It’s match day once more, a bit of a white one in these parts up in the capital, with snow showers still swirling down from a leaden sky. Having stuck my nose out the door this morning and sniffed the air, however, I think I’ll chance it. Castlebar here we come.
Today’s NFL Division One Round 6 match against Tyrone marks another important test for us. Kildare were relegated last night but there’s still one spot in the bottom two of the division to be filled and it looks like it’ll be ourselves, Tyrone or Donegal that’ll end up occupying it.
A win for us today will go a long way – the entire way, should Donegal fail to beat Monaghan this afternoon – towards ensuring that we avoid that second relegation spot. For now, our fate rests solely in our own hands.
So, the result is, first and foremost, what it’s all about today. And not just to help preserve our long-running top tier status either. Our home record is little short of embarrassing at this stage and it’s time we started to do something about it.
Our task against Tyrone today is far from straightforward. We’re never at our best taking on a blanket defence, still less doing so in the tight confines of MacHale Park, but, in freezing cold weather, that’s the job facing the lads today.
They won’t, as usual, want for support in their endeavours. A large crowd is set to brave the cold in Castlebar this afternoon, with the big home following eager to enjoy some overdue home comforts. And maybe, just maybe, being there to see Cillian become our all-time top scorer into the bargain.
If Cillian – assuming he starts, which you’d have to think he will – is on song, then that’s half the battle. But we’ll also need tight defending, tigerish competition around the middle and better economy of shooting up front to help us on our way today too.
Last Sunday against Kildare, the lads provided the first hints about a return to summer form. We’ll need more than vague nods in that direction if we’re to do the business today and it’s the hope of seeing firm evidence of such an upward trend in form that makes me eager to hit the road shortly for Castlebar.
Best of luck to the lads today and good luck to the hurlers too as they shoot for NHL Division 2B honours against Down up at Breffni Park this afternoon. They’ve had a great League campaign and it’d be brilliant if Derek Walsh’s team could finish their run with the Divisional title and promotion to their credit.
Stay safe, all, and wrap up well. Back later on with the usual post-match stuff. Up Mayo.
We get fantastic crowds for our home league games but more often then not they get nothing much to shout about; our home record is poor in the league.
I know last week was a good performance but today will almost surely be a grind. I hope we’re not here bemoaning our inability to breakdown a blanket defence later today.
Rochford is obviously trying something with RH in goal- it’s obviously linked to a new kickout strategy.
Best of luck to both the footballers and the hurlers today!! Hopefully we’ll do enough!!
Think there could be lots of stuff been worked on we dont realise , all with the championship game in mind . We had an awful lot of possession in league game in salthill but didnt do a lot with it . Sometimes Id be thinking maybe its gone that strategic that management target specific areas to work on for early league games knowingly sacrificing other areas .
Fair play to ya Willie Joe, great stuff.
Good luck to both our teams today.
Up Mayo!!
The only strategy in focus today will be how to overcome the punching, sledging, spitting, dragging & headbutting….and then there’ll be all the off-the-ball stuff to deal with !!! Up Mayo !
Best of luck to both the footballers and the hurlers today and hope we are talking about wins later in the day. Safe journeys to all.
Travel safe John and all the Mayo fans!!!
Up Mayo!!
5/1 no goals today. Very tempting.
15/2 Cillian first goal… Considering the day that’s in it. I might take a punt!
Treated myself yesterday to a new jersey. The inverted red and green one has finally hit the shelves a year later! Remember Clarke wore it against Sligo IT in Ballina last year. Beauty!
Fair play to you WJ. Best of luck to the footballers and Hurlers today Safe travelling to all.
45 yer a tad close to exaggeration there methinks. Spitting? Headbutting?
Tyrone no angels but Monaghan seem to have the worst disciplinary record these days along with Kerry and Galway seem to be learning a thing or 2 but they’re not at the cynical level Kerry have set just yet.
+1 Shuffly deck
You should never let the truth get in the way of good imagery Shuffly Deck!! Although I’ve seen enough thuggery from them over the past 12+ years against us to taint my views on their tactics.
Hope the rumour is true. Mayonaze you’ll be delighted if its true.
Does anyone know if this game is on tv
Clarke, Parsons and Cillian are in.
Hennelly, Hall and SO’S are out.
One point scored. So poor
Cannot seem to get the game on any radio, Gaa live says the score is 7 – 1 in favour of Tyrone.
I have it on Midwest at the moment
It’s on Midwest radio mayo88, they were covering the hurling a good bit but are on the football now
Well done to Hurlers! Sounds a mighty game.
Jaysus, Cillian off injured, Boyler sent off, Leeroy off injured and Andy black carded and only a single point scored to Tyrone’s 8 in the first half. Disaster of a half.
Well, here’s hoping Donegal get hammered.
What is going on in MacHale Park?!
Absolute nonsense from Mayo at the moment. More cards than points.
Donegal level with Monaghan..Sounds like bedlam in Mc Hale pk.
This is nuts!
Boyle deservedly gone, a stupid tackle for his second yellow. Moran should have known better also but that decision to give Tyrone the free was infuriating.
If we don’t score early we’re f##ked.
Carnage in Castlebar
Good first half considering the wind and the ref,hopefully with the we should be able to enjoy the second half up Mayo
Monaghan 1-11 Donegal 1-5.
The only positive so far.
We’re naive today. They have 14 behind the ball yet we selected 6 defenders.
Hello,
Still hopeful. It is fascinating to see how Mayo adapt.
We’re playing into Tyrone’s hands. And sorry to say, but Cafferky turned inside out again for the goal.
when is Rochford going to solve the Fullback position
Sweet Jesus :/
Massive game next weekend in Ballybofey.
Who’s going to take responsibility for this performance? This match needed to be won, given what’s at stake. And yet there is no urgency, no leadership, no one willing to take the match by the scruff of the neck. I don’t care that we lost some key players, why aren’t the players still on the pitch making a statement?
Tyrone are playing brilliantly.No team plan at all from Mayo. IT’S woeful stuff. Back to the drawing board for sure for this Mayo set up, maybe it’s just another off day for the Mayo lads.
Time for people to get honest about current state of mayo Football. All last month comments saying it’s February blah, blah. It’s mid March, championship in may and we are so poor. Full back situation an embarrassment , no sign of solution, forwards static and no invention. So far behind top teams, management taking this team nowhere
Monaghan are leading v Donegal, if they win they will have done Mayo a massive favour.
Embarrassing and gutless display…sad
Don’t matter about Monaghan today. If we lose next weekend we’re gone.
I predict 200+ comments on the after-match blog post. Assuming WJ has the heart to put one up.
Here we go..Watch the floodgates open..
Honestly…im not that surprised with this much today. This Mayo team for the past few years have really only performed n the league when the situation has been urgent. That’s why next Sunday will tell us a lot about where this Mayo team really are.
What should people say Regina? That things are looking good ? The boys giving it their all? All will be great in few months?
Mayonaze, was today not urgent? Relegation is a real possibility. We don’t have a great record at home, this could have been a chance to rectify that.
Sure it’s only March…
They’re now doing the same in the championship Mayonaze. Look at the Derry, Cork and Roscommon games in 2017.
Every team can only go to the well so often. Mayo don’t do their stuff any more until there’s a gun to their heads.
Meanwhile, Galway making life very difficult for Dublin and have a great chance of seeing that one out. Meanwhile we’re wilting weakly and relying on Monaghan winning their match. Who’s better prepared for May?
JC..It has been a pattern on the blog that a loss or a mauling as today was draws infinitely more comments than a win ever does..
Galway gonna beat Dublin. Just shows how important some of their key players that are missing are!
Can not see mayo getting over donegal next week after what I seen to day and its not the end of the world
As bad a day as we have had in a long time. How bad did injuries to Cillian and Keegan look? Sounds like they could be struggling for May 13th and possibly even longer term
Dreamy…today was important but not urgent because the players knew that regardless of today the result next weekend matters more.
That doesn’t cover the fact that today was dire.
That’s why I said that we’ll know where this Mayo team really are, next weekend.
Mayonaze, if their attitude is that today wasn’t urgent or wasn’t important enough to put in a big performance, then that’s a poor attitude to have.
Mayo are a division 2 Team now no doubt about that fact, what I saw today was very poor basic skills,no real team spirit, surely the management & coaches new what Tyrone bring to the game, which is pure winning fighting spirit,they brushed Mayo aside like Boys against Men.
If Tyrone were allowed select our tactics today it would be around the same as what we did. Sorry but Cafferkey is getting beaten for goals every game almost.
Or maybe not haha! Draw game in Salthill. Fair play to Galway. 5 mins extra time announced. 8 mins played. Galway equalizer came in the 8th minute. Still think we will beat them on the 13th. But Keegan injury is a worry.
Well look at the attitude in the league for the past few years – it hasn’t been good but we’ve done enough to stay up and then turned it on for summer.
Reality is though that there’s higher mileage on lots of them. Little or no interest in the league. Two previous years of intense championship games. This league was always gonna be a struggle for us, physically and mentally coming up against much fresher teams. Im not at all surprised of our current situation. The manner of our loss today though was very disappointing. Nevertheless it all comes down to next sunday.
Total
Systems
Failure
Mayonaze – if they don’t see playing at home for their county as urgent then they shouldn’t play for the county. It’s supposed to be an honour.
Just looked at the league table a draw will be enough next week.
The fact that we regularly ship heavy beatings in the league should be a cause for concern , anyone who thinks a spell in division 2 would be a good thing, is living in a dream world
Sorry ‘turned it on’ not exactly accurate. Done enough..but come autumn we were flying.
The Big thing for mayo really though is not enough players coming through. I know we’ve added one or two each season but nothing from midfield up. No real star. Don’t wanna open up the ‘lack of underage development’ discussion again . Its exhausted and well documented.
I see Sean Cavanaugh has us relegated already on twitter.
People want to make excuses – they don’t care about the league, they’ll turn it on when it matters, etc etc, but the reality is that they wilted badly today when they should have been pulling a performance out of the bag. No guts, no fight, no leadership.
JC. I agree with you 100% It’s the biggest honour of all to pull on that green and red jersey. Bigger than playing league of Ireland club or Aussie rules.
Cue all the negative Nellies out now with their “I knew it all along” comments
Good God what’s going on with this team no heart no fight no direction our key players taking out of it
Wasn’t there but sounded like a disaster all round. We’ll get over the defeat but injuries are worrying. Sounded like a a knee problem for Cillian and shoulder/jaw for Leeroy.
Dreamy. No one is making excuses. It’s just opinion and fact really. We all agree today was terrible but last few leagues have been.
Well done to the hurlers – terrific.
So much for Tyrone being a defensive side, they swatted us aside with ease today and probably could have won by more. Donnelly is a terrific player for them in the middle of the field and young Brennan looks a really class act. Defensively they were superb and never gave us a sniff. Their pace and movement was simply too much for us today and we have a lot to do ahead of Donegal next week. So disappointing.
Why didnt he give Ger McDonagh or Newcombe a run at full back?
They have consistently mastered the O Connors at club level over the past few years
No full back line no full forward line end of srory
It can’t be opinion and fact. It’s one or the other. And it’s usually just opinion.
I’ll keep it,. ‘Torture pure Torture’.. From a Freezing McHale Park.. Hard to take any positives out of it today….Only this, as well as being terrible, everything went wrong that could go wrong… I wish all the players who were injured today on both sides a speedy recovery… Ballybofey, here we come!
Management cannot plan for a blanket. We’ve seen this too often and will see it again in May. God knows they’ve not lacked opportunities. And don’t tell me they do not have the personnel. You use what you have with an appropriate plan. That has been our failure. And supporters…….. “There’s none so blind as those who cannot see”.
FDbinashui and Regina. How do you expect people to respond? A decent win last week against the whipping boys of the league is not going to attract a huge response. But today was so bad from players and management, it’s not good enough for the fans and people associated with mayo Football. It doesn’t matter whether it’s march , the league or whatever, what is happening on 2018 is worrying. If there is no interest in league the fans should be told before they sacrifice their time and emotions to be out played, out fought and out thought by a Tyrone team who really are not great shakes themselves