simplistic way of looking at it and that ain’t going to happen. Any new manager worth a grain of salt will do things his way, and that’s the way it has to be. Let’s be straight, the James Horan era is now over. Yes it has been the most successful since 1951, but it has not delivered the All Ireland and has ultimately failed in the grand objective. Yes he has borough a professional approach to the set-up and has developed a winning mentality within the squad and all that should be harnessed for the future, but that is as much as can be transferred to the new management team. We are lucky we now have a squad of players in their prime, used to playing in major games, with a high achievement attitude, but make no mistake, with a new manager will be a new canvass. Each player will have to prove themselves to a different leader, adapt to different set-ups and game plans, accept maybe not being an automatic starter. Remember the way JH set-up the team suited many, if not most of our regular starters, that may not be the case in the new regime. So there will be considerable man-management required to keep the equilibrium that Horan created and a lot of honesty between the players and new management that all need to buy-in, whatever the changes, for the common good. A major challenge. In this respect the manager needs to be given a 3 year ‘contract’ like all the rest, that is only fair. Talk of giving a new manager 1 year ‘sh1t or bust’ because there is a squad of nearly AI winners is pure nonsense. We are as far away as we ever were in the last 5 years until we prove otherwise.

    5. Finally, my man would always have been Connelly – that is probably because I am a major Horan man and maybe I think Connelly is of similar ilk, and most importantly for me does not appear to do the painful BS that so many of our ex-players do. That’s what I liked most about Horan, in some ways I think his biggest achievement was taking that BS out of Mayo football which was our cancer in my opinion. In fairness it’s a bit of blind-hope with Connelly – it’s a long time since he was in serious management with U21’s and even than 50% of the credit has to go to Holmes. Also in truth, despite willing the U21 in 2006 (against the run of play that day), we considerably underachieved in that era when we had serious U21 squads. But I think there is something about the man. I would have run a mile from McStay, but maybe I’m warming to him a bit. But I think the fact that he is in the media gives him a profile and hence top on the bookies list, plus we hear his opinions a lot which makes him sound knowledgeable – but doing it in practice is a whole different thing. And in my mind man management is probably more an important virtue these days – does he have that?. Anyway, I’d say it’s between those two – may the best man win

24. I’m leaning heavily toward McStay with Liam and Connelly as part of his backroom team. McStay and Liam have the time and drive for thje job…Connolly by some accounts here is a very busy man with a business to run…BUT his involvement with the county’s underage teams could prove valuable and working with McStay as a selector perhaps, could be the key.

25. I have nothing against any of the favs tbh, i just want like everyone else for the right man to be given the job.

    I wonder why Kildare knocked McStay back?

26. I think a lot of posters are in for a rude shock if they think a new manager will come in find some new players and win an all ireland , where are those players, some good minors allright but they dont always come through, the players on the panel have been tried, so I dont see many out there, we were shouting for some of the panel to start but they did not make a great difference when they came on or started, and some people said that they had not played enough foot ball but moran and k.d had not played at all, I am not critical of anybody but we came up short so it is not going to be easy to get over the line no matter who takes over mcstay sounded good after the match, but one swallow does not a summer make, I can not understand the outcry over an outside manager because I am sure they would appoint someone from within the county, I dont care who it is as long as we win that said I would like someone from the county to win it perhaps n.c

27. I should said an outside manager would get someone from inside the county to work with

28. It would hardly be a rude shock if we don’t win the all Ireland , lets call a spade a spade , we’ve not it since 51 so it would be more of a normality than a shock , surely.

    Now heres another thing, not one poster or genuine Mayo supporter has said ” i told you so” as regards Horan going with more of the same that had failed to win a final two years in succession despite some supporters getting enormous grief during the year for having their doubts. In fact some even resorted to ”you’re not a real Mayo supporter’ if you didnt toe the exact line they wanted you to.

    Now despite that surely to christ the next man will see if we are to progress it does need tweaking, Gallagher and Regan need a go ffs, what harm can it do to explore our forward options.

29. Sean I really hope Regan is as good as you suggest he is. Despite our improved scoring rate and ALL of forwards putting in honest shifts with Cillian being absolutely excellent, I would love to see another top class forward in our ranks. Have seen little of Regan except in u 21 level where he did not shine but hopefully under new management he will get the opportunity to show he is in the mould of Dillon and Andy and Doc and KMc and AOS and of course the already mentiond Cillian. If he is as good as those boys have been I will be delighted.(Freeman no slouch either come to think of it}

30. Worth a go though surely ? We have to be realistic, of the names you mention Andy and Dillon have been two massive players for Mayo over a fair period of time now and time is not on their side, we have to be looking at a bit of rebuilding , not an overhaul but the product of Mayo football has to be cared for too. We cant just expect to run this team into the ground and then have nobody blooded for the future (although that is the impression some give as to what they want) and still be challenging .

    Hopefully we have a right good crack at 21 level this year, its a bit baffling that we have competitive minor teams and nothing at 21s last 4 years, its also very worrying .

31. An interesting read for peole ,type Longford into the search bar at top of page and find the post WJ put up after that match and see how much Mayo footballl has changed in 4 years regardless of who our new manager is its highly unlikely we will return to these depths of despair any time soon.And PAT GILROY REALLY????

32. I have read most of the comments thus far and I don’t think just attention has been given to the third favorite Anthony McGarry. This guy after taking over from JH in ballintubber won all around him league and championship and was only beaten by corofin by a single point who in turn should have reached the AI. They say in tubber he was their most successful manager. He had the team playing very attractive football and a team who have won nothing since his leaving under Peter Ford. From what I hear a fitness fanatic & a smart guy.

33. To be honest it has not been our forwards that have been the problem this year however i would like them to be more clinical. When we push up we leave our backs isolated, it has been the goals we conceded that have cost us and not just this year, and JH never adressed this issue. This is somthing we will have to look at for the future if we are to have any chance of winning an all ireland, the scores we are clocking up would be enough to beat most teams but its no good if you conceed consistantly on the other end.

34. Excellent posts, Hill st boy and KL. Sad to see them slide on by without much acknowledgement. In my opinion, Connelly is the only stand out candidate of the bunch mentioned.

    Before the 2013 AIF, I made the points that there were three things that Mayo need to do in order to beat the Dubs.

    1 Pressure Cluxton.
    2 Presure Cluxton.
    3 Pressure Cluxton.

    It worked for Donegal and it would have worked for Mayo. No point in harping back to the beaten docket. We can’t change the past but we must learn from it.

    We are blessed to live in what is a great era in Mayo football.

    Anyway, I’m still pretty depressed and don’t like thinking to much about Mayo but I do enjoy reading from the sideline. I just wanted to thank Hillst boy and KL for two great posts that speak my mind far better than I could, at this time.

35. Good point Joe, Donegal were able to do this even know it does not fit in to there normal game plan. You have to be able to adapt slightly from game to game and this is somthing we havent done

36. Everyone Is on about kevin coz he Is on the tv !! Noel Is the Man for the job

37. Agree hillst boy!
    I just couldn’t get my head round john o Mahoney going to Galway. (Leitrim I could kinda understand – weak county – needed a boost etc but Galway !)
    I also agree that it will not be as easy as some suggest – just come in tweak a few things and hey presto! Taking over this squad is an extremely challenging task – because anything other than winning an all Ireland will be regarded as failure and we know how damn hard that is to achieve. Also, whereas most of the squad are young enough they have had a lot of football in the last 4 years and it wouldn’t surprise me if we saw a dip in their form over the coming season. Also their focus might begin to shift what with family, work or study commitments and indeed a desire to live a little like many of their non footballing friends.
    We will need an exceptional manager to hold it all together and build it into an even stronger team – no easy task in my humble opinion but as always forever hopeful.

38. Up for the match says:
    September 10, 2014 at 8:51 pm
    To be honest it has not been our forwards that have been the problem this year however i would like them to be more clinical. When we push up we leave our backs isolated, it has been the goals we conceded that have cost us and not just this year, and JH never adressed this issue. This is somthing we will have to look at for the future if we are to have any chance of winning an all ireland, the scores we are clocking up would be enough to beat most teams but its no good if you conceed consistantly on the other end.

    When our half back line push up ? Do you not think there is a case for we do this too much thus leaving the open space in front of our fb line and we might not have to run with this tactic as often if our forward line were a bit speedier and clinical?

39. Yea Joe I am with you on this one. Two great posts indeed. There is a lot of speculation around about managers and who will lead us forward. I hope Connelly wants it and gets it. But that is just speculation on my part. Jimmy Mc Guinness wanted the Donegal job for a long time before the County Board came around to him. Our big problem is that we did not have an U21 team in the last 5 years. We won 2 games since 2009. A couple of points to spare over Leitrim in Cloone, and a harmless win over Galway in Castlebar in 2012. The trend with our underage teams is downwards, if 2014 is anything to go by. I sincerely hope we can win a game in 2015. During the 4 years of the JH management a lot of the underage lads got a chance. Only Cillian and Aidan came through the test. I would love to believe that the new manager can find new Mayo warriors. I am afraid they do not exist in the underage ranks. If they exist then Noel Connelly is best placed to find them

40. Yes pj your right we have to make sure are under age are looked after as Wel !!!

41. Sean, i do think we have relied on our backs to get a lot of the scores for us, last year against the dubs they were too busy minding the Dublin forwards and we were found wanting. So the answer to your question is yes i think maybe we have done this too much, or when we have done it, and got good leads we weren’t able to change mid game and defend properly. I’m no expert but I’m hoping the next manager will be and we can address this. Look at the impact Donahee had on the game, it will be interesting to see how effective he is against Donegal, i dont think he will have any impact if he even starts. I dont like Donegal football but they have a good balance between defence and attack.

42. Sean , this might sound silly , but it’s well known here in Kildare , that they simply couldn’t afford Kevin and Liam , travelling from the west.

43. Gale’s post on Anthony McGarry is very interesting. I’m sure the County Board will be aware of his abilities. Not as ‘sexy’ of course as the other two, because he doesn’t have a high media profile.

    Going back to Kevin McStay, am I right in thinking he said on TSG that he was awaiting a call from the County Board? Why would anyone say that; why would anyone think they were an automatic ‘head hunted’ choice? Did he not know the process? And the Kildare job? Or did some ‘official’ tell him last year to hold off, because JH would only have another year? If that’s the case then that would explain the waiting for the call approach.

44. I don’t think you can read to much into what he said on The Sunday Game, Catcol – that was just the night after James had resigned and no details of the appointment process had been announced at that stage. What he said may have just been figurative, I doubt he expected to be head-hunted for the job. I also think the Kildare thing is irrelevant now – what matters at this point is whether or not he’s a candidate for the Mayo job, who else might be and how and when the new manager is selected.

45. Lads just on Anthony McGarry while another person posted the positives about his time with Ballintuber he did have a disaster of a year with Ballina in 2012 which he nearly led them to relegation. Talking to some of the players I know they said that while his coaching seesions were about average the set up and organisation was terrible and not something you would put up with at junior b level. The following year a rookie player manger John Healy took the exact same squad to a quarter final in a group that contained a solid Claremorris and Davits teams and a quality Ballintubber team whereas the group the year before had raw Wesport and a limited Tourmakeady!!

    I know some people will point to the fact that Ballina are in a relegation fight again this year but you have to take into account that Ronan MCGarritty , Enna Casey , Paul McGarry , Liam Brady ,Ger Brady, Stephen Huges and Pat Hart are all gone from the team since the time Anthony McGarry was in charge. I am not in any way saying Anthony is not up to the job but just trying to give a balanced view on some of his bad experiences as well as the good.

46. There was a bit of loose talk in some quarters that Kevin Mc really wanted the Roscommon job (which I find very hard to believe, irrespective of where you live why would you want an “also rans” job when your native county is available and is a contender), but anyway John Evans has signed up for another 2 years so thats not an option.

47. ‘Crete Boom say’ Seems you have a major grip and a hidden agenda! Build a bridge and get over it.

48. I would not have any issue with Anthony getting the job or being part of the setup. He is a knowledgeable guy, and a great player in his day

49. County quarter finals at the weekend folks. If ye’re in the county and free then McHale Park should be your destination. This is where it all begins, club football.

50. @ Gale , I have no hidden agenda , I am sure if you talk to any Stephenites people they will tell you the same about Anthony’s time in charge.I just wanted to give a balanced view that while his time at Ballintubber was good his time at Ballina was not. Plenty of people on here have listed out the positives and negative re: McStay and McHale , Jack O ‘Connor and Connelly etc… so why not treat McGarry the same??? I am just relaying what happened during his year at Ballina just like another poster did of his time at Ballintubber.

    There are pros and cons to all the candidates so why not air them here if you have the info?

51. Crete Boom says: Go check your facts first!

    More importantly Croke Park are at it again stopping a fund raiser in Knockmore this coming Saturday to raise funds for a very worthy case. This surely is the final straw, a decision made on something that was seen on facebook, which seems to indicate to these faceless people that Hope House in Foxford was running the event. This is not the case! It was on midwest this morning, could not make it up!

52. @ Gale if you really are so sure my facts are wrong why not email Willie Joe outlining the reasons you believe my post to be inccorrect and he will remove it if he feels I am just spreading inuendo and rumour.

    I would add though that my facts come from players and coaches involved ( and still involved) with the Stephenites and I trust them as they wittnessed what went on first hand. I don’t know Anthony McGarry at all so I definitely have no axe to grind I am just relaying what I was told and I also know that Anthony was treated very poorly by the Club Board at the end of his time with Ballina just before the relegation play off that year which coincidentally was also with Kiltane as is the case Saturday week!!!

53. Gale – I think you need to back off on this one. Crete Boom is only giving an opinion based on what he knows, I can’t see any evidence of any hidden agenda in what he’s saying.

54. Was just chatting with a few here regarding 9/11 and how the 13 years have flown by. I was in Tran year in school that day and would attend the GAA Football Final 2 weeks later for Galway v Meath. How the GAA landscape has changed too…eh

55. Re: McStay/Roscommon. I know a few ex ros players well. One in particular. They really want him rather than Evans..and there has been talk over there for the best part of 2 years that he is in line to eventually take the senior role there. I agree with previous posters that all Mayo heads and hands should focus on our own county and not attempt to improve the lot of our rivals. I would not be happy one bit if McStsy took the ros job and it’s a v tempting job. They have some super players coming thru u21. Ros and Galway are both going to significantly improve over the coming years. In Horan’s time we had a free reign over Connacht. R & G were at their lowest ebb in years!! Expect much tougher encounters in the west from now on.

    Ps: KL – great post

56. Ref liam sept 9th, read last entry from mayonaze, and then read my entry , and the comment you posted then…

57. While the Ros job at the moment would undoubtedly be tempting for McStay or indeed for any candidate, one would hope that our next prospective manager will view the Mayo job as equally attractive. Surely achieving All Ireland success for this county is a challenge any worthy manager should be falling over trying to get. Even solely from their own selfish viewpoint, imagine what accolades and recognition it would bring them to finally achieve the ultimate with a team that has gotten so close, so many times. The lads are likely at a stage now where they could impart some wisdom of their own on James’ successor given where they’re currently at in terms of their development and level of professionalism! That said, that extra little something is needed to drive them on from here and to finish it, and they may recognise this themselves. If anything, I see it as an ideal situation for the next man to be coming into.

58. Connelly now the new favourite with bookies, McStay drifting in betting

59. Noel Connelly into 4/9 fav all of a sudden. Sombody knows something or Kevin mcstay is sittin pretty for the rossie job in the future, he has been involved last year with clubrossie and stuff like that.

60. Are people surprised that there are so few candidates making their interest known ?.

    I would have expected much more interest and i know we have wait for clubs to nominate candidates but still….

    My preference would be a Mayo native taking over but if there is a better non-native candidate then so be it.

    What about a wild card like Anthony Daly ?? He has done it all as player and manager on the hurling field, could be translated to football field ?

61. But Anthony daly is a hurling player what would he know about football good idea though

62. Sean Boylan was a hurling player. He also knew a bit about football it transpired.

63. Christ almighty, Anthonly Daly!? It’s time for people to go out and get some air!

64. how about andre agassi? he knew a thing or two about sports, or mick doohan? another lad that knew about sport

    kidding aside, would noel connnelly really have time to run his own business and manage a high profile side like Mayo? thats really the question, johnno mahony hadnt time to bless himself and we seen how that worked out. kevin mcstay has retired from his work, he wants the job badly it seems and he has experience managing and knows what would be involved at this level.

65. Does it not seem clear now who has the job? I must read into things a lot different than others, id back Connelly now with a fair lump of cash if i had it to spare.

66. There’s surely someone in the co board , who isn’t too busy , to order 8×4 slabs on Noel’s behalf , to allow him time to train the team. But seriously , Noel knows the time involved and wouldn’t do it , if he couldn’t do it properly. I for one, always had great time for him as a player and would have no problem with him as manager. He also won an all Ireland with a lot of this team, so would have their respect.

67. I think we shud all relax.It’ll happen when it’ll happen.Some names mentioned gave me a little chuckle,but Tubberman is right,lads need a biteen a fresh air n give the owl ‘puther a rest!

68. Willie Joe, I did’t want to get into this but what Crete Boom has stated are not opinions they are untruths such as;
    1. John Healy was manager when Mcgarry beat them in 2011, hence he could not be a rookie in 2013.

    2. Players are named who were involved in 2012 but these players had either a broken ankle, injured or were not even in the country. I know this because P.Hart & E.Regan left the mayo panel in 2012 due to these injuries. Their best player in 2011 when Mcgarry’s team Ballintubber beat them was S.hughes, S.Hughes had emigrated in 2012.

    3.He quotes the teams in each group but omits the championship winners Ballaghaderreen in Ballina group in 2012.

    All of the above are facts which don’t need discussion with ballina players to verify, just do a search on the internet.

    Base on this I suggest that you remove these untruths from Crete Boom comments as Crete Boom suggests

    I feel strongly that the pros and cons of each potential candidate should be aired but when glaring untruths are spouted out it has to be highlighted.

69. No more 8×4 s Nephin, tis all metric now , you’re too long up on that mountain buck.

70. Maybe too many changes Sean , often wish I was back there.

71. Changing times for GAA too and not for the better, they’ve put a halt to the charity game organised for Knockmore the weekend.Hope house in foxford was goin to be the benefactor this year a good cause too .

    HQ are a right shower of b

72. How can hq stop a charity game? That can’t be true, and if it was I think it should go ahead anyway.the nerve of the b——s.
    It sounds as though Connelly will get it from what some on here are sayin, I can’t see it myself but I’m well removed from all in Mayo at this stage so I’ll just watch with interest. I think the players in today’s panel are clued in as to how to mind themselves and the way to train, the new managers job will be setting them up to play to their strengths and making the changes needed during a game and teaching lads how to follow those changes.
    There’s no huge changes needed, despite what some think, this panel is ready for tactical help at most.

73. Thanks for getting back on that, Gale – I’m far happier for arguments to be based on facts rather than allegations of hidden agendas. It probably would have been better if you’d laid out those facts in the first instance but good that you’ve done so now.