142 thoughts on “Dublin 1-17 Mayo 1-16: heartbreak ending yet again”

1. This one hurts the most.

2. Sport is so horribly cruel!!!

3. Absolutely heartbreaking. Just got no slices of luck to get them over the line. Missed free in the first half, hits the post in injury time…. They were brilliant, absolutely brilliant and just couldn’t get over the line. Proud of them, their phenomenal support, they gave it everything but it’s so hard to take.

4. we will be back

5. Sweet mother of fuck

6. cillian almost scores in front of the hill in injury time but it hits the post and bounces straight to a man in blue.
   the dubs go up the other end and win it.

   fine margins indeed against apparently the best gaa team that ever walked the planet.

   donie will be kicking himself. no need to get involved as small was gone. that was the big turning point.

   we died with our boots on. nothing left out there which was all we could have asked for.

   we’ll be back for more next year no doubt about that.

7. I here your hurt WJ and as you say these lads don’t deserve this They need us supporters now more than ever.cant imagine how they feel. Still very proud Mayo man

8. Masters of our own destiny – tried as best we could and fair play to our lads for that, but we just don’t have the quality finishers; poor management calls at end; and stupid action by Vaughan / all combined to cost us our win.

9. The sight of Lee at full time was heart breaking. They gave it everything they had and a bit of luck our way and it’s ours. Congratulations to Dublin, heartbreak for us. I hope to Christ these lads get what they deserve because they truly are a golden generation

10. Really feel for this lads, they gave it their all. However bad we feel, I can’t begin to imagine how they must be feeling. Really sad right now. Roll on Feb though?Immensely proud of them

11. First final I watched was 96 .First time I have shed tears after a final since.My heart goes out to them.Heros Heros Heros!!!

12. A 1 pt defeat is the worst..now 2 years in a row..How do we manage to lose..Vaughan will be kicking himself tonight..

13. There is little that should be said this evening by way of analysis. That can wait for the cold light of day and as the days draw short into the winter we can reflect on the championship campaign that was 2017.
    I want to thank Stephen Rochford, the entire Mayo football team and staff for the wonderful Summer journey that they have brought us. I would also like to like to thank Willie Joe and the site here for keeping the exploits of the team front and centre.

    Maigheo Abú

14. That’s the worst
    I’m numb
    3 in a row for Dublin Joe
    He really is their good luck charm
    Sick

15. Commiserations to Mayo. I think it’s time to leave football for a lot of these players. It’s just not worth it. Go and live your lives and let the gaa continue to destroy the game by sponsoring a monster.

    Another hollow victory.

16. This ones hurts more than any of the others It really was there for the winning and I thought we had it when we went two up. Players gave it their absolute all and are mighty warriors fully deserving of our support and respect. Can we come again I really don’t know. I hope Stephen stays and there are no retirements but also some fresh blood will be needed but that is for another day. Dublin with all their resources will only get stronger and Kerry will be back as no other county will maximise the wonderful under age talent coming through down there .

17. Hard luck all, I won’t pretend to be particularly fond of you as I find both cillian and diarmuid kind of lothesome, and the adulation the AOS gets is undeserved……..but…… To lose again by 1 single point after the journey ye have had this year is honestly just not fair. Ye have some great players and from a dub , on his performance today Moran probably deserves POTY. Alot of the social media shite brings out the worst of both sides. But the Mayo supporters I had the pleasure of talking to today on the Hill showed the true side of your great counties supporters. I hope ye come back. Ye are the only team to push us these last few years. Please don’t go the route of blaming Joe/population/Imelda may. Its too easy. Knuckle down and come back at us again next year. Safe home all.

18. Seemed to me a yellow would have been sufficient for Vaughan. The last free for Connolly to win it was a bit soft too I thought, given the context of the game, and the way mcquillan was letting that kind of thing flow all the way through the game. It’s heartbreaking. Some of the late substitutes were baffling. If Andy can play for 67 mins, surely to fuck he’s good for 70? Likewise Doherty. Lost cutting edge totally up front when they were gone.

19. I cried at the end of the game and tried to explain to my children
    how it feels to be so passionate and proud of a team. The
    Mayo team are my family. My family look at me like I am from mars…..
    we live in Offaly..and they have had no team to follow.

    Thank you to everyone on this site for the comradeship and different opinions
    they shared with me throughout the season…But most important, Thank You to Mayo
    Team. You are just brilliant. There is nothing more to prove We just need the gods on our side.

20. “We may get knocked down
    But when we do
    We get up again
    And when the waves settle
    And the grass turns green once more…

    We’ll see you again.”

    Thank you, once again, to a wonderful team for a phenomenal season.

21. Very, very hard to take that as we actually played so well.
    Proud of Stephan and all of this team . They really are a credit to the county and themselves. They could not have given any more in terms of effort. Just immense.
    McQuillan cost us – no question. The free just before half time. when the 2 Dub players ran in to each other. That one was just bizarre. At least the ‘penalty that wasn’t’ was debatable. 10 steps for the Dub goal also.
    Congrats to Dublin – a great team no question.
    This one will take a while to get over though.

22. Folks forget about decisions they gave it all and came up short proud as fuck nothing but love for them…while WE lick our wounds spare a thought for them must be savage please everyone nkeep it country on the blog tonight

23. Does anyone know the travel plans for the Mayo team tomorrow.
    Are they traveling by bus or train. I would like to be on route for some
    part of the journey to say “Thank you”.

24. Fuck

25. Gutted like everyone else. Can’t imagine the torture of the squad and all associated with it. As previous poster said, it’s probably too early for any deep analysis right now. Congrats to Dublin.

26. Such a pity. Today wasn’t just a defeat for us but for the thousands of other kids and supporters in other so called lesser counties who would have got huge encouragement from seeing a superpower toppled. Dynasties of this kind not good for the game nationally.

27. The loss hasn’t sunk in with me yet, my prediction was correct, we needed to be well ahead at half time 3 points or more.
    The following mistakes cost us again,
    1, Cillian O Connors late free, a bad miss, he had a terrible 1st half.
    2, Clarkes kickout in injury time, a 50/50 kick out to midfield, maybe should have gone short.
    I still thought Mayo would win or even maybe a get a draw at 70 minutes.
    Overall the guys gave a brilliant performance. After today I believe Mayo won’t win the All Ireland in my life time, 47 years old now, how cruel sport is to Mayo.

28. Here in London tremendously proud of those Mayo lads. Roll on 2018 and hopefully a more seasoned Conor Loftus will give us the scores to get over the line. Dublin were .0002% better than us today. Connolly’s weaving movement and great point sums up the marginal difference in forward class in the end. I also feel sorry for Donie, such an oustanding guy and just got a rush of blood to the head. Listening to Neil Young here now as consolation, he could write a song about these Mayo heroes!

29. We cannot win when we don’t score more than the opponents.
    Head down and run TOWARDS the goal now and then, not always of course. A la Boyle. Give them another approach to worry about.
    And have a go.
    Decisions on the line at the end… panicky. See the Dubs…cool heads.
    But well done to all. What happened, happened. Noone has any blame to take. Everyone did what they could for Mayo. We’ll be back. What a team. By miles our best ever.

30. My sweet Lord

31. Chris Barrett all day long. MOTM

32. So much for this magnificent unbeatable Dublin team. Yes, they won but we had the beating of them, but like so many times before lacked that bit of composure and luck at the death. Cillian’s late free coming off the post and no Mayo player to challenge for it and Clark’s kick out falling into the wrong hands to set up Connolly’s very soft free, all small margins but in a close game these little things matter. Thought Aidan could have been thrown into the full forward position near the end to give us an option of the high ball, but that’s all if’s, but’s and maybe’s. One can only imagine how awful those players must be feeling right now, after that long run through the qualifiers and it came down to the width of a post. Dinner tonight won’t taste very sweet I’d imagine, nor neither will the homecoming tomorrow. And that’s not saying anything about the magnificent supporters who were there to the end. And they tell you it’s only a game – well feck it anyway.

33. Willie Joe it was a final to remember, yet again just fell short on the wrong side of it, f**k it anyways. Anyway they were playing brilliantly till the last 6 or 7 minutes, they panicked a little, but they left everything on the Pitch, safe home to all.

34. Sport like life is a bitch….heartbroken

35. Hard one to take but we will. Proud to be a mayo man. Chris Barrett, Boyle Higgins Moran and the co put their hearts into it never have they played better. I can’t say the same for our sideline. I may need sometime to look back. Taking Boyle and Andy off when others where faltering. Putting Drake on for Doherty when we want to win a game not lose one. Again no Nally. Cafferkey comes on in a wide open game that’s made for his pace. Sentiment prevails again with bench selections leaves us with little options when the game is in the melting pot.
    Feeling for Vaughan right now as I would say he is feeling it right now. We will be back and hopefully inject a couple of new players into the group to keep things ticking over. For the older warriors They have more miles to go before they sleep. We haven’t seen the last of them as Andy proved this year

36. Can we leave the Rochford bashing for a day please .

37. I feel the same Mayo88 but who would have thought that we would be back here this time last year? It feels so raw now but 12 months is a long time in Gaelic football. So long as Gaelic football is played in this county we will always be there with a shout. Luck and timing has deserted us again to only lose by a point to a truly great Dublin team. We need to keep our heads up high.

38. Hard luck to Mayo again today ,of course we got no luck again.we were lucky to see one of the the best teams of all time play and that is our great MAYO TEAM. as for the dubs the hill was silent until they knew they had won and thousands of (dub fans) left before the team got the cup . No doubt our MAYO Team and supporters will be back again .

39. What a day, what a game, what a summer and what a team. Mayo forever.

40. Heartbroken. Words cannot describe it.
    Thank you to the players and management for a wonderful season. I will be back supporting you again in January for the FBD.
    Congrats to Cillian – I think he became the championships’ highest scorer in one season, more than Stafford from Meath in 1991.

41. Utter hearttbreak but thsks for another one hell of a year full of all the emotions under the sun. We will be back.

42. Km79 I couldn’t agree more. Jesus Christ how much more do we need from Rochford – there’s now literally no single manager and team that have taken us closer to glory. Let’s show how much it means to us via support and leave off on the recriminations

43. Mayomessi..criticising Rochford and Co tonight is ill timed to say the least..

44. A person couldn’t be prouder of these players and management.left every ounce on field.

45. Really think we should be proud.Yea its hard but its sport not our entire lives.
    Think the subs cost us.Has Drake ever scored? He is in my view a back.Maybe Nally was a better option.
    Also think we needed to put Aidan in close to goal near the end…game of inches.
    Think Rochford generally did smashing job but the subs bench needed work.Can we give lads league exposure please.Over 35 togged today.
    Thanks for blog btw

46. Gutted. A young lad in front of me turned around with 5 mins gone in injury time…tears rolling down his cheeks. Disappointment, disbelief, pain but so much Pride and Hope. The journey continues. We will rise again.

47. This squad and management team need our support now, more than ever. It can’t be just a slogan, we MUST be in the together.

48. It’s tough, but we have it easy.
    All of the guys, team and management did a lot right than wrong. They left it all out there. Imperfect but mighty.
    I hope none of the squad retire rashly, if they want to, well and good, they owe me nothing. But make a cold decision after a club recharge and whatever rest they need

    Thank you all

49. Lot more right than wrong

50. No manager bashing or player bashing tonigh keyboard warriors.
    Them men meed no criticism from flutes who never kicked a ball.
    Rochford and co have got us to two finals losing by 1 bloody point each time.
    Just think about that.
    Mayo abu

51. This team are magnificent – nothing less. Based on that performance today I feel tremendously proud of them. Where else in the country would a performance like this have come from to put it up to Dublin? Where? And this was also, I feel, a winning performance. I feel that when things settle we can see that this was in that rank – we were high up the line, practically there, not down towards the bottom.

    And ye go on talking about Dublin’s magnificence and its unbeatability – we have taken them to within a point two years in a row, not great proof of a status which is supposed to be so much above all others.

    Thank you to Stephen Rochford and every single one of those boys and their families and to the backroom team for a year and a performance that gives us unbelievable pride. I hope ye allow yerselves time to recover. Maigh Eo go deo.

52. Mayo won’t like to hear this, but Dublin were there for the taking today… Donie’s sending off was stupid to say the least.. 14v14 was always going to be advantage Dublin. Attitude on throw in for 2nd half was telling – a clear contest between McCarthy and Aidan – a chance to put McCarthy back on his arse, but Aido balked… Small margins

53. Wonderful Mayo team.
    Where did it go wrong?
    Two missed frees by Cillian and another bad miss from close in.
    A bad ref call just before half time.
    Donie should only have got a yellow but you have to say he was foolish to give the ref the opportunity to level things up with a red card.
    Can we come back?
    I believe we have at least another year but the players need to be managed. Take the league easy and wind up the championship as we did this year.

54. Another tough one but nothing to be gained by feeling sorry for ourselves.To win one we have to learn some lessons from today; you need a top notch free taker, it takes a few years to have the physicality to compete at this level look how paul mannion has morphed physically since his first year on their team.our younger players need that to win 50/50 balls at this level.to beat dublin you have to run straight at them for 75 mins and we have the players to do that .finally we are good enough to win an all ireland so i hope all the lads are back next year. I’m sure management will watch the tape and we will be better with lessons learned

55. What a great bunch of Mayo men. I’m not proud that they lost. I am proud that they went down with their boots on that they never stopped trying. I am a hard judge. I can smell bullshit before a bull ates grass. These lads are as honest and true and will never lay down for fucking nobody. They are hurting now and need us more than ever. They will be back. We will be back. We have the strenght to go once more and there is alot to be said for that. “Don’t be sad Joe, Don’t give up hope, They will be back” I didn’t say those words. I would not have that kind of courage or dignity within. My heart is broke black for all those men on that field. Fair play to Dublin they deserve their victory. They are a brilliant team and despite our best efforts they still found a way. Mayo will find there way. We will get there of that much I am certain. I have to shut down for now.I just can’t take anymore for now. I’m so proud to be a Mayo man. Fuck it. Thanks WJ for this wonderful place. It’s a safe place to be.

56. Players still devastated in Citywedt..not good for anyone having that banquet especially the lads

57. Man of Aran…Would you ever get a fucking grip….balked me hole

58. I don’t know how people can criticise Rochford. He got it as right as he could, had them well prepared. The bottom line is that we don’t have the squad depth that Dublin have. Their subs made a huge difference when they came on. They lost a former footballer of the year and you wouldn’t have even known he was gone. We don’t have that luxury and it shows when it comes to the home straight. We don’t have those subs that can inject pace and pop a few points at the death.

    A Mayo win would have been great for football, but there isn’t anyone that can stop Dublin at the moment, in my opinion. No sign of the conveyor belt coming to an end and no sign of other counties being able to compete with their depth.

59. I posted a comment after the Kerry v mayo replay after cilloan got the black card just how well Jason Doherty took the frees , could be the difference between winning and losing the all Ireland we’ll it was today, don’t mind donie black card,cilloan wont give up the frees, what does drake bring to the party,in a tight game 1 point could win and lose a game, where is Shane nally today.

60. Such hard luck not to taste victory when it was in our grasp. So so disappointed. But what a magnificent effort by all. I wore my green & red today with pride. Well done team & management.

61. Gutted for the lads, especially Leeroy, who looked distraught at the final whistle. Congrats to Dublin, it takes a special team to win three in a row.

    This is another All-Ireland title that could have been won, ultimately. A couple of bad misses from frees and Doc’s goal chance were 1-2 that we needed if we were going to win the game.

    Funnily, some of the points we landed in the first half were fantastic scores from acute angles, but we missed easier opportunities from in front of the posts. Until we correct this tendency, we will never again win an All-Ireland at senior level.

    We need to rally around the lads now and give them our support.

62. I mentioned on here back in may that Cillians kicking was poor and got hammered for it . Willie joe you even posted me a graph and battered me with statistics. I replied to you that stats mean nothing. Kicking under pressure won the game and cost us today

63. – Tiny tiny margins with Mannion doing damage in the second half and Kevin Mc made a big impact when he came on.
    – This Mayo team will not be defined by a number or a year. They are simply peerless when it comes to bravery, resilience and effort. Thank you guys.
    – SR and mgmt team got it 99.9% right. Andy I believe was asking to be taken off because of a leg issue. Thank you mgmt.
    – Fantastic support for Mayo who also give it everything.
    – I was talking to a Man from Shrule who is also a season ticket holder. He told me he was two days old when Mayo last won and he is retiring on Friday and he said he does not think he will ever see them win now. I told him to keep going because we WILL win Sam at some stage.
    – Credit to the Dublin supporters who were very considerate in victory. Appreciated it.

64. Congratulations to Dublin. I feel so bad for the players they gave all died on their feet. Legends and heroes they are . The image of keith Higgins lying on the ground in cramp but still receiving and laying of a pass sums it up in so many ways. In the end a few bad decisions at crucial times cost us. But overall for me the introduction of diarmuid connolly was tbe match winning move for Dublin. Hope everybody gets home safe tonight. Its very hard to think about picking it up again. God bless all…

65. to be fair rock missed a few today. rock and o’connor both ended up with 0-7

    cillian owes us nothing.

    i thought for all the word that one was over at the end. the width of a post.

    we’ll be back for more.

66. i have just watched the replay back and the free that dublin joe gave in the first half when andrews crashed into kilkenny beggars belief.

    thought leroys penalty shout with 10 mins to go was 50/50. it was outside the box when the initial contact was made so i understand the decision to give the free not a penalty. some of the commentators were saying penalty and it is interesting to read neutral views elsewhere.

    the finest of fine margins against the best team ever apparently.

    if we had 15 players on the pitch at the end i think we would have got over the line.

67. Hard to take. I know not the most important thing in The world but my heart broken. We won’t go away. Can’t desert this team.

    Dublin are the greatest team ever now I suppose but are we the second best because we lost to them in three all Ireland’s by a point? No. They found a way to win with the help of a few doses of luck and over the top let it flow refereeing. Congrats to them but we will be there next year. I hope Vinnie Murphy gives up bullshit as well as the fags. Love losing culture or whatever the fuck shit talk he said, my arse and yes I am proud of them

    Chris Barrett Man of the match

    Andy Moran player of the year.

    All stars

    Andy
    Aido
    Chris
    Tom
    Jason

    Next up

    FBD fixtures
    League fixtures
    Championship draw

    We go again in January

    Up Mayo!

68. What can I say. I have been a fan of this site for many a year – some would say addict. But yet to comment.In the run games I check it every few hours – looking for my next fix.
    Now I have confession – I am Dublin born and bred – but my blood is Mayo. One of my earliest memories is scramming for Mayo in the canal end in 1989.
    Mayo are my team – they are in my blood.
    I have followed then around the country – cheering them on for as long as I can remeber!
    This year – I have avoided the build up for the final – I hadn’t really let it consume me like usually do. But the parts I did read – what was most upsetting was the lack of acklodgement these lads got in the build up – we are the only team to test Dublin over the last few years.
    I type this as I sit crying my eyes out -I can’t even imagine how the players feel.
    But we are Mayo – we will dust outselves down and rise again because that is who we are.
    We will be back again – yeahwe lost today – but look at the adventures and memories we have had this year alone -other counties would give a right arm for that!
    We are Mayo! We will be back

69. Well done Dublin.
    My thoughts right now at nearly ten o’clock on the evening of the all Ireland final loss are with the players, staff and all their families and lived one’s. Like any loss it’s felt deepest nearest. It’ll last longer with these people than any of the rest of us and we are all hugely disappointed I’m sure. It’s tough. But these fellas will be back and so will we. Hats off to these lads….I’d have quit years ago.

70. Proud.

    Heroes one and all.

    Andy was having treatment on his leg twice during the warm-up. If he had an injury, given the way he played, he is a legend.

    Chris Barrett wrote the book today on how to tackle. Masterful performance.

    Someday soon the ball will bounce for us.

71. Devastated. Heartbroken. No words.

72. Willie Joe,

    You are either out of your mind with grief, or smoking something very strong if you think we were given a fair shake today.

73. Magnificent band of management, team and supporters….banjaxed together, proud together, back again next year together….we are as great a team as Dublin..if they are a great team…we are head and shoulders above the also rans from the other traditional football counties and without us challenging the Dubs would have turned SAM Blue without a fight through this era and beyond. We are the only obstacle to a dystopian Blue forever era ( at least till the transitioning Kingdom get those minors through)….as to Donie and the bloodrush …without that sense of camararderie, which broke his composure, how could that squad of players get up from the canvas so often over these seven years….all 130,000 in the county, all of the inner immigres and all the thousands of the Mayo tribe across the World are honoured and privileged to be represented by such a band of heroes

74. SO proud of Management team and players today. It was always going to be a big ask. Tactically we got it spot on. Some bad misses cost us. But we had them on the ropes again. I know it hurts now, but I firmly believe there is an All Ireland in this team. So now more than ever we need to get behind the team and list them abd hopefully no one will retire. Management must stay to…
    All to play for next year with the super 8s. Just another chapter in the journey

75. Well done to all hopefully some of the posters who criticize players and management will get the chance to put things right, but as of now my thoughts are with team and management, who have over two years failed by a single score twice in a row

76. I’m neither, Digits! I honestly thought we did reasonably okay in that department today.

77. Mayo should have been ALL IRELAND CHAMPIONS 2016, Denis Bastick picked the ball OFF the ground in the last action of the first final, it SHOULD have been a free straight in front of the posts for Cillian O Connor from 20 yards to win the ALL IRELAND 2016

78. Congrats to Dublin. I’m gutted but my heart is with the men who fought so bravely today. I cannot believe we didn’t win. It was ours for the taking. Thank you to the team, squad to Stephen and everyone else involved with this group. You really make my heart burst with pride…and sadly tonight with pain! Maigheo go deo. We will be back.

79. I don’t know what to say but I’m so so fucking proud of our team. I’m gutted but can’t even get how they must feel. We made mistakes so did Dublin we missed chances so did Dublin. The ref was a bollix full stop but that’s the standard of referee in gaa. This team needs to stick with it listen to no one out side county and win it for themselves. They young enough most of them and good enough. Come on mayo. What ever the fuck happens we mayo forever and don’t turn on our own.

80. Gutted. Am I the only one who thinks cluxton fouled Jason Dogherty after his save ? He seemed to trample/pull him back ?
    Also think Keegan could have got penalty and Vaughans card was harsh enough.

81. Like everyone else , gutted. I don’t know what to think, I want to blame people but that wouldn’t be fair. I want to blame to ref but I felt honestly he did okay. When will this heartbreak end, Thanks WJ for this site and coverage all year, the blog post, the podcasts, brilliant coverage. we will be back, I hope . best wishes

82. Fair play lads, a galway fan here who after our own win was hoping San would come west. Not to be but Mayo are not an old team, should easily be winning Connacht titles and will be back in croker next summer, small consolation I know. I don’t think any Mayo player can be accused of letting the jersey down, they gave it absolutely everything. I thought Chris Barrett was man of the match, bar one second half mistake an absolutely flawless display of defending. I thought the 15 minutes prior to half time was the best display of football by Mayo all year, this is also where they lost the game as they could and should after this period been 4/5 points up and not 1. At 62 I wasn’t confident even when ye were 2 up as they were getting lots of room up front which is only natural given the pace of the game. These lads have made mayo fans lives better, days out, great victories, representing you, your parish on a national stage, remember that tonight.

83. The Mayo team transcends the all Ireland championship, still they will come back to win it. I will continue to support them wholeheartedly and my family of Galway people are with me. The young players will coalesce with the experienced ones who have shown them courage, skill and team work and dedication.
    To the Dub whose utterly sincere condescension has no place here nor his personal comments on a few Mayo players,the word is spelt loathsome …..enough said.
    Celebrate and support your fantastic team, many other join you Mayo.

84. Yes it was margins, COC hit the post? Lee Keegan def penalty? Donal Vaughn silly getting involved in COLM BOYLE Incident? David’s last two kickouts were brutal? All these if’s, but’s & maybe’s, but it makes no difference now, great chance lost. All the same MAYO were brilliant.

85. Only want to say ..SO PROUD OF OUR BUCKS !! Don’t give a fuck about my disappointment …feel so sorry for the lads ..

86. So proud of this team and management. Stephen Rochford and his team were wonderful today and have been all year. Mayo now playing the best football I have ever seen. Cannot wait for January 2018.

87. The work goes on, the cause endures, the hope still lives and the dreams shall never die.

    Edward Kennedy

88. FAIR PLAY TO MAYO,THEY KEEP GIVING US GREAT GAMES AND ARE A FANTASTIC TEAM. ITS JUST UNFORTUNATE FOR THEM THAT THIS DUBLIN TEAM ARRIVED ON THE SCENE,OTHERWISE THEY WOULD HAVE THEIR AL-IRELANDS WON ALREADY….. DUB IN MAYO

89. Really disappointed one of greatest defensive Displays by a player on All-Ireland Final day,didn’t get recognition it deserved .The fact Aiden and McCarthy (marking each other)were both in contention Should have meant Chris Barrett was the Only choice for Man of Match .

90. OK ,LISTEN PLEASE !!!!! Getting late now and all tired and emotional …PLEASE leave the player and management comments till tomorrow …we owe them that respect !!

91. Absolutely gutted. My God did they give it everything they had. Thanks to management and team for giving us the summer of our lives. How must our players be feeling tonight. We supporters are devastated, but they must be totally gutted. Glad to see so many positive comments here but of course the odd few as usual will have a go at manager. Our team was brilliantly prepared today and played extremely well. We know our subs bench doesnt match that of the Dubs. Well done Dublin. 3 in a row is some going. Hope all our lads stick at it and we have no retirements from management or team. Some men.

92. Team and management gave us a great year. Like everyone else I’m disappointed. Could go into turning points and mistakes but in truth both teams made them in such a pressure cooker, Dublin maybe just made one less. Almost nothing between the teams. Sorry for the players who gave their all but witnessed some of the harsher things in life on the walk from the stadium to town. Sport by comparison is a source of escapism. It’s harsh when you put so much of yourself into achieving a dream but I hope the players do recover. They’re hurting now and probably will for a while but it’s like life, ups and downs. When they look back at what they’ve achieved there’s plenty to be proud of.

93. I am very proud of our lads and totally sickened that they have to suffer yet again. The sight of Lee doubled over on the pitch with disappointment was more than I could take.
    Please, everyone go easy on the players and on Stephen Rochford in the coming days. Our support today during the game was quite incredible. Please keep it up for another while to help get them over the hurt and pain and maybe give them the courage to carry on trying.

94. Don’t know why there is anyone making comments about players or managment.

    Mayo were brilliant today and so were the managment.

    For this team to play like they did today and all the heartache they have endured over the past several years, to me it’s every bit as big an achievement as what Dublin achieved today.

    Our counties population against the population of Dublin, they have over 10 times what we have.

    I know everyone is gutted we lost but I couldn’t be any prouder of the whole lot of them than if they had won today.
    They gave everything and fair play to them. They were warriors going up to play this final and they are warriors coming home from it.

95. A MASSIVE THANK YOU to each and every player, the manager and the whole team behind this amazing team who represent everything that is great about our county. Long after the regrets and hard luck of today has passed, I think the two most important things that our players need to be aware of and reflect upon are – Firstly the tremendous unity of purpose they have created and the pride and honour which they bring to a counties people from so many corners of the world. And secondly the amazing legacy which they bring to our future generations – I for one had to comfort one of my children who was at the game with me today crying herself to sleep tonight – but in no time at all we make our pact that we will go again and give it everything we have in support of the lads next year, we will get to the league games, travel away and enjoy our weekends to the fullest and as always feel that when we are represented by lads of the quality that we have who will give it their all, we will not hesitate but to gladly and proudly do the same.

96. I am proud of this team. I am proud of the mature comments on this blog. We are winners when it comes to effort. We are winners when it comes to getting up when your knocked down. We are winners when it comes to being appreciative of great men fighting the odds. We are winners when it comes to supporting the teams. Show me winners. The Mayo team are winners. The Mayo supporters are winners. Hold your head high. Be proud. Be brave. Dust ourselves off and get up and go again. This is how you know true heroes.

97. A Cavan man said today “Joe loves Dublin and is treated like royalty when he comes to Dublin”. If we got a fair crack of the whip off Dublin Joe today then I must have been watching a different match. The Mayo players/management are a credit once again. What a fantastic honour it is to follow this team. Chris Barrett among others was a lion today.

98. Fantastic post Willie Joe . Spot on .
    I’ve read through a few post after and of them at least three have blamed ‘Dublin Joe ‘ .
    As WIllie Joe pointed out , mayo definitely got ‘a fair shake ‘ from the ref !
    Dublin tram is one of the best of all time . Without trying to sound condescending Mayo are undoubtabley the second best team of this decade .

99. WHY all this heartbreak and a tale of woe!!

    Naturally we are all proud! Immensely proud.!

    But Mayo, the best team – didn’t finish the job off; again.

    Nothing to do with referee. Mayo simply didn’t cross the line; again.

    Why? Lack of composure in final minutes?

    Management and players: Learn and come again and leave a legacy >>>

100. What a massive effort, some bunch of men. Desperately disappointed now but very proud too.

101. Imagine….
     It’s bad enough the sick feeling one gets when the final whistle sounds and you’ve lost another All Ireland, but it’s what follows that is the real killer. Imagine the celebrations that would have taken place in the stadium had we won. Imagine the great feeling supporters would have as they made their way home with horns blazing and flags flying from every car, bus, and train. Imagine the homecoming the team would receive in MacHale Park with supporters hanging out of the rafters. Imagine the joy it would bring to Mayo people, young and old as Sam made its way around the County to every Town, village, and Parish over the next year. Imagine how we would read every bit of newspaper coverage and watch all the highlights on the TV and indeed many times over the long winter nights. And just imagine how at last we could walk the walk with our heads held high after slaying the mighty Dubs. And just imagine how the players, who have given so much to the cause over the years would feel as they walked down the street with an All Ireland Medal in their pocket.
     Yes, indeed we can only Imagine………..

102. I think the ref was fair overall. Its an impossible job.

     Last year i felt it was an end of an era but this year i don’t. I think the journey just continues. More memorables trips around the country next year , more days out in croke park. The age profile is still good in the squad. Blood full on in the league. Who cares if we get relegated.

     The players. There are no words. Ye are simply heroes to a man. The dubs crush everyone that stands in their way now .. but not Mayo .. width of a post..
     Thank you for giving us memories for life .. what can i say i love yez!!

     Chris barrrett what a fucking performance!!

     The supporters .. we go again next year .. just more of us ..

     Willie Joe .. your blog is a big part of this journey .. thank you

     Back to the club championship .. next year wont be long coming around ..

103. As regards the ref, some not so sporting Dubs near me felt he gave them nothing. On looking back I think he did fairly well. In stadium real time I didn’t think Lee’s free was a penalty. On TV maybe there’s a case. The free before half time was one of the few and Aido was blatantly body checked by Fenton for 2nd half throw in right beside the ref. Probably missed a few calls on Andy but he got away with a bit of pulling and dragging himself.
     I think we can say we got a fair shake overall and definitely one of McQuillan’s better games as there was plenty going on and it wasn’t an easy game to ref. For Donie’s red he seemed to be taking linesman’s call which is fair enough. Could easily have been a yellow, definitely some kind of card but all in the heat of the moment for player and officials alike. I did hear some neutrals saying ref had a bearing against us but they were probably rooting for us and biased.

104. …I’d rather say the Dubs were a tiny bit better than us over the 76, showed fairly good composure, Connolly in particular is the red zone whereas we faltered just a bit. No shame in that, the players put in a huge effort and can be proud of their efforts.

105. &mayomchale
     U paint a tortious picture. Fuck me. I don’t want to say I pity ye. You should be and I’m sure u are tremendously proud. I was at final I 2011 and the stadium was still hopping 45 mins after cup. It was empty – and I waited – 15 20 mins after cup this year.

     Bloody bench bench bench….ah look it. Who knows.

106. Completely heart broken. Words cannot describe. The players played out of their skins today. They have worked so hard again this year in their effort to get their hands on Sam. Unfortunately it just was not to be for this great team. The sheer devastation on everybodies faces leaving Croke Park this evening in the realisation that this was the last chance for so many of the older players to win a senior celtic cross – and in all probability the last time we’ll see this particular group of players contest an All Ireland final after so many gut wreching final losses. They have deserved so much more. It’s very hard to take tonight.

107. Ladies and gentlemen, that Lee goal! Wow, when I think of it now – phenomenal! And that was just one part of the performance today.

108. Very disappointed wth the loss again, but by no means dejected. I don’t understand how so many ppl feel so devastated!
     Sure, we lost and it would have been spectacular to have won, but it wasn’t to be today.
     Overtime, the players will get over this loss and look ahead to next year, with a burning desire improve and go and give it another go.
     As hard as it is, with them losing again, we are lucky to live in such times, to have a team we can be so proud of.
     We’ll be back next year, and we’ll be better. Sure what else would we do in Mayo?

109. The pain and hurt goes on. Have never been so disappointed- we probably dug our own grave today with some stupid decisions but boy did we show heart and pride. Immensely proud and sad.

     Clowns like Derm above criticising our heroes can f*** off. I don’t like most of the dublin players but I respect them all. They do what they have to do.

     enjoy your win Derm and cherish a huge achievement winning 3 in a row and cut out the bullshit. I won’t criticise any man from mayo today cause every man tried his heart out all year for our great county. Some of the greatest team ever didn’t look so great today – that’s what happens under pressure against other great players and both teams have many great players.

     I don’t think mayo will ever win it now in my lifetime but they have given me some of the greatest days of my life and for that I am immensely proud.

110. I only read ur post now WJ. U are a very gracious man and I don’t mean that in the deserving way that u get credit for maintaining a site that allows dissent but demands respect – and u have always done that for more than Mayo. But reading by ur note above I felt u were not just being gracious to Dublin out of a sense of duty/fairness…it’s obvious u mean it. That’s a hell of a thing so soon after…I’m not so sure many would be capable. There are a few hard days ahead as a monitor and fan for u now – but it’s in safe hands

111. You flip a coin. You know its a 50/50 chance. You’ve lost the last 8 in a row. You’re optimistic, what are the chances of losing 9 in a row?
     But the coins a bitch and she has no memory, 50/50 is your chance and its all she’s ever promised. It doesn’t go your way!
     Your angry, frustrated and confused. What’s worse is the cunt who won the toss thinks he’s unbeatable. You know better? Yes. Is it unfair? Your fucking goddam right it’s unfair but the coin doesn’t care, she has no memory. Your pissed. How the fuck can you beat this? Flip the fucking coin again!

112. Cod
     Unless you’re dying please don’t talk like that. Time will heal this wound and by spring we will be rolling again. I think we should be looking to see if Hanley will come home for the few months needed next summer and throw his experience in the mix. And rest a lot of our lads, put the younger bucks out there in the league and let them get the experience they need.
     For what it’s worth, Mayo are better than kerry and Tyrone by a distance but must win Connaught next summer at all costs. Then it’s super 8s.

     Gutted but still alive and will fight again in 2018 for sure.

113. Willie Joe, I don’t know how you do it.. But you do provide a great service, on hard and emotional days and nights like these.. I sincerely thank you….. Last year, the very great singer /songwriter Leonard Cohen died,.. In one of his song’s (can’t remember exactly which one right now) he wrote the words ‘Love is the only engine of survival’.. We all have got to love these guys,.. None were perfect.. But really… Is it humanly possible for anyone to give more to the cause than what these guys have given?… I don’t think so…. Hugely proud of the the magnificent effort put in, by all the team,… The magnificent management we are lucky enough to have.. (a point I expect I might need to defend, and will, but tonight is not the night) The Mayo supporters, easily the best that the World has ever been seen…the generosity of the many fan’s from other counties that genuinely expressed their good wishes to Mayo.. I want to thank in particular the Roscommon people that we met on the way home, when we stopped for a pitstop , for their humanity and commesorations… Tommorow another day will dawn.. And if you can, please come to the homecoming…. We were only one lucky break away…. It wasn’t to be… Congratulations to Dublin.. A magnificent achievement…..

114. Heart broken for d lads and all involved, supporters I’m devastated for and full of sadness for every1.
     Poor David Clarke and Donnie V I’m gutted for, sorry to say they had a hand in this one, a needless sending off and d last three kick outs, well did not go 2 plan.
     Special mention to Barrett I’m not a north or north east Mayo man but I’ve always said he was under rated, today he was simply class.
     First half missed chances cost us ultimately, they were scorable but unfortunately we did not take them.
     To management and players yet again like d rest if ye I’m gutted and disappointed for d lads and 2 b honest I don’t think it’s kicked in it, to u Willie Joe tks for everything this season to d rest of ye, well it wud not be d same w/o ye.
     Hopefully at some stage we’ll cross that “line”” head up and in an unique way unfortunately we are unipue county with our cumulative nearlies.
     GOD bless all and try and not be too dispondent??

115. 3.47 am. Just back from City West Mayo night. Really devestared but am going to head to Croke Park next Sunday for Ladies final, it’s probably going to be Cora Staunton’s last game in the Green and Red and she and the rest of the women deserve our fullest support.
     Never Give in
     Never give up
     Never give in
     Never give up
     Never give in
     Never give up

116. Cant sleep..This is feels like a sick joke..

117. Well I am feeling pretty fucking depressed this morning. I think I will break from tradition and head to Castlebar for homecoming .

118. To paraphrase WC; “Never in the field of sporting endeavor was so much owed my so many to so few”.

119. Mayomaningalway, it’s hard to face the world today, just wanto stay in cot, but I think most people will understand our pain, and appreciate that our mighty bunch of warriors gave everything they had and brought this Dubs team to the brink again, little consolation I know. We can give out about the ref and other things, but I felt that we got a reasonable shake of the ref today (barring the crazy free at the end of the first half), we just came up that little bit short, felt we should have been 3-4 points up at HT such was our dominance. Think we ran out of steam a little toward the last 10 Minutes also. Hope the elder lads stay on, they still have a lot to offer. The dark clouds will lift with time.
     Now time to face these Galway lads and a few dubs at work, wish I was back in my homeland today!!
     Up Mayo.

120. This one is hard to take.very close,we just have to suck it up take time out and go again.
     The team learned a hell of a lot this year and nobody looks finished.
     I think our backs have far to much to do in these high octane games.
     Aidan tired near the end as did Keith,we need to have young replacements ready for next year.
     This is not a 15 man game anymore,
     Can’t really comment on the the game,just as last year was a game of inches if not mm.
     Well done Dublin. (Cough cough)

121. Mayo you were amazing/ you will get credit/huge credit/ i agree there is no justice …You are and have been the only team in the country that Dublin fear….I visit Ballina about ten times a year and you are Beautiful humble people….My heart truly breaks for your amazing team……James /Dublin Gaa Supporter

122. F**king Ref (Dublin JOE)
     * Giving a straight red to D.Vaughan for the lesser of the two tackles and a yellow to Small?????
     * Two dubs hit into each other and they get a free??????
     * Was it A.Moran that gets fouled in the square (clear penalty), free in?????
     * D.Vaughan & A.Moran get fouled no free???? K.K get one for loosing the ball????
     * How would Dublin respond to a Cavan man living in Mayo (having reffed A V. B games & club matches) reffing the game yesterday. The optics were all wrong???

123. @Logic And Dublin Joe is going nowhere..Id say he is pencilled in for 2018 and 2019 too.

124. Thanks willie Joe and all involved in the blog for every thing all year don’t now what to say it’s hard to take this one

125. If there is a hell, I imagine it to be like the moments after the final whistle, queuing to get out of your seat to get into the aisle while Dublin songs play.

126. Heartbroken

127. I’d like to try to offer some consolation to our brave Mayo team and our wonderful supporters. Even though we didn’t get the victory we were looking for, I believe we achieved something very important with that performance yesterday. With only the tiniest margin separating us from one of the greatest teams ever in Gaelic football over a period of 3 years, nobody can ever again say that Mayo are losers, bottlers .. etc. Anybody who does knows nothing about football or sport in general and in light of the evidence we now have, would be a complete idiot to start that argument. Yesterday has banished forever those lazy tags attached by some people to Mayo football. From today on we can confidently face the world a much prouder people.

128. So so heartbroken since 5 yest even.
     Not for me or us but for our amazing True Gallant Mayo lads. But we just have to keep behind them,keep them up because they are the GREATEST TEAM EVER IN THIS COUNTRY.
     We all know that, so lets rise our heads and hearts again this morning. In every loss in life there has to be hope. Without it we wouldnt get out of bed and keep on going.
     Thank you Stephen, and all involved and please please Andy; David; STAY WITH US STAY WITH US.

129. Sickened. Couldn’t sleep at all last night. We should have won that game. Small margins that didn’t go our way.
     * Cillian’s free at end. I believe we would have won if we go a point up in injury time. How many times would he have kicked that in his sleep since last years all ireland miss from same spot. Really sorry for him but I know he’s be back again.
     * Donnies red. Stupid rush of blood to the head. With nearly 30 mins of football including injury time with an extra man, I believe we would have found a way to win that game.
     * First half missed opportunities. Keegan put one into keepers hands, paddy durkan miss with his left, couple of wides by cillian from play and a poor one from a free, Andy had a wide which he is getting all year. Add to that the really bad decision by ref to give a free to them in injury time. We could / should have been 5 or 6 points up at half time.

     Our hearts hurt and pain is numb. But I couldn’t be prouder to be from Mayo – the players, the management are a credit to all of us. They give it everything.
     The supporters are unbeatable anywhere in the world. We will be back. Always and no matter what.

130. Willie Joe with the greatest of respect how can you say you were satisfied with that performance from McQuillan?
     He should be let nowhere near another final involving Dublin simple as that. It wouldn’t be fair on him at this point given the level of scrutiny his performance yday will receive
     But he didn’t cost us the game . We beat ourselves. And that’s the worst defeat of all

131. This one stings. We can talk till we are blue in the face about decisions not going our way but we left 4 scores behind us in the first half and hit the post in the second half. You can’t expect to give up those opportunities and win. Their conversion rate in the second half was better than ours in the first and that is why they’re champions this morning. Everything else is just blather. But boy oh boy what a team of warriors we have. I was fighting back the tears throughout in expectation of a famous win. That was living, and despite the result, it was and is a magical thing to be a part of. I’ve always said the only people these players owe is themselves. They didn’t bend the knee like messers Cavanagh and Harte and they left everything out there. We can ask no more. All we can do is support them as best we can and put the shoulders to the wheel when asked. I hope they all come back and go again. The darkest hour is before the dawn. Up Mayo

132. Absolutely heartbroken. I was in tears at full time so I cannot imagine how the team feel. I would like to thank management and players for a truly memorable year. They make me proud to be from Mayo, I hope they realise that.

133. The reason I’m saying that, Km79, is because – as you say yourself – Joe McQuillan didn’t cost us the game. He made mistakes, one or two bad ones, but overall I thought he was fair enough to both sides. Reffing an All-Ireland final is a tough, tough job, especially when two physical teams go at it the way Mayo and Dublin always do. He decided to let plenty go and while we’d obviously say Dublin got away with loads they’d equally say the same about us. I’ll always believe that Deegan’s ham-fisted handling of last year’s replay had a bearing on the outcome but I wouldn’t say that about yesterday so, to that extent, I’m okay with how McQuillan reffed it.

134. In the cold light of day, the hurt deepens. We did everything but win. The margins are indeed small. I will wear my Mayo jersy today with pride and honour and I will challenge any man who dares to besmirch my valliant teams mighty efforts. They are a credit to their families and to the county.

     One thing doing the rounds this morning that I find disturbing is a picture of a smirking Eoghan O Gara attempting to gouge the eyes out of Colm Boyles sockets. This is not sour grapes. I don’t believe for an instant that this thuggish act had any bearing on the result. This back alley loutish behaviour has no place whatsoever in the sport that I love. It brings the game into disrepute and should not be tolerated. If that was a Mayo man attempting to gouge the eyes out of a Dublin player, I would be disgusted with him.

     O ‘Gara should be called out on this by his own. What a statement that would make? That would take real character. The picture should be put up on display with the words, “Is this ok?” Evil thrives when good men stay silent” and all that jazz.

     Two magnificent teams went head to head and sadly there could be only one winner. Dublin deserved their three in a row and by God did they have to earn it. Come on O’Gara, leave that loutish behaviour in the hands of back alley thugs and scumbags. Don’t bring shame onto your team and county and this game that I love. Play hard. Play with honour. That’s the least that this great Dublin team that you have been priviliged to play on deserve.

135. Brillant Brillant bunch they really are, so sorry for them and their families,far the best team in the first half,if we took our scores some terrible wides, The dubs were rattled at half time, why? cluxton had 11 kickouts we pressed, he had to kick long we won 6,second half he had 10, we didn’t press any Dubs won 10,unbelievable,cant win the match if you dont have the ball or at least give yourself a chance of winning it,For me this is the most worrying aspect from that game that we still cant see YOU CAN NOT let the Dubs kick the ball out to themselves, FULL STOP, ok you cant press all of the time but it should be done at least 80%,and if we don’t change here we will NEVER beat them,you have to limit the amount of ball you give them because they are simply to good,to strong, to hard stopped when they are running at you,Kevin mac and Connolly won it for them in the second half with the amount of ball they got, only for our defending was top drawer other than the early goal we would be badly beaten,honestly I don’t know how we kept them out in the second half.Im not going talking down players to day but the reality is even with the bad goal we should have being at least 4 up at half time,we bottled a few simple point scoreing chances in the second half, we were not alert when Cilllian hit the post,and the minute Lee scored his brilliant goal instead of celebrating we should marking up, making Cluxton kick long but instead within a minute Mannion had the ball over the bar,Maybe you think im harsh, but the reality is these are the small things that wins and loses games, and the goal chances, im not going to talk about today,enough said,other than to say you must get it very right if your going to beat the dubs on All Ireland final day,i know its no consolation,but the dubs were there for the takeing, and for me with a few tweets, we are better,yesterday I thought while we were brilliant at times,the best team in the country when we are on the ball,we were simply not on the ball enough in the second half,as a result we stayed with them,but did ever really look like passing them?,did we ever really look like being in control enough to go on and win the game?.For me the Dubs are as good as they can be,a lot of their leaders are in the twilight of their careers and while they will replace them with players,they will not be of the same calibre as what the have.I KNOW ITS A BIG ASK, but I hope all the lads stay on,because a little improvement and we WILL GET THEIR,WE ARE IN A POSITION THAT WILL BE VERY HARD TO GET TO AGAIN,and for that reason,and I know its hard on Stephen and the backroom team after all the hard work they have put in, but the answer lies in,Would they commit to the job for the next 3 years?,,that way they would not feel as pressured as staying on for just another year,and I firmly believe the County Board should put this to them,we are nearly there,Please, lets not not through it all away now.

136. Joe McQuillan had a good game but his decision not to award either penalty appeal was shocking , Fitzsimons held Moran down While Cluxton was all over him not allowing him to get to his feet , but the dragging down of Keegan inside the square resulting in just a free instead of a black card and a penalty was a game changer.

137. That is Boyles own hand I believe with OGara holding Boyles wrist. Move on please.

138. Joe,
     a leopard cannot change his stripes. OGara is what he is. If there was a new thing where a team is allowed 2 or 3 video recalls the likes of o gara would be out of that dublin panel very fast as would mcmahon and a few others. Instead, and for now they can gloat and enjoy another well funded and hollow victory. Big fish in an ever decreasing small bowl.

139. The result is I believe an accurate reflection of the reality of the situation i.e. the overall quality of the full Dublin panel is slightly ahead of the full Mayo panel. So what was forecast by many punters did in fact turn out to be the case – – – there was more impact off the Dublin bench than off our bench. Thought big Barry at midfield (and push Aidan to full forward as he was running out of gas) for the last ten minutes to claim a couple of Clarke’s long kickouts would have been a better option. Kerry started with 7 backs against us in replay – it didn’t work. We started with 7 backs yesterday – not sure it was the right choice – we need Diarmuid on- running at them up the right flank -giving us width and drawing fouls. Paddy Durcan – an ideal impact sub to cope with the speed of McMenaman. Donie’s strength and athleticism was sorely missed while Barrett’s teak,tough tackling and turnovers was spectacular. On the sideline – Gavin probably edged it over Stephen due to the quality of the resources at his disposal. It has been an inspiring journey this year following this bunch of proud Mayo ambassadors around the country – a pleasure and great craic to boot – hope the majority of them stick together and give it another lash in 2018 and keep up this great unrivalled bond between team and supporters.
     Tomorrow – – it’s on to the ploughing in Tullamore – -“another day, another furrow” – – – C’est la Vie!!

140. Here in Kerry I have met many who have said they felt it was as hard as Kerry losing. People everywhere who know their football have nothing but respect for your team. Have no doubt this is a team of seriously good footballers. Mayo had more contenders for MOTM than Dublin yesterday and agree totally that Chris Barrett was the best man on the field. Tom Parsons, Aidan O Shea, Andy Moran, Keith Higgins, Kevin Mcloughlin, DOC when he came on we’re all outstanding. Cilian not up to his own high standards.. Lee was not as prominent as usual but Kilkenny was blitzed by him. Peno against Cluxton could maybe should have been given. Hard luck again – ye have good young players coming.

141. Heartbroken. What else can we say. So very proud of these lads. They threw everything at Dublin. Willie Joe your right they should get the credit and respect for their performance but only time will tell. They will be back and as supporters we will be on the journey again. Never give up. #In this together.

142. This one is very hard to take. Keep running through the game in my mind and I feel depressed. Definitely could have won this one! Can’t imagine how the players feel, they owe the county nothing at this stage but I have no doubt they will be back next year!
     Barrett was immense
     Yes Clarke could/should have gone short towards the end but was excellent overall.
     Vaughan getting sent off was a moment of madness
     Cillian very poor in the first half but showed well in the 2nd.
     Andy, Parsons, Lee, Higgins & Durcan all down very well in my eyes!

     First time poster, long time reader. Willie Joe thanks for this great outlet! As a Mayo man living in Manchester this blog & the Mayo News Podcast would keep a man sane over the summer months!