Photo: Mayo Mick
I know that all you lot want at this stage is the team news but, in the few hours left before the starting fifteen for Sunday is announced, it’s as well – prompted as I was in the comments last night – to get this one off my chest first. This is my ongoing bugbear (one of them – I have many) about the GAA allowing unacceptable colour clashes in major matches, a practice that leaves colour-blind folk such as myself at a distinct disadvantage in trying to figure out what the hell is going on in the heat of battle out on the pitch.
If you look at the above picture and think that there’s no confusion at all, then that’s grand – good luck to you and enjoy the game. For us with this particular affliction, however, the two teams are virtually indistinguishable – the tops, down to the swooshing lines for gawdsakes, look almost the same (I know their one is all red and ours is a mix of red and green but I can’t bloody see this) and the shorts are identical. The socks are, granted, a bit different but most of the players will have their socks around their ankles so that won’t help matters either.
What I can’t understand is that a few years ago the GAA took additional powers upon themselves to compel counties to change colours when a clash occurred. Aside from anything else, this ended the ludicrous practice – an example of which was Kerry in one of the All-Irelands against us – where counties simply refused to change strips. By and large, this system works okay – there’s no confusion now, for example, when we play Kerry – but for some reason it’s never applied for games between us and Cork.
Why can’t they play in white, as they did in the All-Ireland against Down in 2010? Why can’t we play in white, like we did when we played Meath in the 1951 All-Ireland? Why can’t someone in authority in the GAA recognise that this is a serious problem for people (and there’s a good few of us out there) who can’t clearly see their greens from their reds from their browns etc. and do something about it? In this respect, anytime before 4pm on Sunday would be grand to get it sorted.
Right, where’s that team announcement?
I would be a massive advocate of an all white kit with green and red hooped socks akin to the 1951 Kit. Essentially what Robbie wears! Quality kit
I suffer the same affliction. Off topic another issue is the colour coded parking zones in Dublin city, like wtf??
Now that’s it off my chest.
There’s obviously a simple solution, provincial winner home team.., but we would have to get this through the ccccccccccc.
Is it Sunday already???
I hear you WJ, loud and clear. Just put them in blue and be done with it! 😉
I think it would benefit everyone if they took the time to read John Allens excellent piece in the sports section of todays Irish Times. Coming from a man who knows exactly what he is talking about. A lesson for us all, particular those of the more critical and negative disposition.
The tension waiting on the team is building. Waiting here in a ward in UC Hospital Galway with my Mayo flag draped over my bed; some how this has annoyed a few nurses !!!!
Same team for cork ……1.) Robert Hennelly – Breaffy
2.) Chris Barrett – Belmullet
3.) Ger Cafferkey – Ballina Stephenites
4.) Keith Higgins – Ballyhaunis
5.) Lee Keegan – Westport
6.) Colm Boyle – Davitts
7.) Donal Vaughan – Ballinrobe
8.) Barry Moran – Castlebar Mitchels
9.) Seamus O’Shea – Breaffy
10.) Kevin McLoughlin – Knockmore
11.) Aidan O’Shea – Breaffy
12.) Jason Doherty – Burrishoole
13.) Cillian O’Connor – Ballintubber
14.) Andy Moran – Ballaghaderreen (Capt.)
15.) Alan Dillon – Ballintubber
[Deleted].
Same team lads. Dillon and Moran will have to turn in big performances after all the clamour for them to be dropped, and I’m confident they will.
I see the same mayo team named for Sunday will be interesting to see how our full forward line works against the blanket defence
In fairness tom you are not present at training (I assume) so not sure if you can justify saying that
Oh wow. This is very surprising.
Cheers for the heads up pebblesmeller! I think a small bit luck is a massive factor in how matches can turn out these days. A bounce of a ball, a missed hand pass can turn a game around in as quick as 30 seconds. Look at the start of the second half of this years connacht final. Barry won the throw in and gave a poor hand pass that didn’t reach it’s intended destination. Shane Walsh saw his opportunity and were it not for the woodwork we could have been in serious bother.
In saying that, I think what’s more important is how players react to the luck they are receiving. Be it rotten or good. Galway had great chances to get back into the game at the start of the second half but our lads weathered the storm very well and showed their maturity as a team. We didn’t panic and got ourselves back into our controlled position to win the match comfortably.
That’s what impresses me most about this Mayo team. They have a great attitude. The heads never drop.Just read the piece in the independent today about Lee Keegan and you’ll know what I mean!
In the 2012 and 2013 finals we had some very bad luck in regards to goals that we conceded, but our lads never stopped fighting until the final whistle and for that no matter how many times I hear “Mayo chokers” or “Bottlers” I’ll always be a proud Mayo supporter. Our year will come. Is it Sunday yet??
Tom says:
August 1, 2014 at 11:57 am
“Very disappointed with named team, i think loyalty to certain players seems to be a bigger factor then match and training performances”
SPECULATION
Tom – that’s a disgraceful comment to make about a Mayo team that has just won its fourth Connacht title in a row. If you want to post crap like that, please go somewhere else and do it. This is a site for supporters.
Sadly WJ, you hit on the answer there when you mentioned Kerry refusing to change – ‘giving in’ and changing from your normal colours would be seen by some counties as a sign of weakness.
In the war for the psychological upper hand – especially in All-Ireland finals – nothing can be conceded, not even if basic common sense would be served by a bit of compromise.
Think both ourselves and Cork are playing mind games. I don’t expect either team to start as named on Sunday. Why forearm the opposition ? Will see real teams at 4 on Sunday me thinks.
Moran and dillion, haven’t become bad players overnight. We don’t see training, but if I was to guess, they must be showing well. Remember, class is permanent. The only thing these guys have lacked over the last 12 months is fitness & sharpness. Game time will bring this.
For the first time in a number of years they have a few months training under their belts, they got their cameo against ros and started against galway. I think there is a great chance one or both of them will play very well on sunday.
Horan obviously wants a number of fit forwards, which he can rotate. Maybe he is already happy with freeman, Sweeney et al or maybe they are not playing well. The point is we don’t know.
In horan we must trust.
I’d agree All the Way. Fully expecting a change or two at 4pm Sunday.
Loyalty, damn loyalty – it will damn any chance we have of winning Sam this year!
I don’t know what you said Tom, but it’s probably not far off what I’d like to say!
We might get by Cork with a loyal band but Kerry would beat us before Dublin get a chance to humiliate us!
Clasping at a short straw – is there any chance we will actually see a couple of other faces start up front and this is just to help Cork with their game plan?
Very sad that opportunity to achieve just rewards for the players and fans is fast disappearing down the tunnel.
Feel for Tom Cunniffe, Jason Gibbons, Richie Feeney, Alan Freezer and Mikey Sweeney, all of whom I hope will get some chance to do their best on Sunday.
Hooonnnn Mayo !! ( ’til the day I die regardless!)
All – I’m getting a bit hacked off with the tone of some comments on the issue of team selection, in particular the issue of loyalty and to what extent this has been a factor in the team selected. The bottom line is that nobody can say for sure that this is the case and it’s a slur on James and his selectors, as well as the players themselves, to claim that it is. Also, we don’t even know if the team named today will start on Sunday, which may well mean that claims being made now about why certain players have been picked and others haven’t are even more meaningless. So, can everyone back off on this point? Otherwise I’ll have to pick up the stick again.
It’s not the team Willie Joe. There are 2 or 3 well known changes coming
I’m colour blind too and will serious trouble on Sunday.The pic above is a perfect example,impossible for me to tell the difference.
I can’t imagine been color blind, mush be shockin.
If I recall as a young buck, we played Kerry in the AI semi in 81 and we played in white, they in blue. Mind you, I think they did it that time because most ppl, us included, had black and white tv’s. Anyway, we were we’ll bet that same day, actually didnt even score in second half.