Photo: INPHO/Andy Marlin
Voter turnout for the MOTM poll relating to yesterday’s Connacht championship victory over New York was well down on normal levels, with many of you more than likely concluding (as I did myself) that there was no point in taking part in this poll having had to follow the action from afar on the radio. Despite this, the outcome of the poll was conclusive enough, with Cillian O’Connor claiming the MOTM accolade on 32% of the popular vote.
Donal Vaughan’s sparkling performance at wing-back earned him the runner-up spot on this occasion with 13% of the vote, while Seamus O’Shea, Diarmuid O’Connor and Jason Gibbons also garnered honourable mentions having each attracted 7% support in the poll. Congrats to all of those mentioned in dispatches on the strong performances they put in yesterday over in Gaelic Park.
The biggest challenge now for James Horan after the N.Y. trip, is to get his players focused on the more serious business of the Roscommon match. He will also want to make sure that each players on the panel will feel they have a meaningful part to play in whatever journey the Mayo team take in this years Championship. Players will need to know that from now, starting positions can not be guaranteed, and hard graft and commitment in training will count. Nobody wants a repeat of the shenanigans that went on in the lead up to last years final….
Roscommon still have to play Leitrim. We didn’t like it when in 2011 everyone was talking about the “Kerry-Cork semi-final” before we had even played Cork. It’s most likely Roscommon, not definately.
Let’s have a bit of respect for Leitrim here. They have had a decent campaign in div 4 and are a stronger outfit than they have been for a few years now. Roscommon are certainly favourites but nothing is certain in sport and Leitrim will relish a crack at the Rossies. Less talk of the “Roscommon match” until they play Leitrim first please.
On another note, living in oz I usually stay up to listen to mid west commentary unless the game is on tv over here, but I decided to get a good nights sleep for this one due to the later throw in time and the formality of the result… Sounds like it was the right decision based on the opinions given here of the mid west commentary. They spend way too much time talking among themselves while the game is in play instead of describing the action. And that’s in castlebar, god only knows what they were like in the Bronx! Like a bunch of kids on their first school tour id say! From here on all our games are on tv unless we enter the qualifiers so won’t need to listen to them again till next spring
Cillian deserves MOTM for sure. He’s a scoring machine, but to be fair, this was a poor defense, however he’s such a positive influence on this team. I also thought his brother played quite well, as did Gibbons. Hard to know if the management team learned anything from the match though. It was for the most part a training exercise, although tell that to Kevin Mac !
I was surprised by the team selection overall and then more surprised by some of the substitutions. I will say, there was a collective groan from the folks sitting around me when Kevin Mac went off and was replaced by Enda Varley. He did well though,. albeit with no pressure to speak of and against a porous defense.
In a way I was happy to see Alan Dillon return. There’s something reassuring about his presence that makes me think he may be in for a big year. Btw, the Midwest lads weren’t the only one waffling and not paying attention during the match…at one point they announced Mikey Sweeney had come on, I was looking for him and thought feck it ! , Mikey’s grown a lot of hair since the Derry match!, anyway it turns out it was Dillon. Anyway, enough about the match.
A couple of other general comments…I must say it was great to have experienced Gaelic Park again. It has been 19 years since I was last there with a bunch of Cork lads! The rocky field has been replaced with a beautiful all weather turf and there’s decent sitting room now. One funny moment reminded me of home when the announced warned “could all the young children get off the wall at the end of the park”….luckily none of mine were part of that group!
For those who weren’t there, they had the Sam McGuire cup on display outside the clubhouse…where you could get your picture taken with it. For some reason, I didn’t feel the need to get a snap of it….
Colm O’Rourke was moving freely through the crowd after the match…he took the time to have a few words with me..nice of him. Ciaran Whelan was also moving about, although I didn’t get a chance to speak with him…if I did, I’d have asked him about the shlap he gave our Ronan a few years ago..
Also, a shout out to the Club 51 folks including Mayo Mick and Anne Marie. Glad we got to meet and talk about who we knew….turns out, its a small world after all. Keep up the good work with Club 51! The banner at the hill end of the park looked great! See you in CP in September! 😉
I must mention the squad of players. Its not everyday that us exiles get to see our hero’s up close and personal. After the match, we made our way down to the clubhouse area, to outside the dressing rooms. The kids had gotten mini GAA branded O’Neill’s footballs and were thrilled when the players obliged and signed each ball. First out was Alan Freeman….(it was funny to hear my 5 yr old shouting “freezer, freezer..”…he chatted with the three of them and was very patient. Long story short, from Freezer to Robbie, Kevin Mac to Kevin Keane, Aido to Jason…I was very impressed with them all, the way they carried themselves and how they made a special effort to take the time to chat and sign autographs for all the kids. I know the focus is on football, but we lose sigh of the fact that these acts, such as signing autographs, chatting with kids, have the ability to inspire kids, and “they” are the future of our county, of our sport.
Finally, I estimate there was ~6K in attendance…very happy about that, shows the draw that Mayo are and also very happy for the organizers. Thanks to all who travelled from Home too!
Sorry guys for not being able to get any match photos uploaded. Didnt bring the laptop with me, dont think to take some snaps with the phone. Data connection switched off so relying on free wifi hotspots to get updates. Have loads of photos taken, 1365 since friday! Will be friday before were home, will probably take me a month to process all the photo! 😀
the amount of texts into midwest giving out about the fixture, its only every 6 years and a welcome break i am sure for the team , why are we such a nation of begrudgers ?
Feck the begrudges – don’t give them any oxygen !
Those players give up so much for us – they practically live like monks, except on the night after a match, when they have a few social drinks.
They’re very talented and loyal amateurs with a professional outlook. They deserve an awful lot more than they will ever get, but ask for nothing more than the honour of playing in the green and red of Mayo.
Also agree with Mister Mayor about all the players being a credit to their families and the county in the way they behave and carry themselves off the field.
So partially in the the word of Fr. Jack – Feck, Feck, Feck the begrudgers !!!
Well done to Cillian O’Connor, it’s great to have him in our team, he has great leadership qualities as well. The point that he scored from play was with his left foot, so that’s great to see him making improvements on his weaker side. Also it’s great to have two players, who are really reliable penalty takers, himself and Alan Freeman have put their penalties away as well as any premier league players!
Well done cillian 2 5 is some scoring or is it 2 3 please correct me me if I am wrong also will ros hammer Leitrim.
Well done Chillian o Connor and his younger brother Dermot ( as Jim White of Sky called them ) one Motm and a goal on his debut for the other.if Diarmuid is half as good as Cillian , he will be a great addition .
http://www.joe.ie/gaa/the-championship/video-icymi-jim-white-struggles-through-a-report-of-mayos-victory-over-new-york-on-sky-sports/
And some of us were complaining about the mid west boys 🙂
Back at the desk this morning and trying to ease myself back in. I won’t lie though, I’m struggling.
What a weekend in NYC. It’s only when you go over there, you see what a massive deal it is to expats and indeed to Mayo people themselves. The atmosphere in Gaelic Park on Sunday was something special as were the crowds and I met people over there I probably wouldn’t have met in a month of championship Sundays here in Ireland. Just fantastic. And what a city! I steered away from the “official” events apart from Connolly’s on Saturday night, and judging by the reports I’ve heard, I’m not too sorry. But more about that again. 🙂
There’s plenty to talk about in terms of the team selection, the performance on the day, the fact that you are playing for a team such as New York (or London) somehow ensures you immunity from red cards, even when the play is bordering on dangerous, but ultimately, we did what we went to do, and it’s time to look forward to the rest of the Championship.
Glad to see others calling for a bit of respect for Leitrim – while it’s unlikely they’ll pull off an upset against the Rossies, it’s not beyond the realms of possibility and the fact that the Rossies are already clearly gunning for Mayo indicates a certain level of complacency within that camp for the fixture.
All to play for again this year and looking forward to getting behind the lads, come what may.
Re the fixture – its a complete waste of time IMO ,and that is not begrudery. if New York ever swing a surprise they forfeit the next round as they can’t fulfil it becasue of the emigration issue, So basically a team could get into a connuaght final in July having played no game.. hardly fair, and if that happened to be us that got into the final with no game under our belt we would not be impressed.. Secondly… we are all sweettness and light now.. but if Cillian say had done the shoulder again the attitude to this fixture would be very different.. we would all be complaining thats its a waste of time going out there to play on an astro-turf pitch. Why not put Sydney GAA into the Munster championship while we are at it? Or Singapre GAA? There is ex-pats there too..
I know this comment won’t be popular but just something to throw into the mix….
With your permission , WJ, may I go off topic here? I want to draw attention to Wjmightdelete’s last comments. They probably touch a chord with those of us with family or friends abroad. We hear of the fantastic work done by our emigrants in developing the GAA in Europe; the Middle East; Asia; Aus & NZ etc. They provide social and sporting outlets to both Irish and non-Irish groups who greatly appreciate them. While having mixed feelings about the Sky deal, it means I won’t have to send any more texts during an All Ireland to Mayo connections abroad who had no live TV access to the game. (meaning they’ll now have coverage – not that Mayo won’t be in the All Ireland)
While paying a lot of lip service to these groups, I think that they need more support from home. So while Singapore or Sydney joining the Munster championship might sound far fetched, I know where its coming from.
Or, should Mayo take the lead and have an international GAA “Coillte come home” event for the diaspora annually? Possible an adult Feile tournament or similar? It could replace the (apparently dying) composite rules International series.
Hi Mick , I am personally heavily involved in the European GAA , Europe is allied to the Leinster Council in the same way that NY and London are to Connacht. I dont think it would ever be strong enough to field a team in leinster but there is involvement in the leinster junior championship in both codes. The support from the GAA is pretty good but like at home it relies 99% on the volunteers and the clubs.
I see what WJmightdelete is saying but i think that the GAA in the USA should have trials and have the pick of the states playing and change the name to USA rather than just new york.
personally i am 100% in favour of londons participation and only slightly less so as regards NY, perhaps a pre-qualification route might be better for them.
Don’t mind that clown Jim White, he’s a ‘hun’ anyway.
He’s got previous. A few years ago he was caught on air mocking the famine, so I wouldn’t be surprised if he was deliberately mispronouncing those names.
Let’s jut hope he has nothing to do with the Sky coverage of our games (along with Paul Merson – imagine him trying to pronounce some of the names…)
Anne-Marie,are you the girl I met on the train from Dublin in February of this year? I remembered being amazed by your Knowledge of both the club and county scene in Mayo.
I could very well be alright, Brighton811 but that depends on the train 😉
Hope all is well with you & the clan since our chat – did you make it down at the weekend after all?