195 thoughts on “Mayo 0-12 Galway 1-12: six-in-a-row hopes smashed”

1. Fair play to Galway .. Hunger got them over the line .. Good day for Connacht in general .. We have to regroup now too many players didn’t show up .. Huge wides tally as well

2. We’ll regroup and go at it again. Keep the faith all!

3. No offence Seamus but their not gud enough. End of story

4. Was it the hype or maybe too long on the road. Hopefully the draw will be kind to us and we can get back on track. I wasn’t at the match and only watched it on TV. Some of our top players did not perform on the night. Going in the back door could be the making of us. Keep the faith.!!!

5. You’re going to have a lot of moderating to do WJ!

6. One of the worst Mayo performances in years. They need to take a long look at themselves.

7. A sobering Saturday evening ..Thought our quality of players on our home ground would see us through..How naive of me..

8. No matter what happens we have had magnificent times with Mayo football since 2011. The danger is the team have mentally gone stale and just cant pick themselves up. That happens its a long time staring at tge same faces etc. The signs were there in the league.
   Mayo (or the Mayo of a few years ago) can get through to QF’s still…..is that a standard we can still reach?…Hopefully we get a good draw ( avoid Cork) and keep it moving towards QF stage. Anyhow whereever there is a green and red flag there will be a crowd to support it…

9. I was ridiculed by several posters here on Thursday when I suggested that Galway werent being given the respect they deserved. 3 seperate pundits on the Sunday Game referred to a Roscommon v Mayo connaught final. This has to seep into players heads.
   People lost the run of themselves a little and it’s humbling to lose like that.
   Galwayso hunger was massive and when the gun was put to mayos head it just wasn’t there.

   This team owe us nothing. They have taken us all on an incredible journey. Today they lost to a hungrier team.

   The talent is there.
   Will the hunger be there for the qualifiers?
   Are the mgmt team up to picking this up and driving them on ?

   Time will tell ..

10. Just listened to it on the radio, the usual names seemed to remain anonymous for most of the match.

    Initial thoughts:

    – Players cramping up before time is this an indication that they are over/under trained
    – Seems to be a reliance on Cillian and an over reliance on him even when he isn’t having great game.
    – Felt like there was the absence of a few leaders on the pitch like in the days of old and there seemed to be no plan B this evening.
    – Keith Higgins playing in the forwards?

    Overall not good enough.

11. Very disappointing result from Mayo – but lets keep perspective on any comments for now – we still have very good pedigree in qualifiers and if management are any good we can learn a lot from this defeat,

12. People, we have been sailing in a ship that was not sea worthy for the last few years and it never made port. The ship needs to be repaired and that usually means a while in dry dock. Then it is ready to sail again. The qualifiers might help for some repairs. If not, next year, with some new players, beckons !! Too late to panic!! Kerry won Sam from the qualifiers. Surely, if we cannot get through the qualifiers, we are hardly All Ireland material. 😉 🙂

13. Keep the heads everyone, that team needs us now more than ever….

14. It’s not the defeat, it’s the nature of the defeat. Not that dissimilar to 2010, not beaten by ability just beaten by a team who wanted it much more . When you are beaten by desire, it’s something to be very worried about . I wouldn’t be optimistic of a long run, I mean we’ve failed to perform now in all but three of our games this year.

15. I read an article lately that said if Mayo lose to Galway they go into the other side of the qualifier and so will be on the side as Kerry and Dublin – is this correct?
    This team isn’t finished just yet, they won everything for 5 years in Connaught and so were complacent. They deserve respect and not kicks when they are down.

16. Have to say I’m still in a bit of shock at what happened this evening. We were so flat, so tired looking, no ideas no penetration. I mean fair play to Galway they were by far the better team and deserved to win. And they were cute. Where did all that come from? Did we ever threaten the galway keeper? Boyler was, for me, the only one I could say stood up. We were poor. Complacency must have played a part in that performance.

17. Anyone any idea what weekend will our qualifier game be on?
    As for the result very disappointing we were actually controlling the game until Galway got the goal but however we kicked two many stupid wides in ist half and also I hope this result wakes certain players up!!!

18. Just looked at our side of the qualifiers and Longford is there Remember the last time we were in Longford in a qualifer

19. Pat. I think you are spot on.. disappointing…depressing … how can mayo go from being a kick away over 2 games against the AI champions to being dumped out of Connaught in 9 mths. It’s not as if the mayo players are not good enough…they are…. most of them would hold down places on the pick of the top 3 counties in country ….if mentally is rhetoric problem it should be addressed… get a winner in to mentor the team…a mind coach….someone who is/was a winner who can speak from a position of authority

20. Hate saying it on here but Hennelly was shocking tonight

    Nearly conceded a goal at the start of the game , punching balls and poor kick outs resulted In 1-1

    Will they persist with him ? When will the draw for the qualifiers be made ?

21. Comiserations to Mayo but the best team won . Galway fully deserved their win. The psychological and physical effects of the last five years seem to have finally caught up on Mayo. But it was a great five years and this may only be a blip who knows.
    However one thing very disappointing at the game was the mayo support they too were very subdued and never tried to lift the team.

22. Maybe the players need a break. Cillian was the only scorer that’s from fees he can’t do all the work. Maybe get a break and com back stronger next year.

23. Sorry to say there were alot of weary legs on show. younger, hungrier lads for Galway played out of their skins and thourally deserved their win.

    Higgins is not a hf forward, game totally passed him by.

    AOS is a shadow of himself. He is not a ff, this craic must stop. He was once a top midfielder but am not sure he can operate their now after so long trying to convert to ff.

    Atrocious wides in the first 20mins cost us dear, putting a few of them over would have had us in a healthier position at half time and things could have been different.

24. Hard luck, the spark just wasn’t there but a few like Boyler tried his best. I have not doubt that the scenic route will be fun too, so, let them regroup and set off again. This loss was always a possibility, it’s Galway after all and we knew this but some of us refused to think it was possible.

25. Clonee Man – they’re good enough to dust themselves down, go at it again and do themselves proud after what must be a very disappointing day for them.
    That’s all I expect from the players at this stage. It’s for them to go out and achieve what they know in their heart and minds is achievable on another day.
    I’m immensely proud of what they have achieved over the last five years. They’re not done yet!

26. Hope Rochy makes a few changes maybe 5 changes, positional and personal. Don’t be afraid to drop a big name or three He needs to be braver on the sideline and needs to much faster making a changes . Watch that match again, possessions, decisions, desire Judge it on performance of V Galway. Management need to be watch the video of the match themselves first , be objective and fair! And they need to be quick learners. Improvement needed from them too. We’re playing with the big boys now. Evan Regan, Colm Boyle Keith Higgins, Kevin McLoughlin, Kevin Keane and Jason Doherty should be OK, Seamus OShea and Tom Parsons should get the nod to start as well but we can’t afford to be coming second best we did today If we don’t be radical now , Best wishes for t a speedy recovery to Jason Gibbons, don’t know the extent of his injury, he looked in some distress leaving the pitch. Most annoying decision, does anyone know why was Regan taken off???

27. Thankgod for this blog…..times like this you need to be among yer own

28. They owe us nothing at this stage. We’re all down and disapointed but all is not lost the qualifiers could be where we re shape our team and get battle hardened I don’t care if it’s down in Cork or up in Derry or a home game I will be there supporting Mayo until the bitter end if we make the quarter finals tonight will be forgotten

29. The only explanation that makes sense is that we were training with August in mind and got caught out. Two of our full back line having to go off with cramp, losing the initiative in the third quarter instead of pushing on like we normally do, and looking steadily more tagged as the clock wore down. Hopefully we can do a Tyrone and regroup and get our patterns going in the qualifiers. The playbook definitely needs more polishing before we have any hope of winning matches come August…

30. We played bad but still in it.was serious wj
    Love this site.not giving up on mange but even u agree that was bad.

31. Very disappointing performance and I certainly didn’t see that coming. With Keith higgins playing in the forwards, kevin mc Loughlin playing in the backs and cillian and Aidan o shea playing God knows where we had no real shape in our attack. Evan Regan was the only forward who looked like a real forward to me.
    It will take a huge amount of reorganisation and determination to get this team back on song. It will also take some straight talking. This is a massive task for Stephen Rochford and his management team. The energy and intensity seems to have been missing tonight and I suppose that is understandable after five or six years at or near the top.
    All that said they have given us great times and perhaps they’re not finished yet but I suspect that they are at least for this year.

32. We all knew it couldn’t last forever. The bookies, pundits and ourselves (most of us anyway) said Mayo should win, but Galway did to us what we did to them in 2013 and that’s what makes sport great. They hit harder, showed more aggression and generally bossed us around the field.
    I’ve no doubt that the recrimations and accusations will start flying now, you can almost hear the knives being sharpened, but let’s remember what we’ve had over the last 5 years before we turn turk.
    Let’s look forward to a scenic tour of the country and remember, when the dust settles and the draw is made Monday morning, everyone will be praying not to get us.
    Your never as good as they say you are and your never as bad.

33. I have believed for some time that Mayo will only win Sam again through the back door. We need the extra games. Too often we have over-performed after a change of management. We need games to get new system in place. Previously we have sulked when relegated to back door. Stop thinking we are destined to win without getting beaten. We have the best panel in my lifetime( born 1948). Go for it, one game at a time. Ye are more than good enough. Best of luck !

34. Rochford got the tactics wrong. What was Coen’s role? McLoughlin was sweeping a lot of the time. Kick outs / midfield weren’t great. Poor wides back to haunt Mayo again. Mayo far too slow in attack , Galway showed great pace in attack. Even after sacrificing a forward there was far too much space in the centre of the field. Even paddy Durkan seemed off the pace.

35. [Deleted].

36. Qualifiers record average. 2001-lost to W/Meath
    2002- made QFs after beating Ross, Limerick and Tipp.
    2003-lost to Fermanagh
    2005-lost to Kerry QFs
    2007- Lost to Derry
    2008- lost to Tyrone
    2010-Longford

    Team gave good service but engine needed more than an oil change.

37. Seamus I’m proud of them too. But I’m afraid of where theyL go. At their best in 2014 I’m afraid

38. -Did not see that defeat coming, I did say it would be tight if we were not in top form
    -Galway deserved to win with Conroy having a stormer. They could have got three goals in the first half.
    -Our tactics were all over the place with McLaughlin our best kick passer as sweeper for a lot of the time and we let Galway into our 45 before they met our blanket. We worked ball slowly up the field for nearly all our kickouts giving Galway cover loads of time to get in place. We coughed up ball after ball with tough tackling.
    – Worringly we never came near getting a goal.
    – Our forwards were simply cat how much did they score from play.
    -It was a dopey lethargic display with only Boiler and to a lesser extent Parsons and Keane holding their own.
    -End of an era or start of another ?
    -Maybe they can redeem their year thru the qualifiers but our history in the qualifiers would not fill you with confidence.
    – Will be supporting these guys in the next game as that is the least i can do.

39. Very depressing. I fear this may be the end of an era.

    I had a look at the qualifier draw and my reading of it is that:
    – we are on B side and play one of next weeks winners
    – there will be 4 games in that round of qualifiers and if we win, we play one of the other winners. 2 of our potential opponents are cork and the loser of Monaghan/Donegal
    – win that and we play the Leinster or Ukster loser
    – win that and we are in qf against dublin or Ulster champion

    It’s a long road ahead and personally, I am very pessimistic about it

40. Shades of Kerry drawn match. Full back injured and left on. Both Keane and Harrison were injured, Harrison especially, and not replaced quickly enough just when damage was done. But still the goal only levelled the game. Management need to move quicker. More worrying was the inability to settle after the goal. Our injury list is very long too. Is there a training problem? Were we to peak later? AOS a pale shadow and should not have finished. Regan did enough and McL as sweeper was a success in my view. But this team owes us nothing and we will still be in quarters so let’s keep behind them.

41. From the word go we seemed to be very lethargic this evening. We really only played for about 5mins before half time. It was very poor all around, and to be honest we were beaten by a very average team. Galway are certainly no All Ireland contenders but what they did show this evening was that they wanted the win more than Mayo and that was disappointing from our point of view. Anyway it could turn out to be a good reality check for our boys, however time will tell. By the way does anybody know when the qualifier will be played? Coming out of McHale park this evening a man told me it was next weekend?? Now we need to get behind the team and management now more than ever. PS. Willie Joe this is my first post on your blog, and thanks a mil for everything so far. This is an excellent service you provide us and I don’t think you have ever got the credit you deserve.

42. Very disappointed .They looked like the Donegal tram we hammered a few years ago we had no answers. At half time I thought we looked no better or worse than we did last year in Pearse stadium.Our wides count was shocking..There is something wrong if lads are cramping so early in game.Our intensity wasnt there bar the last ten mins of first half.

43. This team have given us many good days and owe us nothing. We had to be beaten sometime, nothing lasts forever even the great Galway team of the 60s did not win 6 Connaught titles in a row. We as supporters were carried away with ourselves especially the younger generations. My own son was talking in terms of a 8 to 10 point win this evening. 4 points last year and a own goal by Galway, We will be back in a year or two, Aidan O Shea very very poor, Mc Loughlin, Boyle, Regan good. Sideline poor, Cillian played most of the 2nd half in own own half. Too many wides , attitude that they did not matter ,,,, as we would still win . Maybe a rest will do no harm . Team appeared tired in the league and we were lucky to stay up. Team played much better when Aidan was black carded against Monahan

44. Cam down boys were not gone yet.
    Don’t know what happened tonight
    But can’t see it happening again.

45. [Deleted].

46. This Mayo team has done us all proud over the last five years there is no doubt that, Well done to galway Their management had a plan to beat mayo ,mayo management seemed to have plan A GET ALL OUR DEFENDERS TO ATTACK AND ALL OUR FORWARDS TO DEFEND there was no plan B sorry to say.

47. O SULLIVAN….. Ya but they won 3 all Ireland’s in a row. That’s the diff

48. Cork on our side of qualifiers

    Round 2B matches Jul 9th
    Round 3B matches Jul 16th
    Round 4B matches Jul 30/31/Aug1
    QF B Aug 6th (play either Ulst or Leinst winner)

    file:///C:/Users/Family%20Feerick/AppData/Local/Microsoft/Windows/INetCache/IE/YH004863/12886football_wallchart_2016WEB_Neutral.pdf

49. Just wasn’t their day. Quality is there was just a lot of dirty diesel.
    Team needs time and return of top players like diarmuid
    Half forward line was none existent and as our halfback line is so good every team will have a game plan for them.
    Credit to Walsh and Galway they got it spot on

    Team needs a bit of freshing up but I would stick with kmc as sweeper
    Return of diarmid and an another forward be it Loftus or someone with pace and direct running. That game was calling out for carolans and dirmuids direct running outside them two we don’t have halforwards who are direct runners.
    I would keep Higgins in halforwards our backs done sound but we needed men in halforwards line and didn’t get that.
    Aidan was poor but most forwards were compared to their normal levels.

    Not worried think we can improve no doubt a scare might do team world of good blow out dirty diesel and get heads down.
    I fully believe in Rochie and McEntee to get things right

50. http://www.gaa.ie/mm//Document/GaaIe/GAANews/12/84/22/12886football_wallchart_2016WEB_Neutral.pdf

51. Hopefully Ruane will come into the squad in place of gibbons. Feel sorry for gibbons but Ruane may add mobility were lacking

52. First off as much as it pains me to say this but hats off to Galway and in particular their management team.

    Secondly our lads owe us nothing and that have another dip in the lake to come this year.

    Thirdly , better to be beaten by Galway than Ross, we have time to regroup.

    The biggest issue I had this evening was the short kick out tactic on a slow wet day with a greasy ball.

    It took til about the 25 min for us to go long and when we did we got the rewards. Same when we pressed their short kick outs and forced them long.

    I’d have to look back at it but I don’t think we got any scores from a short kick-out but when it was a “traditional ” midfield battle we reaped the rewards.

    Obviously it was another short kick-out that lost us the match.

    The other comments are also valid, lads cramping at the 50min is not s good sign.

    Shot selection was absolutely atrocious in 1st half.

    As for pedigree in the back door, I don’t know if that poster is old enough to remember Longford?

    I haven’t given up on this year yet, but if we are to get to a semi final it would be a bigger upset than today’s result.

53. Liam
    It would appear that my Galway friend will have to forego his late calling to be Trappist monk as his worldly possessions have increased

54. Olive good post. Agree with all you said. We need forwards that can score. We didn’t once threaten their goal. We need to decide now what Aidans best position is. He did not appear today to be operating to a plan. Freshness must come from the successful u21 team. August weekend must now be our target. And make a statement in the next game.

55. We were too defensively set up and as a result no penetration up front, it was taking too long to get ball up the field due to the short kickout strategy one of which lead to the goal. Harrison was left on pitch after going down 3 times with cramp and and was unable to move freely for Galway goal. Some of the bigger names were totally anonymous this evening and left on ? . I feel really sorry for the team as we all know they are better then this but unfortunately both the team and management were not operating on full cylinders and Galway with the bit between their teeth seized the opportunity and good luck to them.
    We will have to regroup and be more ruthless on the field and sideline.

56. Diarmuid was a loss today.

57. Told ye we needed to be weary…too many people smart here predicting Mayo by a landslide…no game plan there today.

58. First of all…thanks for 5 great years.
    Now…nothing to lose so go out and play the best you can.
    If it works out, fine.
    If not, take a break and come again.
    And stick with Rochford.

59. Time for a deep breathe and some deep reflection. This panel of players have given their all but are just not good enough, it’s not the management, it’s not the county board, it’s not the supporters, it’s the players. I don’t know, is time to accept we’re good but just not good enough. Chriost linn!

60. i think that our half back line were told to stay back and defend where as the strength of this half back line was their attacking ability

61. There is a lot to loose these players ousted the last management and made a very public statement so it up to them. I have every faith in them and all we need to do is give them the respect they have earned and let them go away and do their business without creating too big of a scene.

62. I’d like to thank the county board for looking after the season ticket holders so well. Always on their minds making sure we get the best seats in the stand. You can always count on them to do the right thing for the loyal supporters.

63. I tip my hat to you O’Sullivan and your post was ringing in my ear at the full time whistle, although I suspect if your friend had a €1000 to bet on Galway today he’ll hardly notice the returns in his account.
    It’s always a balancing act with regards fitness and showing tactics too early. Galway had 1 game to peak and prepare for and they did it perfectly, they’re not worried about September or anything else, everything’s a bonus after this. We had to be keeping one eye on this game/Connacht and one eye on August/September, and judging by the fitness issues, we got caught out. It nearly happened in the Hyde in 2014 except Roscommon didn’t believe they could beat us. Management got criticised for playing AOS in full forward against Sligo and showing their hand too early. We’ll be playing football in August, after that I’ll revaluate things.

64. Brighton811 – Good man, you can always be depended on to turn up on an occasion like this, ready to put the boot in. Take the hint and try somewhere else for that kind of crap.

65. Hard luck on Mayo, they look like some are coming to the end of a tough few years. Aidan isn’t a forward. He has many fine talents but lacks guile and accuracy. He also never gets fair play from officials. It’s time for him to go back to the middle of the field and concentrate on making the opportunities for team mates.

    We are at our best with half forwards running at the opposition and that has been missing this year, and maybe last year.

    Still hope for the back door but I would worry about keeping the belief that they can win an All Ireland in the squad after tonight. I’m not sure if our sweeping system is needed if Mayo play a more direct game and man mark at kick outs etc.

66. justoutsideballagh – that’s totally out of order. If you want to criticise, let’s have specifics not empty trash-talk.

67. Hard luck on Mayo, they look like some are coming to the end of a tough few years. Aidan isn’t a forward. He has many fine talents but lacks guile and accuracy. He also never gets fair play from officials. It’s time for him to go back to the middle of the field and concentrate on making the opportunities for team mates.

    We are at our best with half backs running at the opposition and that has been missing this year, and maybe last year.

    Still hope for the back door but I would worry about keeping the belief that they can win an All Ireland in the squad after tonight. I’m not sure if our sweeping system is needed if Mayo play a more direct game and man mark at kick outs etc.

68. [Deleted].

69. Agree Liam, cool heads required now. Media will jump on Mayo players now so they need keep heads down and work hard. Season is far from over.

70. Would not like Fermanagh in the back door. I think there may be a redemption of sorts if we get Longford again. It would concentrate minds if nothing else.

71. justoutsideballagh – I’d just deleted that comment you made and now I see you’re dumb enough to put the same thing up again. That’s you in the sin bin now, I’m afraid.

72. Can someone please clarify – are we on the qualifier side with Dublin and Kerry, or the other side with the Connacht and Ulster winners? I’ve seen both sides reported now.

73. Saw this coming for two reasons. 1. Galway far too quite, good players there like Conroy,Flynn, Walsh Sice and Cummins. They were always going to have a cut. 2. This team has given us tremendous days out but five years on the road and the likelihood that you will be caught increases.
    No shape today. Little hunger. Preparation seems off, maybe underestimated the task. Don’t think all is lost but job certainly a lot more difficult. Regan showed well, Boyle outstanding, Coen honest. No other positives.

74. One point from play from a Mayo forward says it all. Have to hand it to Galways game plan. They stuffed the life out of Mayo’s attack. We need to get key players back fit that can make a different. Our midfield was well beaten today alot of this may be down to the fitness of SOS, with Gibbons injury and SOS not 100% and Barry Moran also out we need a backup plan immediately. Matthew Ruane is the ideal choice.

75. It’s an open draw

76. Why play a sweeper against Galway ?. this played into galway hands big-time. Thought Tony McAntee hated using a sweeper system. Our only real functional fwd was Regan !. What the hell happened.

77. That should be “quiet”.

78. I’ve never been convinced we can play a sweeper system, Horan toyed with it early on & dropped it, maybe it’s just taking time to adjust but I think our original hard running gameplan suits the players we have

79. Galway caught us on the hop tonight but we could still beat them in AISF!!! Sweet it would be!! On another note who were the VIPs sitting in sections 104-105-106- looks like having a season ticket stands for jack shit in the eyes of Connaught Council! Why were those seats not unreserved as was emailed to season ticket holders during the week??

80. We don’t use sweeper effectively and it appeared that many players didn’t adapt to what was happening. We talked ourselves up. I think there is a bit of mental as well as physical exhaustion there. Don’t know where predictions of ten to twelve point wins were coming from. They have closed the gap each year since 2013. Walsh had this well planned but we probably could have survived had we not given Galway that goal……counted at least six steps but ultimately it was an unforced error that cost us.

81. Was dreading visiting this forum this evening but some semblance of perspective seems to be prevailing for most commenting – assisted by some able policing!

    Look – it went wrong pretty much all over tonight. We simply never got going and but for a five minute purple patch before the break, we were a pale shadow of ourselves. We kicked some really poor wides in the first half but seemed to be finding our feet before half time. We’d played quite poorly and were up so I was very optimistic at the break.

    Unfortunately we deteriorated quite badly and the goal completely knocked the wind out of us. There was still plenty of time but we panicked a bit and lacked any real composure when needed.

    Outside Boyle, Keegan and McLoughlin who stood up tonight? Cillian had as bad a game as I can recall. Aidan O’Shea likewise. I thought Regan showed well at times and can consider himself unlucky to be called ashore.

    Higgins up front didn’t work for me. He’s far better breaking into the ball and looked lost in terms of positioning on occasions. I’m not sure where Cillian was playing and I fear he himself chose to roam, and did far too much of it. As result there was no shape or fulcrum to the arrack. When the game stretched out we suffered badly.

    We now find ourselves trying to salvage a season in June. An alien experience for this particular Mayo team. It’s not something we’ve ever been adept at but now is as good a time as any to work the system. We’re going to find out a lot about ourselves over the next few weeks – players and fans.

    The players are going to have to dig deep for answers as to why they underperformed so badly. And find solutions to those issues qucikly. The much lauded Mayo following will also be tested. Easy enough to dismiss them as being tired and put off that trip down the country.

    The next steps are about attitude as much as anything.

82. Fair play Galway. Sickened when they won but I really don’t care about connacht. If they are good enough they’ll come through the qualifiers and give Rochford some time to get a game plan together. If they’re not good enough to beat Galway today I’d rather they fall today instead of breezing through connacht and meeting real contenders. Mayo will win an all ireland the hard way.

83. Mayo were well beaten tonight. Its time to have a serious look at team and in particular certain individuals (who are deemed indispensible) and who do not perform on big occasions. Players who receive All Stars need to stand up and be counted when going gets tough and we will see what they are made of now.

84. We found out today that there is a huge difference between club and county management.Player revolts have never worked out well– look at cork our history in the qualifyes does not fill me with confidence . it is time for the leaders of the coup to stand up and be counted

85. As Ger Loughnanne once famously said ‘ Men needed now’…

86. Where’s backdoor sam when you want him . Simply too many wides . Galway had a brilliant defensive structure in place that left us trying useless shots on goal in frustration. Subsequently ending in 10 wides for the first half. Midfield didn’t click throughout the game and forward line was very poor in terms of ball handling and decision making . Coc was a bit off the pace .

    And adain was well man marked end of story , he met his match in the two lads . Where to from here I don’t know but one things for sure I will never give up on this dream.

87. The most disappointing part for me about this performance was that we did not win the dirty ball in the manner we have become accustomed . Surely that was an “upstairs ” problem.

    Despite playing poorly I think we would still have won had we shown our customary fighting spirit. We have players who can come in and make this team tick , one last time. The more tactics we do , the worse the result- or so it seems to me though I do believe we have to master sweeping or we have learned nothing.

    It’s down to the reaction of players and management now. This is an opportunity to do something different . Agree completely with mayomessi comments and especially the need to bring in Ruane and Irwin.

88. Never can see why we insist on Aido playing full forward. He doesnt score enough. He doesn’t get frees. He’s easily double marked out of the game. We don’t pay him right with some one playing off him. Our forwards don’t score enough which is their job. We started without our number 15 and put on a back in his place. We moved Keith our corner back to the forwards. So we’re left with 4 forwards who for most of the game were in our own half. They can’t score from back there. We play 13 men behind the ball and they still went through the us easily.

89. The big challenge now is leadership. Team management are facing a huge leadership challenge in getting the players heads right before the next match without even mentioning tactics or strategies. Equally the team leaders are facing a severe challenge to get their own heads right and reignite energy and intensity in the rest of the panel. They all need to believe that wining an ireland is within their scope in order to keep going. After all that is what the heave was all about last October. The realistic hope of winning an all ireland is the only thing that can re-energise this particular group. Do any of us really believe our lads are capable of beating dublin after tonight’s performance? Not too many I suspect. Anyway, we will keep on supporting them through thick and thin!

90. 8 years of hurt just turned into pure elation at the full time whistle. SO proud of our Galway team, gave it everything – but nothing is won yet.

    All I can say is hard luck Mayo, these players have given you a lot of good days so don’t kick them while they’re down. I am in no doubt they will bounce back in the back door.

    Now to have that pint I should have had 3 hours ago.

91. Left Croke park last year and said he cost us the game and today the same.

92. i think that now is the time for our team to stand up if they are up to it. Dont forget that they are 5 years on the road and a year out may be no harm. But if they as a group commit themselves, tonight may be a good thing, Mayo are always better when they are underdogs . remember Dublin 7 points up and we beat them. Tonight takes all the pressure off, No more talk about them been the only team to beat Dublin ant that is good. If the players collectively decide to give it a go then they will have a much better chance through the back door. Tonight in Castlebar the team as a whole thought they would beat Galway no matter what happened, (As supporters we thought the same.)It appeared that
    we seemed to think that we did not have compete collectively for every ball whereas Galway thought thought that every ball was important if they were to win. We thought that taking bad options and kicking wides did not matter as we would win anyway. Little things
    , but inches matter and if we as a County Supporters and if the County Players change the mindset that has prevailed before todays match and give the Qualifiers a right go it may actually be a good thing that we lost tonight. (Not forgetting as a county we have a bad record in the back door) Unfortunatly I am a long time following Mayo and no SAM yet but I will keep the Faith, I know just as many thought we were unbeatable yesterday and that we are useless today neither are correct. Any Team can be beaten and Galway were fully tuned in to todays game. This was their All Ireland . Now that they have beaten us they will have no fear next year but we will also be tuned in .

93. So where do we go from here….

    Is it lack of talent, lack of commitment, lack of courage, lack of leadership or is it lack of togetherness.

    We need to clearly define what is required to get us out of this mess – we know we have the talent in the county but do we have the talent and commitment on the pitch.

    In the “back-door” we’ll meet a couple of handy teams, get through them and hopefully get back in at the business end of the championship. But them we are back to the same questions…..

    But then again I am not the manager with all these questions. Over to you Stephen.

94. Gutted seeing us lose like that. It was ominous in the first half to think that we should have been 5-1 down if it wasn’t for the heart shown by Boyler, who won the free and scored another point himself which kept us in touch. It’s not good enough that once again it’s left to him to keep us in the match. What heart and character. He’s the true leader of this team, and without him I dread to think how it would have ended. I actually thought Keane did okay and Kevin Mc was suited to the sweeper role early on. I agree it was strange seeing two of our lads go down with cramp, the first (Keane) around 55 minutes or thereabouts. I really hope it’s not the end of an era. It’s hard to take anything positive from tonight though.

95. The disappointing thing is Galway didn’t have to play that well to win. Comer and Walsh were the 2 guys I was worried about beforehand, and to be fair, Keane and Keegan nullified their influence on the game.

    Trying to take the positives going forward is difficult, but I will say:

    Boyle was excellent. Kev Mc as a sweeper was a success IMO. I thought Higgins was very dangerous playing in the forwards, but perhaps had a lack of understanding with the rest of the team due to lack of practice.

    Our main problem was a lack of cohesion in attack. AOS and COC were all over the place and neither were effective. SOS didn’t seem at his best either, possibly due to his injury.

    As poor as we were, I thought we were comfortable until the goal (which was of our own making) went in. Big improvements needed but I fully expect us to be in Croke Park in August.

96. My oh my
    Summer has finally arrived
    Got up at 5 in the morning here to watch that stuff
    Galway can take a bow as they played the conditions and their game plan to perfection.
    Mayo were shocking. Zonal defence let Galway drift into scoring d without the smell of a belt or tackle.
    Our forwards especially our half forwards kept drifting away from the full forward line leaving tHem isolated incident snide with Galway turning over mayo ball at almost every turn.
    Mayo only showed well when we went back to Horan style running from our half backs
    If we are to kick the ball in it has to go early as a lot of our players seem to fancy themselves soloing arund the middle third which allowed Galway to park the bus in front of their goal.
    I know this might be critical but some of our marquee names where non existant today.
    The so called leaders were hiding
    Was at home a few weeks ago and watched rubber v holly moun and COC seemed to be totalling off his game missing frees .
    Just watching on gaa go again and the performance of some of our lads in the last 1/4 was poor.
    On a positive note Colm Boyle was mayos best player and the defence once settled played well. I personally think this will be a kick up the Arse for some guys who have their heads up in the clouds.. This should strengthen the resolve and if we get momentum in the back door we will deffinitely get back to Croaker in August.
    Training should be interesting this week

97. Like a number of posters have said, it was the manner of the defeat which was most worrying. Galway seemed to want it more than us, we never showed got into our stride. They matched us physically, and deserved the win. We were rudderless for the first 25mins, and the last 20. We panicked when we conceded the goal.

    Also, Aiden at full forward has to stop. It clearly hasn’t worked since Dublin exposed it last year. The ball going in is usually poor, he has 3 men on him, and we never seem to have anyone linking up with him. Play him at centre forward where he is most influential.

    That’s just my two cents anyways. I’m looking forward to a road trip in a few week’s time!!

98. how is home advantage decided in the qualifiers.

99. When Mayo just played football (like at the end of the first half) they were unstoppable. Ball sports are simple games that often gets over complicated. Set up the team to play football and get the best out of the players on the panel. #simples
    PS thought Colm Boyle was our stand out player tonight. His superman dives are out of the world 😉

100. I would also question why Evan Regan – our most dangerous forward today- was taken off, I mean at the moment it feels like some players no matter how badly they perform are immune for substitution, now I know these are players who are very talented, but if you’re immune from the hook surely that breeds complacency??

101. Anyway…this is gonna feel a lot worse during the week

102. At an absolute loss, still in shock.

     But well done galway wanted it so much more. this hurts so bloody much.

     The qualifiers is frankly embarrassing for a team of our calibre

     I hope others can see hope for this season cos I’m struggling big time. How on earth could we lose to that galway team?

103. First team drawn out of the bowl gets home advantage. There are exceptions but they wouldn’t apply to us.

     If, and it’s a big if, we manage to negotiate the qualifiers, our fate rests in the hands of the winner of Leinster semi Kildare/Westmeath. Assuming Dublin win Leinster, if Kildare/Westmeath win their Round 4 qualifier, then Mayo cannot avoid Dublin in the quarter final, due to the repeat pairings rule.

     Even if Kildare/Westmeath don’t get through their qualifier, then we are still relying on the Ulster Final loser also losing their qualifier, otherwise we would automatically play Dublin due to the repeat pairings rule.

     Even if both of the Ulster and Leinster finalists lose their qualifiers, Mayo would be playing either the Ulster or Leinster champions in an open draw. Essentially, the chances are that if we negotiated the qualifiers, we would be playing Dublin in the quarters, the winners of that likely to play Kerry in the semi.

     Our potential route through the qualifiers is thus:

     In Round 2B, we’ll play the winners of either Offaly/London, Antrim/Limerick, Down/Longford or Wexford/Fermanagh, in an open draw, on the 9th of July. Cork will play another of those, whilst Westmeath/Kildare will play another and Monaghan/Donegal will play another.

     Let’s play God and assume the big guns come through. Mayo would then be in an open draw in Round 3B to play one of Cork, Westmeath and Donegal/Monaghan.

     Assuming we hadn’t played Donegal/Monaghan in Round 3B, and assuming they won through against either of the other two, Mayo would then be pretty much guaranteed a Round 4B clash against Donegal/Monaghan/Tyrone.

     Even if things went swimmingly for us in the qualifiers, we would face a potential (I would suggest likely) route to an All Ireland final of Down, Cork, one of Donegal/Monaghan/Tyrone, Dublin, and Kerry, just to make it to the 3rd Sunday in September.

104. Bad day at the office for Mayo. Only played well for 10 mins before half time other than that Galway were the better team and fully deserved their win.

     Mayo players and management will be hurting tonight would be foolish to write Mayo off from bouncing back too much quality and experience there not too.

105. From looking at the draws, on the B side Cork would be the strongest side there. Should we progress through to round 4 we could meet loosers of Leinster or Ulster. If Mayo are to regroup and have a go at this they will be doing it the hard way. 3 weeks to the first game, plenty of time to Work on things and there is lots to work on. Firstly I would start with our best players playing in their best positions, Aido is a midfielder, Higgins is a Corner back, Keegan plays at 5, Cillian plays in the ff line. Then I would be looking to the likes of
     Loftus and Reape. We dont have to start from scratch with this team as that seems what it was like tonight, keep whats been working over the last few years and alter,improve what wasnt. It can be done but only if the players have the stomach for it,this is new territory for them.

106. Read Wiilie Joe’s comments at the head of this thread but nothing of the other comments.
     At this stage I am at a loss to understand or try to understand what out tactics today were. Cillian O’Connor, who I would have thought to be our no 1 forward seemed to play most of the game in defence. This tactic of Holmes/Connelly was the main reason why I supported totally the players decision to push for a change of management. Was he supposed to be our sweeper or what? This with Keith Higgins seemingly on the 40. That decision might no seem so strange but Keith seemed to have completely lost his burst of speed, which was his main asset as a forward in the past. But in the past that burst of speed was effective mainly coming from deep in defence.
     I may be old fashioned, probably am, but I have always said that the short kickout is a potential suicide weapon, esp. if opposition forwards were half awake. So it proved today. I’m not blaming Robbie in particular but if it was part of out tactics management must shoulder most of the blame. Granted we were not doing particularly well in midfield but a ball lost there should be 70 m from goal, not 30.

107. Thanks all for keeping everything you’ve had to say comfortably within the limits. I was dreading facing the site tonight but thankfully the vast majority of comments have been perfectly fine. The 1% I can deal with – my skin is thick enough at this stage!

108. It will take a hell of an effort for the team and management to rise from this debacle but they should remember that teams like Kerry, Tyrone and Galway have come through the back door in the past and won Sam. Losing that opportunity to make history winning six Connachts in a row may be a blow but winning Sam would more than make up for it. They have given too much in the past five years to abandon ship now.

109. Backdoor Sam is still here John Jennings and Mayo are still in the championship I’m a bit shell shocked I wonder had all the messing in the stands with guards and stewards trying to put season ticket holders out of their seats an effect? The fans were very subdued for long periods I noticed when the Mayo team were announced there wasn’t a single cheer for individual players anyway we have another chance in the qualifiers I think all is not lost yet sure it will be tougher but at least if we make the quarter finals at least we will have been tested for the first time in 5 years before a quarter final

110. Not much sleep last night was nervous before match honestly thought we would easily beat them ! I live in Galway and they were quietly confident here for past few weeks! Don’t know where it all went wrong only thing I thought was that Galway played like a team and we simply didn’t 🙁 man of the match on our side was Colm Boyle or Kevin Keane Kevin did a great job on Comer I thought kept him fairly quiet & scoreless ! The team need us like never before this is new territory for a lot we need to stand up now and be counted was disappointed with supporters yesterday thought we could have gotten behind team more at crucial times it does make a difference ! this could be the making of us all ! Sorry I missed you yesterday Willie Joe went back to stand to look for flag I thought I left behind ! Qualifiers here we come … This story is not over!

111. Wrong team picked
     Why a sweeper v Galway ?
     Doc young player of the year and brought on last 10 min
     Andy same
     Sick of seeing 30 yards between half forward line and ff line
     Way too slow to make changes
     Players roles? Coen, aos, Higgins?
     Who is the boss on the line? There was selectors, physics, doctors, etc more prominent than manager
     Finally, I said it at the start of the year, SR was talking about the ‘panel’ from day one, basically last years panel, any new manager should have set a clean sheet, just didn’t sound fight, too many didn’t even play fbd or league yet we’re automatically on panel, not saying we ended up with wrong panel but all seemed too comfortable

112. On another note deepest sympathy to the Touhy family Bunnyconnellan on the sad loss of a father and husband , great Gael and GAA worker. Fintan was one of the stalwarts that make the GAA wheels go round. A Dheis Dè ar a Ainm D?lis

113. Leveling mayo to back down to Donegal today with my two kids that wear both mayo and Donegal tops one born in mayo one born in Donegal its a hard loss to take but nothing last’s for ever but one thing I know it was a off day for mayo and as I know ill be back up in mayo in two weeks time I also know this mayo team will be back better than ever with something to prove no body will want to get mayo

114. Digits,
     On reading your route map through the qualifiers to Sam, while I was initially a little pessimistic, I now see it as a positive. If we do make it to the final, there’ll surely be no one left to beat.

115. Fair flippin’ play to Galway. Nights like last night, while very, very hard to swallow, are what makes sport great. Remember ’99? That was their ’99. They were well worth their win and more power to them, and hopefully it wil instil enough belief in them to go on and win Connacht.

     As for us? Well, I’m baffled. Hands up, I never thought for one second we’d lose this game. And that was an opinion formed on the basis of our performances over the past two, three, five years. Not arrogance; just a knowledge that when we are on song, we are pretty good.

     Last night, we had no shape, no purpose, no heart. We looked unfit, unfocused, uninspired. It’s been a long road for us, in fairness. I’d understand if we’d just run into a wall.

     But watching our full-back line cramp up with 20 minutes to go was a shock. Was it complacency? If so, it’s the first time I’ve known it from this team. What was even more surprising was the inaction from the sideline. I’m a massive fan of Rochford – I genuinely believe he is smart, alert, dynamic. But what was our strategy? It was baffling, confusing.

     But that said, I don’t think this is the end of the road for us. Far from it. An adventure awaits us now, and as supporters this is where we need to get behind them more than ever.

116. Loch Garman
     Comhgairdeas go Gaillimh. An foireann is fearr gan dabht.
     I hope Jason Gibbons is well. This is of paramount importance. Any update on him?Hence the importance of the players lotto fund.
     Remember these lads are amateurs and probably got nothing out of playing ‘match of the day’ at a late hour in bad weathet last night for CLG and Sky Sport!
     As was mentioned by sereral people above this team owe us nothing so let’s get behind them for the backdoor. I am of the opinion that we can improve, more games, use more of the panel to build a strong team for Q.finals. Let’s be positive agus le cunadh De beidh Sam ag teacht go Mhuigheo I mbliaina.
     Bigi linn!

117. Need to pick our best 15 and stick to it now. The experimentation should have been done in the league

     AOS back to midfield this constant changing of positions can’t be helping performances

     Clarke back in goal please

118. A very infrequent poster but a frequent visitor to this blog. It really is a great forum and especially now.

     A big challenge/test awaits this group of players and I really believe they are up for it. This defeat whilst deserved on the day will be hurting them bad.

     I am looking forward to the more frequent games over the summer. This was coming . We couldn’t just keep winning connaught and happily skipping on to the QF’s.

     They definitely need to regroup and plan for the qualifiers. Some tough battle hardened teams await us and we need to steam roll all of them!

     We move on now….. bring it on!

119. Anybody on hear has no right to critisize any the players, they went out done their best , but were beaten by hungrier team and was always gonna be our old foes and neighbours galway that was gonna stop us like we, v done to them manys a time in our history n great battles with them, fair play…we regroup and lick our wounds and we,ll go again becausewere the green above the red….believe..

120. I don’t know what Rockford’s plan was, but that display was awful. The only creativity going forward was when Keegan and Boyle made the bursts. If Mayo are to win anything they have to become MEAN and they have to be RUTHLESS.
     Hennelly’s kick out for the goal was poor but to allow a player run thirty yards and score a goal is shocking at this level. We all know to drag him down is a black card but to trip him is only a yellow and that is what should have been done.
     Rockford and co have serious work ahead of them. But they are lucky in that some of the ruthlessness required can be learned from how Galway approached the game. The Mayo forwards weren’t allowed to do anything and if the game was played for 3 hours they would not have scored a goal. Regan, the one time he got the ball and turned his man was fouled immediately. Concede the free lads, but under no circumstances is a goal to be conceded.
     Tyrone are masters at it too. It’s late in the year for learning but it has to be done. Otherwise its over

121. We can only get better the more games we play and now we have to its a good thing u can do all the things you want in training but nothing beets playing hard games take a minute to think of the players how do they feel this morning what went wrong they taught they would beet Galway easy like Donegal taught they would beet Kerry in the all Ireland we can not take any team for granted this will make us strong as a team

122. I wonder how Noel and pat are feeling this morning

123. Wasn’t C Boyle’s point an absolute cracker !……..I was straight in front of him as he took the shot……….After seeing several long range wides imagine the confidence and conviction of the guy to take that one, knowing he’d send it over……….A leader for sure !!

124. I am a season ticket holder i was entiled to a stand seat i went to section 104 only to be asked 20 mins later to leave my seat as this section was reserved for ticket holders who purchased their ticket through an outlet ie supervalue or centra no where in my email that i received from gaa did it state seating was reserved i never saw sutch confusion amoung stewards and gardai you had people standing on the steps between rows. Why didnt stewards stop people entering those sections when they could c all seats were filled gaa please explain

125. Whilst the players and management reflect in the coming days on how to channel this setback into renewed hunger and commitment on the pitch and sidelines, perhaps we, as supporters can do likewise. We were way to quiet yesterday even though we well outnumbered the Galway fans.
     Reflect on all the time and energy you expend in the run up to a match. Thinking about, talking about it, reading about it, writing about it (in the case of this blog) not to mention the simple act of getting to and from the match.
     So why can’t we commit our voices and flag waving, green and red wrapped arms more during the game itself. Seventy odd minutes of adrenalin pumping, roaring at the top of your head, good old fashioned, making an eejit of yourself! You might come away from the match feeling better about yourself even if we don’t win because at least you can say you gave it your all even if others didn’t. How many of us can truly say that after coming away from McHale Park yesterday?
     To end, I don’t buy the theory at this stage that somehow we’re at a game to be entertained and we shouldn’t be expected to get animated. We’ve invested too much time and energy for that, not as much as the players or management but enough for us to be part of the set up. To use a jigsaw analogy, imagine we, as supporters, are one of the corner pieces in Mayo’s All Ireland puzzle which has taken longer than expected to finish. Ultimately, when it comes down to finishing the puzzle let’s make sure our piece doesn’t go missing!
     Keep the faith and make sure to rest your voices for the next day out.

126. Our shot selection was as bad as I’ve ever seen. Some players guilty of not looking up to the free man. Our goalkeeper usually makes a daft decision and didn’t get away with last night….Does anyone know how many round we have to play to reach a quarter now?

127. Boyler didn’t give an inch all evening. One of the few guys that can stand over his performance this morning.

128. Yeah, again I say Boyler was fantastic and he’s consistently one of our top players for his attitude and determination. A role model for all our young players.
     I think we were experimenting to a large extent with the defensive game plan and it went badly wrong or needs more time. The analysts will figure that one out. But if we go went defensive players as we did we need to make sure we have enough players on the pitch who can score. And they’ve got to get into scoring positions far more regularly than they did.

129. Rock are you fucking mental? Boyler is one of a few that can hold his head up today…don’t make me laugh

130. Yew Tree – three, I think, before we get to a QF

131. Yew Tree – read my post again like a good lad.

132. Sorry rock I misread you statement…WJ delete my comment if you want. I think o defeats like yesterday make or break teams…we can lie down and die or rise up and face the challenge ahead…interesting few weeks ahead

133. I assume club championship is going ahead next weekend as Mayo are still down for playing same week end as Connacht final.

134. Keegan was not great either best of the wing back was Boyle was brill yesterday.

135. still shocked, a few points I want to make – forget the heave fed up listening to that shite. the players did what they thought was right and they were right. they are a long time on the road. they looked at a loss / New gameplan?????? didn’t work. stop putting Aidan in at full forward at any time only confuses matters. we work best when he is out field, was he fit?? cramps with 20 minutes to go – what does that mean. I thought evan was good needs better supply, someone else should have been taken off to allow Andy on. and if you are putting on Andy he needs one than five minutes. hennelly was bad, punching balls mistake for goal. midfield better when aidan to support. not sure where we go from here, maybe a good kick in the arse is w hat we needed or maybe it is the end of an era.

136. We must learn from this. We have to change our goalie,we need to define the role of our half backs and persist with a sweeper.Aos must be either in half forward line or midfield.Regan coughed up a lot of possession but you could not fault his effort.CoC paid dearly for his black card in London- perhaps he should have been taken off.Durcan does not have the physical presence of Vaughan.is it too late to freshen up the panel

137. You always have to be wary of overconfidence and arrogance.Our boys owe us nothing but they had become overconfident and with some degree of staleness setting in.Fans who refuse to be anything but hyper optimistic do not help.It is arrogance to suggest as some did we would beat Galway by 10 points.And it is still happening.Most teams supporters would be worrying about next match in our situation …some are speaking already of qtr final and trying to figure out opponents.I say relax…one game at a time and accept we are vulnerable .
     Some players need to be replaced.That is not easy to hear but they have been great.
     I think Stephen R has a lot to prove.He needs to take control and earn respect.I think Cillian and Aidan need guidance as does whole team.If they are allowed to wander aimlessly then who is managing?
     I think that his reluctance to take off Aidan showed weakness…I hope I am wrong.The best managers are strong…time to step up Rochie.
     We are not at present in the top 3 or 4 who could win Sam.But thats not the issue…let us take it game by game with a plan and some new faces and see where it takes us.

138. It seems that all of this talk about us been one of the only teams who could beat Dublin and that we were pretty much odds on to win Connacht again seeped into the players heads. It was like as if the games in Connacht were a chore to get out of the way before the main business would start in Croke Park. A lot of us supporters probably felt the same way too.

     Now is the time for EVERYONE to take a step back. It seems that people want to jump back on the merry go-round straight away talking about September and August etc again. If we play like we did last night we are going nowhere. We are finishing games very badly this year, maybe its because so many players have had so many niggles, it has been hard to get proper training done.

     So for now, we should all wait for the draw. The first game is key, a handy draw, maybe even one at home would be great. One step at a time. Our only consolation is that before the back door we’d now be gone. All is not lost but getting the injured players back playing will be crucial. Best wishes and a speedy recovery to Jason Gibbons as well.

139. Hueyandlouis – I agree. Rochford needs to be more ruthless and lay down a marker for the next day out that you’re only as good as your last game. The players need to know there is nothing inevitable about team selection.

140. I’m at a loss to figure out what happened Mayo last night, Galway done to us what we done to Cork in 2011, when the game was on the line, they had more heart, fight, dog and want than we did. They are all the things we have been privileged to see in this Mayo team for the last 5 yrs. We carried into tackles time and time again, got turned over cheaply, gave sloppy or suicidal passes often. Our support play was non existent. We lost midfield which cost us ultimately but we were so worried about using a sweeper we had no options in attack! At a few stages in the first half, there seemed to be2 sweepers, Keane and k Mac, yet we were still conceeding soft scores. I see the merits of Higgins in the half forward line, but if we are not going to support him properly then forgot it. Based On that performance last night it could call time on this particular era for Mayo, but I’m not going to throw in the towell or raise the white flag just yet!

141. As somebody who likes a flutter on the nags I can definitely vouch for the fact that there is no such thing as a sure thing in sport.

     I rate Rochford and see this as a three year job. He took over a team that had been around for five years and had won nothing. Great teams win All Irelands. If he were to win an AI then he will have to build a team to do that. Taking a team over the line that probably was the first to win 4/5 Connaught titles and not win a national title was never a given.

     This morning I actually feel quite confident for the future. A team of winners needs to be put in place.

142. Jason Doherty was our only forward who scored from play. I really think we now have an opportunity to give youth a chance and bring in some of the U21 forwards. Put Loftus in the corner, Regan the other corner and Cillian in full forward. We’ve too many grafters in the forwards and not since a naive Sligo left Aiden alone with a full back has he been hugely effective (goal against Donegal excepted). The sweeper system simply allows teams to double up on him and cancel him out. We simply don’t have enough scoring forwards.
     Rochford now have an opportunity to throw off the shackles and be ruthless. No need for planning to peak in September or showing our hand too early. We can just focus on the next game, bring in some youth and try and build a head of steam.
     One very astute tactic Walsh employed yesterday was to force our least comfortable ball carriers onto the ball. Initially Parsons was receiving all the short kickouts but they tightened up on him and left Keane free. Galway then focused on that wing and they got 5/6 turnovers from that tactic alone.

143. Not one bit surprised by last nights events. There were a minority who forewarned that all this arrogance and complacency represented a major threat when coupled with opponents who had been for seven months targeting and preparing intensively for this game. Unfortunately for the majority of the Mayo public that kind of casual mindset turned into a malaise that also would appear to have seeped into the minds of many of the players. Forewarned did not translate into forearmed in this instance. Galway did their homework and fair play to them. As for us, the tables have firmly turned in Connacht – we are no longer the unstoppable force in the eyes of our neighbours. The ringleaders of the coup have shown a lack of (and I would suggest an understanding of) real leadership. Whether the team can regroup and launch a successful negotiation of the qualifiers will become known in the coming weeks. Wishing management and players the best of luck in their efforts to turn the lessons from this big disappointment into a winning formula.

144. I decided not to post last night as the blood was still boiling and wanted a bit of perspective. Mayo management have still stuck with hennelly in goal and this has cost us scores and again today another goal, we need clarke in goals, full stop. We had no ability to break through galways defensive set up, we were roasted in midfield,where were the leaders to calm the ship after Galway got their goal. They will need to take a hard look at themselves the players, they were the ones that ousted the previous management team that brought them to a semi final replay. A famous quote from ciaran fitzgerald when ireland won the rugby in 1985 and he asked his team mates at half time”where’s your f*cking pride”, these players and management will need to look into each other’s eyes and ask have they still got the pride. I was in the stand today roaring on Mayo trying to get them going but much of the stand was quiet. A mayo woman in front of me was giving out to her friend sayin will I have to listen to that Roaring all game(ie) me basically. These kind of supporters won’t travel to league games in cork, Donegal, and didn’t try and be the 16th man, but will be the first to criticise the Mayo team. I’m very proud of this team and they have given me great pride over the years as a season ticket holder, so I hope they will regroup, analyse the game and get back in the saddle for the qualifiers. Maigh Eo Abu.

145. James Horans article in the indo a few days back did Mayo no favours stating the gap has widened between Mayo and Galway. He should know better than coming out with crap like that. It only helped to sharpen Galways swords and swell Mayos heads. Well done Galway deserved their victory. I hope they go on and win Connacht. Mayo look tired maybe a years rest is what they need. Boyle superb other senior players need to take leadership and come back to reality

146. forgot to wish Jason gibbons a speedy recovery. also Boyle was immense a real leader. one game at a time. tis could be the best thing that ever happened us. time will tell. UP MAYO

147. Mayos dominance of Connacht is well and truly over. Galway and Roscommon are coming. Has this Mayo team many miles left in the tank?

148. Clarke has to be our no 1 goalie for the remainder of the championship. There is only one place for Aidan oShea and that’s midfield along with Tom Parsons. Freeman or Loftus need to start in full forward line. I would start Vaughan as well.

149. I still can’t understand what the Mayo game plan was yesterday. I mean all the things we tried in the league that were familiar to the players wasn’t utilised yesterday. Keith Higgins was in our full forward line many times looking for the ball. While he tried his best he should have been sweeping instead of mcloughlin. Kevin mc played well but he’s more effective at 10 especially with diarmaid o Connor not 100%. We needed pace there and we had none.

     Why was Stephen coen playing at no 12. He kicked a good point but he’s a wing back/ midfielder. He was lost for large parts of the game and didn’t know what to do. Alan freeman must be wondering what the hell he has done? Patrick Durcan was very nervy and when he gets the ball he can’t wait to get rid of it. Our midfield was lethargic and slow. Up front the wrong decisions were made constantly in relation to shooting, passing and providing an outlet. The basics were just terrible. There was no balance to that Mayo team that was picked. Rochford showed too much respect to Galway with the way we set up. We should have been pushing up on them from the word go. Put the pressure on them
     Like we have in the last few games we’ve played against them and make them make the mistakes. Mayo were too negative, too defensive and too clueless.

     Don’t get me started on our goalkeeper. He has cost us in numerous games over the years and again yesterday. Clarke is more reliable, dependable and assured. He never does anything daft. It’s time for Aidan O Se to be dropped. He needs a kick in the behind. He’s had a poor league and yesterday he looked a shadow of the player he was. Cillian too needs to sort himself out. His shot selection and decision making at times yesterday was awful.

     Fair play to Galway. They kicked on when they got their goal and never looked back. They know they can beat us now and this win will give them
     Lots of confidence going forward. I’m not optimistic about the qualifiers. We may win a few games but against better teams than Galway I don’t expect a lot unless rochford takes the shackles of some players and let’s Mayo players drive on. I don’t know if it can get any worse. Maybe it can. I’ve the same feeling in my guts after the Longford game in 2010. I’m angry and disappointed at that performance and the way we were set up. I’ve watched the game again on sky plus and this defeat hurts like hell.

150. What about the Galway tactics??they were spot on..Galway allowed mayo take short kick outs and only engaged runners at half way.They knew mayo’s instinct would be to carry hard and they waited for their chance to stop the runners momentum, swarm and tackle.Yet everyone continued to run into trouble…mayo could have moved the point of attack by using the width of the pitch or kick passing longer but as Walsh knew..the latter was not likely.The quality of galway tackling was excellent.New tactics from mayo point of view take time to bed in.

     Management need opportunity to change things and with a loss now are in a position to make big calls on big names…If some were left off before Galway game people would have been up in arms.Dust themselves down, make a few changes and go again.It’s all part of change within a squad.

151. That Mayo team have buckets of heart, passion and pride. But this result has been coming due to the lack of natural forwards.

152. All is forgiven Yew Tree.

     A big problem yesterday as I saw it was our shape. Once Galway tucked the goal away I thought we panicked a little and had the likes of O’Connor and O’Shea coming far too deep for possession.

     We had no one holding their position inside and offering a target for ball carriers. We then had to try pop little hand passes over oncoming defenders. On a wet day with a packed defence it was never going to work.

     I was particularly disppointed with O’Connor yesterday. On the first half he took on a few shots with team mates much better placed. Very unlike him and not something I’ve seen from him before. Lack of game time or the captain trying to do too much?

153. I agree with you rock on o Connor I wonder was it to soon to give the captaincy to him I not having a go at him maybe he might get his form back.

154. It doesn’t feel any better this morning but at least the haze of shock has receded enough to look ahead.Every one of the players and management will be well aware of what took place last night in MCHale as well as the 21783 or there abouts who sat and stood in amazement as the quite unexpected unfolded.The facial expressions were all very much in tune as they streamed down MCHale road. You got the feel of the utter dejection and disbelief that cloaked the whole area. I thought people were vetting each other for state of wellbeing or other as they thought of how far away they had parked and of course it was further than they had imagined.And then Billy Fitz was there to say that he had warned them so on Mid West the previous evening ,like so many of the posters had done here,in truth. That being so,none of those warnings were anything other than warnings.Not a sinners soul of the Mayo support that turned up last night really thought this would happen.Those who offered the warnings were merely saying that it could happen but not in the sense that anything can happen as people say when something is almost outside the bounds of possibility!
     On the way in before the game there seemed to be a certain quietness among the fans as they approached the pitch. This same quietness was more noticeable inside, as the crowd assembled, except for the odd roar when the team came out or when there was a sign of something happening before half time.
     It’s very possible that this great mass of supporters knows exactly what’s up on the pitch.Some enquire about the absence of the Mayo chant and point to the importance of the last little piece of the jigsaw.But where do you put that little piece when the rest of the pieces are all over the place and how can a chant arise when it’s not heart felt.When it did last night one knew it would be short lived and it was.
     There s no point in allocating blame…everyone is doing their best but it may be increasingly coming home to people that our best is simply not good enough or won’t be either down the line! We hope and fear and wish and pray under a shadow whose presence is strengthening with time.
     The crunch question is …. have we got the where with all to build the scores? Can we come up with that pattern that’s created by smart, accurate ,well timed kicks, hand passes ,running and execution, the absence of which is at the bottom of our malaise?
     If we can, the future is brighter than ever. If not, let us say,that it’s something to be working on for the next generation!

155. Who are mayo going to blame now? A lot of players will have nightmares about that game for a lot of years. Maybe we should finally realise that this team just doesn’t have minerals…

156. Galway should have had a goal with their first attack.
     We seemed lethargic from the start.
     3 points up a coasting, kickout gave Parsons no chance.
     Well done Galway, maybe this is kick in the arse we all need.

157. Well well well, how about that for a turn up for the books? Great evening in Castlebar for the underdog, that is what is great about sport, no one really knows what can happen, delighted for Galway, never thought I would get hoarse shouting for them but that happened yesterday evening in castlebar, the mood of arrogance and cockiness from Mayo the last few weeks and at the game was nauseating, I questioned on this forum after the defeat to Dublin last year was that the end of an era and I was shot down, I still think it could have been but the qualifiers will now answer that question, will be hard to regroup for them though with level of expectations within your counties fan base. Should be a great Connacht final, Galway will be favourites but sure we will give it a lash anyways.

158. Desperately disappointing. Aidan O’Shea seemed completely out of sorts . One of the Mayo management team came onto the field several times apparently with advice for him. Strange.
     Top marks to Colm Boyle though. If anybody can lift this team now it is him.

159. Not one poster has mentioned the terrific save from Hennelly in the second half to tip a piledriver over the bar.

     The short kickouts were poor yesterday but he’s doing so under instruction. He was roundly criticised in the replay last year for driving it long after conceding a major.

     I’m admit I’ve always held a preference for Clarke but the criticism of Hennelly is very unfair at times.

160. A lonesome walk up McHale Road for sure and still fairly lonesome today. I was at a friend’s birthday party last night and I should have done her a favour and kept away, I wasn’t much fun. I posted here during the week that Mayo’d bate Galway out the gate and I had seen enough from Galway and plenty from Mayo to suggest that would be indeed the case. At half time I thought to myself that we were only at half steam and not showing all our cards and in the second half we’d change the tempo, tighten up and shake off Galway and head home with six or seven to spare. Again, this was based on seeing Mayo play less than convincingly in other games and and still win with a bit to spare. But not yesterday. After the goal it looked like Mayo panicked. I would love to think that this is all part of a deeply cunning master plan by management to experiment, be written off and still be a force in August and September but that’s just being naive. Galway were not naive on any level yesterday. They were focused, well drilled and more skilled. In fact they looked like a well honed, seasoned team that had been on the road a few years and played with great purpose and belief. They’re man at three, Kyne, had a great game and we’ll done to him. What next for Mayo? A bitta reflection and my hope is that the blame game doesn’t start internally but my feeling is that by mid week we’ll have the customary ‘unrest in the camp from a good source’ shite talk. I really, deeply hope that we and the team can ‘re-group and hit the road again in a few weeks…….where ever it leads. Maigh Eo Abu.

161. hontheros I’ll be equally delighted if Galway put yous to the sword the next day

162. I’m delighted a Roscommon person finally got a chance to exercise their lungs at the Mecca of football. I guess at 85 years old I’m to young to remember when Roscommon last did a ‘Galway’ to Mayo. Connacht final 2016 without the main Act will be like tea without sugar, Thin Lizzy without Phil, Queen and no Freddie. Mayo are still in the Championship and you ain’t seen nothing yet!

163. hontheross – as a guest onhere from another county, you’d want to watch it coming out with stuff like that on a day like today. I’ll let you away with that one but I won’t be as charitable if it happens again.

164. Everyone is saying how great Galway were! Well the truth is they were almost as bad as Mayo. But for a very poor kick out causing a goal they mightn’t have won at all. If Mayo were awful – and they were – then Galway were only one goal better.
     When we came back and went points four up I thought we would keep them at arms length until the final whistle. And I suspect the players thought the same and slipped into a comfort zone. And we all know that it’s hard to break out of that once it sets in. We got what we deserved and now everyone has to suck it up.
     Rochford now needs to call a spade a spade and tell some of our top rated players that their style of play simply is not effective. He needs to put his stamp on the team and cut out the headless play we saw last night. As some poster said earlier quoting Ger Loughnane ” men needed now”. And one man in particular Stephen Rochford needs to step up to plate. It is some challenge for a newbie IC manager.
     But don’t let me hear anymore talk of how brilliant Galway were. Fair play to them for winning but they have a lot to learn as well.

165. So… down the scenic route we go (need to make a few adjustments to the calendar at work! ?)
     Still can’t get my head around that yesterday. We just didn’t show up at all. But that’s for players and management to try and figure out. It might do them no harm though, many of teams have done well from the qualifiers. Galway were deserving winners and all the best to them.

     Also speedy recovery to Jason Gibbons ?

166. Why would ya drop Aidan?? He won every ball into him in the first few mins…but, again their was no runner off his shoulder for him to give quick ball to, he was just bottled up and had no outlet, just like the Dublin games. Too much is expected off him! Why cant the manager realise that he needs someone running off his shoulder, its not rocket science!.

     When we put up our preffered 15 on this blog, I always go with Clarke in goal, its time Rochford thinks the same. Im sorry, but Robbie costs us games and cracks when the pressure is on. Sort out our goalie and overall shape for the next game and we might have some chance. One game at a time now.

167. O’Neill, you talk about new tactics bedding in – but there was precious little evidence of anything new in the line of tactics. We looked like headless chickens; utterly clueless. Carrying the ball into trouble time and time again. My heart sank when I saw Aidan at full-forward – the dog on the street knows that ship has sailed, and yet?

     I was pretty upbeat last night, but the despondency is starting to kick in a bit now.

     Also getting pretty damn sick of seeing Hennelly scapegoated time and time again.

168. Just for a bit of perspective, Galway were 5/1, which has them winning one game in six.
     5/1s do come through in sport.
     We need two good tough qualifier games to steady the ship.
     If we fluked through a late goal to draw we would be unlikely to implement as much change. The team in how it was laid out was unbalanced. Not going to dig in the ashes but we can regroup. Need a tough game straightaway in qualifiers to bring a sense of urgency.

169. All – just to echo Anne-Marie’s point, I’m getting a bit tired of how Robbie is being singled out for criticism here. The blame for last night’s defeat can’t be laid solely at his door and he did plenty that was positive last night. I’ve no problem with people criticising the kick-out that led to the goal but, please, a little more decorum in doing so wouldn’t go amiss.

170. SEASON TICKETS HOLDERS treated disgracefully again by THE TOP BRASS no surprise there THATS THEIR STYLE.

171. A disappointing display from mayo. Full marks to Galway they stuck with there plan and capitilized on poor kickout and kicked for home. I see alot of goals scored from intercepted short kickouts. Its a dangerous tactic laden with danger and we paid the price. Mayo looked nervous until 10 min before half time when they got foothold in midfield and got some scores. Aiden was moved out the field and mayo got into their stride. Aiden is a defensive midfield player and that is it. Not quick enough in any way to play as a forward and we are very beatable when he is stuck up there. My own opinion is milage has caught up with alot of these guys both physical and mental and its very understandable as year on year its tough to keep coming back. Only Boyler showed heart and desire. We never play well on saturday evening anyhow but full credit to Galway and all the best against Roscommon it should be good game.

     Did i hear caff is out longterm? maybe its rubbish but if he is then thats a loss. So if fit the team for next day i would like to see

     Clarke
     Harry
     Caff
     keane
     Boyle
     Coen
     Higgins
     Aos
     Parsons
     Kmac
     Cillian
     Diarmuid
     Regan
     Doc
     Loftus

     Might be bit controversial but we must look to the future. No point looking back. We need to play guys in their best position. To me yesterday it was very disorganised. Like they were playing together for the first time. Lets hope we can pick up the reigns again

172. We re fairly used to Aido and various others being bottled up when they’re eventually delivered ball. What’s new?On numerous occasions Mayo players seem to deliberately seek out a cluster of maroon jerseys to sink into. Big ball into Aido and him with the hands up calling for it. Here it comes…wait for it… come on ye two, mark me!…Who told him that was going to work and in what century do they think he’s playing?It’s simple but not that kind of simple.

     And then poor Evan in the corner making good shows but by the time this long ball arrives he is literally gobbled up by three or four maroons…..v simple indeed but not for our fellas.And where were they to assist? K mcL had a great game but ’twas a game wasted or at least not nec. He might as well have been on the line when not above where he should have been.
     The great lesson that emerged from last night is that there is much needed home work to be done in the coming weeks. So it’s heads down and best wishes to all as we move along to whatever awaits.

173. Terrible performance. I think boyle mcloughlin and regan are the only ones who can be somewhat satisfied with their performance. Our big names AOS included never turned up and he takes it into the tackle too much. We still don’t know how to overcome a blanket defence. We need Diarmuid, Barry Moran and conor loftus back the next day

174. The 2 most predicable things after a Mayo defeat are the number of “I told you it was coming” merchants and their near relations “I blame the goalkeeper ” merchants. I hope that all these Geniuses have put a serious dent in the Paddy Power share price by lumping on at 5/1 but I have my doubts.
     Mayo are still fourth in the betting for the All Ireland at 10/1. Galway are 22/1, Leitrim are 5000/1 and I didn’t look for Roscommon.
     The problems are not insurmountable if the commitment is still there. If not, the qualifiers will still help with a succession plan for next year.

175. I’d normally be optimistic and definitely pissed off with some of the doom mongers on here but WJ is moderating fairly as always.
     However I got a bad feeling about this one on Friday from talking to a Galway GAA club Veteran who said they would have a defensive system and a plan for AOS. He thought they’d be fine in the backs despite rookies but worried about up front. Their forwards didn’t do a whole lot if damage and the 2 danger men were dealt with so they will have their work cut out to beat Ros.
     I blame the result parly on fans overconfidence seeping into players. Some we not at 100% championship sharpness due to injury returns (COC and SOS).
     Ref was good apart from his phobia at dishing out black cards. Both teams should have had 2 or 3 sidelined.

176. Hmmm, well that result made it alot harder. Hoping that we make it through the qualifiers (9 July, 16 July, 30 July), Saturday 6 August will be our QF (Leinster or Ulster winners) date. Mightnt get that far though. Cork away in round 2B would not be nice.

177. It really annoys me when people blame the fans for a team losing, it’s rediculous, have you spoken to any dubs lately? Their confidence doesn’t seem to affect the players! Rochford has come in and he’s trying to get them playing a different way to the last 5 years and it’s just not taking…..yet. Yesterday seemed to be a mess organisation wise, I don’t know what position lads were meant to be playing. The only time we seemed to come into the game was when we reverted to our running game. Cillian seemed to take on too much, taking shots from too far out, maybe it’s because of the captaincy. Kevin MC is the right man for the sweeper though, he’s reads the game very well. AOS at full forward doesn’t work when he’s up there by himself but he’s still an incredible player and I think he needs to be out the field. Higgins was good when he got a run at them but we didn’t get the ball to him enough. I read a post recently that said someday we will be caught in Connacht and it’ll be when we least suspect it. That was yday. I don’t give a hoot about Connacht to be honest and we’re still in the all Ireland so head up, at least we might get a few extra games to go to!

178. Of all the years to lose in Connacht though……

179. @Shuffly Deck,
     I hardly think the fans were alone in thinking we’d win this one, the bookies, professional pundits and the vast majority of Galway people were on board also. As another poster said, there must be some happy men on here today who’ll be queuing outside Paddy Powers tomorrow morning waiting to cash in. Most balanced people said that the only way Mayo would lose is if we played our worst game in years and Galway their best, guess what happened. To the rossie coming on here to gloat, you again show your true colours, a parasitic supporter who feeds off of other teams victories, because you cannot beat us you rely on other to do so. I can assure you, the whole of Connacht will be roaring on Galway in Salthill.

180. http://www.irishtimes.com/sport/gaelic-games/darragh-%C3%B3-s%C3%A9-it-s-hard-to-feel-sympathy-for-mayo-1.2344699

     Think this article is worth a read , it’s time Clarke was back in goal

181. There has been alot of head scratching, I toldya so, Hennelly bashing going on and I suppose thats expected. A lot went wrong last night and therewill be a lot of video analysis, soul searching going on in the squad this week but the draw is monday week and everyone will need to focus on the job ahead.

     My one big concern going ahead is our injury list. We are potentially going into an intensive run of games where the entire panel will be under pressure.Idont think we can carry any injured soldiers anymore. The bench looked fairly bare last night with no cover in areas like fb. If there are long term injuries on the panel they need to be replaced no matter who they are.

     There will be numerous opinions on who should play and here is my alternative selection (it wont happen but worth a thought)

     Hennelly/ Clarke (I dont know, normally I would opt for Robbie but if that kickout plays on his mind and cause him to hesitate then Clarke maube safer bet)

     Harrison, Caff, Higgins
     Keegan, KMc, Boyle
     AOS, Coen
     Loftus/Carlon, Dillon, DOC
     Regan, Cillian, Reape

     KMc did well at sweeper and plays centre back for Club. Parsons is an athlete and gets on so much ball but his refusal to actually kick the ball is a hindrance and slows play down, opposition know he wont kick it. AOS at midfield end of! Let Loftus and Reape loose, let them run defences ragged, need alot more movement in the forwards. Cillian you are a forward, our top scorer, you cant score from the half back line.

182. Robbie was hesitant from start to finish , nearly cost us a goal at the start , punching / flaming at balls coming in

     Clarke is more reliable and deserves his Chance

183. Robbie punched two balls coming in, both were dealt with, one he got huge distance on the other he purposely punched it to a colleague ( boyle I think) Robbie made one mistake, the kickout no one can argue with that. But questions have to be asked how a big slow midfielder could run unchallanged for 30+ metres to score. If you are to take part in a little Hennelly bashing then use examples where he actually make a mistake.

184. Mayomad, how slow do you think Tom Flynn is? He ran the length of the pitch through about six players to score a goal against Kerry in Croke Park a couple of years ago.

185. He hardly possesses Jack McCaffery pace, no Mayo player between him 30 metres out and the goal. It was a poor kickout no question but Mayo were playing a defensive game with a sweeper but no one in defence when operating a short kickout strategy?

186. Kerry get away with this type of scare because they treat the opposition with respect no matter what the fans and bookies or anyone else says.
     I just think we were a few percent off. There was a good urgency during our good 10 min spell and we need that for close to 70.
     Regards tactics, not getting into GK debate, he saved a few points and 1 mistake. Midfield not dominant posed a problem for him. There were some that worked, Kevin Mc sweeper, Regan won a lot of his ball and plenty of frees, Keith was our best forward and always took the right option but often there was poor choice if options. Cillian showed no fear kicking even after missing a few but no league means he’s still behind on his championship pace.
     A negative is AOS role. With Gibbons sadly injured, I’d say alternate him and Seamus as 2nd midfielder as Parsons has a 70 min engine. That means we could play Andy, Freeman or Alan Dillon for some savvy up there.
     However if we subbed off Aido yesterday there would be huge Galway cheer and it would be seen as conceding defeat. Might be easier for management to drop him and let him know we want him as impact sub.
     Durkan didn’t show his pace and flair but slippy pitch and he did little wrong. I think he will nail a place this year or next and Donie, Coen and Drake are options.
     Galway had plan not to concede a goal, foul if needed. Ref was the most allergic to dishing out black cards I have seen and both teams were lucky not to lose a few. Otherwise he was a good.
     Round 2 of qualifiers looks very winnable with lower division teams. Cavan had a good day out today but lack enough quality though the pose a goal threat. Expect easy Tyrone victory in the replay and they are serious AI contenders, watch out Dublin. We were at Cavan’s standard yesterday.
     In my bones I expect we win next round and draw Cork, 2 underperforming teams. Media would enjoy that one.

187. Look may mad I am entitled to my opinion

     I was at the two games in London and in Castlebar last night … He was hesitant at the start last night , do you not remember the first ball that came in and nearly resulted in a goal ,

     The Dublin game last year , he panics under pressure , his indecisive decisions at crucial times

     They have cost us before they cost us yesterday

188. Mayo51, I wasn’t at the London game so can’t comment on that but I thought hennelly was fine yesterday apart from his 1 mistake. As regards punching balls, what else can he do on a wet day?

     We were being cleaned out in midfield so we had to try short kickouts. We could have defended the goal better, maybe if Keane and Harrison weren’t suffering from cramp they would have got across quicker.

     Clarke will probably get the nod now understandably, but the hennelly bashing is a bit tiring.

189. I think this result is totally over analysed! Mayo came in to casual about the game and behind Galway in fitness. The game got away from them and they lacked the drive – the drive that got the draw with Dublin last year!
     Rochford should know, as manager, if some players are at the end of the road, if so, freshen it up. If it was just simply “a bad day in the office” them stick the the same team but play the players in their proper positions.
     This is what Rochford is there for, to make the required changes – but in time.
     Another part that let the team down was the supporters – never sat in such a quite McHale park!

190. Sad but not out. Thanks to all our players and management for the great years…and I have a feeling it isn’t over yet. No feeling of despondency but full of hope and know that we have a long road to the latter stages but we’ll be there. Congrats to Galway for their wonderful win and hope it will be a great connaght final. But most of all I am proud of Mayo football and hope they will rise in the weeks to come. Always a proud mayoman and his daughter…never lose heart!!!

191. First of all I’d like to say the game was played in the traditional fair manner these two counties pride themselves on. Being obviously delighted with the result I feel the level of apathy the Galway supporters and press in general made it very difficult for Mayo camp to identify and fight for a cause. Mayo should not be despondent. It’s now that real leadership is needed. The thing is for players and supporters to take one game at a time – be patient. And hopefully as you progress systems and fresh talent will bed itself down. However from here on in it is sudden death so players have to reprogram the competitive mind set – which in my opinion was severely lacking on Sat. Hopefully, this will be a glorious year for Connaught football. Keep the faith. Ceart Agus Coir.

192. Its now another a serious test of this bunch of players character. Only Colm Boyle showed up last Saturday evening. Mayo were 2nd to every ball, were indecisive in possession and stood off Galway all over the pitch. We also looked like we had believed all that was written in the run up to the game about Galway having no chance. All of the above can be remedied. What was most worrying for me was the tactics, or lack of that were employed. If I was the manager of the team who draws Mayo next its clear that we struggle against a defensive setup. Saturday was a day to revert back to the off the shoulder hard running game with higgins and keegan to the fore. When we done that for 10 minutes in the 1st half we cut through them. Also we gave up a forward in playing kevin mcloughlin as a sweeper. He is not the man to fill that role. Stephen Coen, Tom Parsons or Shane Nally would be a better fit. Rochford has a big job on his hands now. There are some strong personalities and voices in that dressing room. Guys who are expecting the best preparation. What Noel and Pat couldn’t provide.
     I hope he is up to it as we are capable of going on a run through the qualifiers. We will soon find out what this group of players and management are made of.

193. I don’t think it’s right to say that people are Hennelly-bashing at this stage.
     Look at the facts – he has made mistakes regularly which have cost us goals, particularly in big games.
     We can’t afford to give away cheap goals, we’ve paid the price before and we can’t keep doing it!
     He’s an excellent keeper apart from these moments of madness/concentration lapses, but the team needs a more dependable man between the sticks.

194. Well said tubberman

195. So would you go with Clarke tubberman?

     Agree totally that he is a liability , time management seen it