Saturday evening’s county final double-header at MacHale Park saw a mixture of familiarity and novelty as regards the victorious clubs. In the senior final, Ballintubber captured their second Moclair Cup title in a row and their fifth in what’s been a remarkable decade of success for them. The Neale, meanwhile, experienced the thrill of a first ever Intermediate championship success, which, along with possession of the Sweeney Cup, guarantees them senior football status for 2020.
In this episode of the Mayo News football podcast we take you right to heart of the action at MacHale Park. In the company of Mayo News trio Mike Finnerty, Ger Flanagan and Edwin McGreal, we hear how both finals were won and lost and learn about who stood out best when the pressure was on in both deciders.
Post-game reaction after the senior final comes from Ballintubber’s Damien Coleman and Ruaidhri O’Connor, while after the Intermediate decider we hear from The Neale’s match winner Seanie Cosgrove and manager Eoin Hughes.
This latest episode of the Mayo News football podcast is now online and is available to listen to on iTunes, SoundCloud, Spotify and Podomatic. You can also listen to it directly on the Mayo News website as well as on the Mayo GAA Blog.
Well done to both teams. Hard to win a county title. Congrats. County Board not represented at Special Congress – what’s going on??? I’m seriously astounded that the County Board haven’t publicly apologised to Tim O’Leary for what a senior official called him in writing. It’s disgraceful.
@Goagain…Ah sure the County Board might not think that anything in relation to ‘Tier 2’ has anything to do with Mayo?… And, when you come to think about it, What how did Mayo County Board Vote in relation to the Donegal motion to take Dublin’s (so called)Neutral Super Eight’s Game out of Croke Park?.. (something definitely of interest to us in Mayo) be..Iwonder could Galway vote on Mayo’s behalf in Special Congress, sure you don’t need to be in the room at all in Ireland to vote if Dail Eireann is anything to go by… Look if we in Ireland can perfect this New and Unique take on Demoracy, I can see Ireland actually winning the Eurovision in the very near future!
What gets ignored with Ballintubber is that they have a tiny pick and are immensely successful. Now what usually happens is someone counters with “Oh the village is small but they have Partry, this place, that place.” Stop it. Like the claim The Neale have a big area. Ballycroy have a fair bit of landmass and what does it matter without pick.
So, my original point, Ballintubber have a tiny pick and are now regenerating with Diarmuid O’Connor, Michael Plunkett, Bryan Walsh, Brian Murphy, Stephen OMalley, Conor Finnerty, Youngest Geraghty, Stephen OMalley, Ciaran Gavin, Young McDonnel.
Now, what I see as the difference. They will keep all of those, add more, and each player gets better every year. There’s clubs hoping Ballintubber slip based on underage. Ballintubber prove its the ages 16 to 22 improving each years crop of potential players that counts.Other clubs are fat with A grade underage competitiveness every year and still can’t get near Ballintubber.
Maybe there was no one available from the county board to attend the meeting in Cork. Why have an important meeting in a place like Cork in the first place. Why not have it centrally in the country and show a bit of respect for people from the more northern counties. These county board people are all volunteers and have a life outside of GAA administration. I know one member of the county board who has more important things than Mayo GAA going on in his life at the moment and I want to wish him the best of luck. Of course they get things wrong but as I saw in a sign going into one GAA pitch – before you criticise any of the volunteers have you volunteered yourself.
@South Mayo Exile.. I too wish all the members of the County Board well, with all the other and often more important things in life rather than County administration… But the ability to do the job, which comes with the ability to attend at Special Congress should be a prerequisite of taking on the job in the first place!…Mayo Senior Player’s, Football abilities are often praised and equally often harshly commented on…. Surely the same is true for the administration of the GAA in Mayo, but it is absolutely important to stick to the known facts…If thing’s could have or should have been done better, it’s not in any way unfair to say so…. Anyways? it’s Impossible to stop people talking, and a great many are certainly talking about the Mayo County Board at the moment!
JP – I think ballintubber have the 2nd or 3rd biggest area coverage in the County (Tourmakeady to Ballyglass, Ballinrobe to Ballyheane). It’s a huge area when look at the map..
@Thedarkyfinn. I actually spelled out this type of counter to your counter as best I could.
Quote from my post.
“Ballycroy have a fair bit of landmass and what does it matter without pick.”
Ballintubber have a very small pick and there are Jackie Heneghan quotes stating that and he is Mr. Ballintubber football.
Landmass is for feeding cattle and sheep. For football pick what is needed is residents.
Ballina, Knockmore, Belmullet, Crossmolina, Moy Davitts, Kiltimagh, Swinford, Charlestown, Ballaghadereen, Aghamore, Claremorris, Ballinrobe, Westport, Breaffy, Castlebar I make it at least 15 clubs have a bigger pick than Ballintubber.
Is Jackie Heneghan representative of CSO with those headcount figures JP?? Or are quotes attributed of the top the head stuff? 🙂
Undoubtedly Ballintubber not the biggest pick of bunch but they far from the smallest pick if look up the figures.
They are remarkable team with very good panel. When get solid core to a team as good as that one or two additions a year keep it strong and competitive. Where limited pick kicks in is after 8-10 years when the core group that’s heart of a squad moves on or ages. If those additions over the previous few years not as strong a dip generally sets in.
This can be seen as a cyclical type event. North Mayo teams in mid 90s early 00s being taken over by Castlebar Ballintubber in more recent times.
I fancied both Neale and Tubber start year and think both can do well in Comnacht. Ballintubber in particular as Corofin not looking quite as Sharp. Would still fancy them to win Galway.
Neale also have chance as up against Sligo champs first. With caveat there being if they have left Melletts pub since Saturdays final!!
First of all Ballintubber does not go from ballyheane to Ballinrobe..partry is tourmakeady…so do the mileage from that…north/south it’s narrow and east /west quite wide but very sparsely populated..plus most of ballyglass is mayo gaels area!plus clogher pitch is a stone’s throw from balla area……
Parish population is small..fact..
I could add a couple more clubs with bigger populations to that list too..Balla,Burrishoole,PKC,Ballyhaunis…possibly Hollymount/carramore…..
I know playing population ain’t everything but it has to be of some help…
Tomtumb,not at all getting at you because your point is fair bit just getting at ourselves me included,we use population figures for Dublins success
Some Breaffy/Mayo Player’s home address would be within the PKC catchment area but they went to Breaffy NS and hence played for Breaffy underage team’s with their school mate’s naturally enough, so that certainly reduced the available population for PKC…. Player’s? available population to club’s is something of a movable feast… The traditional way was depending on Church Parish line’s, broadly accepted and adhered to… But the time’s have changed… Whatever about Ballintubber sizeable catchment area for Player’s, it always struck me that Carnacon LGFA had an enormous catchment area, even though Carnacon’ is only a fraction of the size of Greater Ballintubber!…I suppose Player’s are and should be free to play for anyone they want provided the Club want’s them in the first place!
Leantimes if that last statement is taken to its fullest then that could be the end of club football as we know it. Players should play for their parish and no one else. This is the whole strength of the GAA concept. If you were in the Neale, Cong or Cross on Saturday and Sunday you would understand that it is the bond between your friends and neighbours that makes it so special. I am a huge Mayo supporter but even an AIF win would not replace the feeling I felt on Saturday night when my parish won the intermediate championship. Many tears were shed. Many cows were left unmilked and to quote Ahref many tourists were not fleeced. There is an unbreakable bond between the players and between the players and supporters. To quote Bernard Brogan this feeling is developed on the battlefield and includes players, coaches, lotto sellers, tea makers, ground keepers, officers, etc.
Mayo GAA Club Areas link
https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:MAYO_FOOTBALL_CLUB_GAA_MAP.png
@Shinabhuil-.. Depends on where you start, there are Civil Parish, Church Parish, there is the place where a child first attends National School, all might be different….Garunteed places in National School in your parish is not a certainty in Ireland anyone. If a child goes to a National School outside of their home Parish, you can’t really ditacte that the child can’t play Club Football with the majority of his/her school mate’s… I don’t think that what you say can be enforced or should be in my opinion.. There are other Sport’s that any Child can play who have no strict criteria as to exactly where you live…In any event, No Sport Club can have a prior claim on the loyalties of any individual, especially when they normally begin their sporting endeavors at the under 6 age group… Parish Club’s have to compete for the Affection and Loyalty of the youth of any area….At the end of day it’s like this, you could come from any particular Parish, affiliated to any particular GAA Club, …If the GAA Manager (Very often nowadays from outside of the Parish) or selector’s deem any local player who has been 100% Loyal all his life unworthy of inclusion in the first 15 or first 26 , your out… You only have one life, if another Neighboring Club deemed your talents worthy of inclusion and you wanted to play… What should you do?… Watch someone else play, or play yourself?… What’s really damaging to the Club Game, and Club Player’s is the fact that Club Championship game’s are put on hold from May to September every year in complete subservience to the County Game… Over 95% of GAA Player’s are Non County Player’s!
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I see a report on the RTE website tonight about concern over substantial unauthorised spending by a county GAA officer which I am pretty certain refers to Galway. Bad as we might be painted we are not, or hopefully we are not, that bad.
Regards club areas and playing eligibility it used to be the case that clubs were strictly aligned to parishes by GAA rule. And a parish was defined as “the area under the jurisdiction of a parish priest”. This was known as “the parish rule”. Some counties opted out of that rule and allowed players freedom to play where they wished. The rule has been abandoned without any fanfare, probably because in today’s Ireland so many have no affiliation to parishes. The rule could also be seen as sectarian as far as non Catholics are concerned.
Willie Joe, you have been very quiet on the whole Mayo Foundation stories in the press. Do you not think these things should be highlighted rather than brushed under the carpet? I know you are high profile appear very close to the top of Mayo football so maybe it is uncomfortable, but surely there needs to be a call for answers and not let everything be ignored. 6 weeks. No answers. Not very convinving from the County Board.
I haven’t said much on it, DSmithers, for a number of reasons. One is to do with time – I’m busy with work right now and that’s where my primary focus is. I don’t think there’s any danger of the issue not being highlighted, as it’s got wide coverage in national and local media and, for the same reason, I don’t see there’s any question of it being brushed under the carpet. Am I high profile? I’m not sure I am, to be honest. What I wouldn’t be comfortable about – and this is from bitter experience – is trying to moderate an increasingly intemperate debate here on the blog, conducted in part by people who may not have all the facts at their fingertips but are still willing to express their opinions in extreme terms. I know full well the commitment this would require of me, which leads me back to my first point about where my focus is right now. Finally, it’s worth pointing out that the answers the County Board need to provide – and I’d agree that answers are needed – are to questions posed by the clubs, as it’s to the clubs, and nobody else, the elected Officers are answerable.