We’re still alive in this year’s Championship. Ourselves and Monaghan both looked like teams that were staring down the barrel of elimination at MacHale Park today and, as that prospect grew ever closer for both of them, quality largely went out the window as a more elemental struggle for survival took hold.
It was one we eventually won but Monaghan supporters will have left the sun-washed Castlebar venue today hugely aggrieved that their strong shout for a penalty in injury time went unheeded. We definitely rode our luck there and while we were, for sure, the better team this afternoon, we made enormous hard work of trying to prove that rather basic point.
Even though Monaghan started the contest the brighter, with two points from play from the physically imposing Mone, the game shifted in our favour following the McManus black card. That was a good call by ref Barry Cassidy, as it was a sneaky little trip by the Monaghan player on Aidan O’Shea.
Cillian O’Connor pointed the resultant free and soon after a move up the left-hand side ended with Eoghan McLaughlin smashing over the leveller.
Barry Cassidy’s next call was the penalty decision, with Oisín Mullin’s goal effort blocked and the ref gave the spot kick for a foot block. Just as well, as it looked we’d butchered an excellent goal chance in the lead-up. From the spot, Cillian did what Cillian does and rammed it into the top left corner of the net.
The Farney lads now had to come out and play and, to be fair to them, that’s what they did. From then to the break it was a series of possession-based end-to-end moves by both teams. We were doing better in that department for a time, stretching our lead to five, both those scores coming from placed balls. The first was another Cillian free while the second was also a free, this one just outside the ’45 that Robbie knocked over, soon after Beggan had missed the second of two ’45s at the other end.
We added three further points, nice ones from play from Championship full debutant Jack Carney and from Matthew Ruane and another Cillian free, but they enjoyed a more productive spell as the break approached, a pointed free from McManus just before the short whistle cutting the deficit to three.
I was a bit worried then, mainly because we hadn’t profited as much as we could have done when on top. Monaghan seemed to be able to pick holes in our defence better than we could and my fear was that if they continued to reel us in we’d be in major bother.
We scored first on the resumption. Robbie’s ’45 never got properly airborne but James Carr recycled the ball nicely and Cillian smacked it over.
But that was the last score we got for over twenty minutes, as, for the second match in a row in the second half, we completely lost our way. We’d shot only one wide in the first half but we hit at least five bad ones on the spin in that scoreless spell, each one draining our confidence that bit more.
We also failed to finish an excellent goal chance. We won possession from a superb long restart and for once we had their goal at our mercy. Eoghan went for power rather than placement, though, and he shot straight at Beggan who batted it away.
When our engine stalled against Galway, the scores they got then finished us. Luckily for us, today we were up against a team who had also largely run out of ideas and invention upfront. Monaghan cut our lead back to two points during our barren spell but they never got closer than that.
Instead, we fumbled our way across the finishing line. And we really fumbled today, our handling throughout was poor, a sign surely of a team shorn of confidence.
In the end, it was the old dog for the hard road. Lee Keegan landed the kind of point we’ll weep about when he’s eventually gone and further scores from Cillian (two frees), sub Darren McHale and Paddy Durcan saw us home.
That was, though, only after a heart-stopping incident in injury time, which, in real time, looked like a penalty to them and even more so on the TV replays. Lee wrapped his man who, perhaps, was too fast to hit the deck but if that were us, we’d be apoplectic if it wasn’t given.
Our lead then was just three points so a penalty awarded at that stage could have forced the game to extra time. The Good Lord only knows how it would have ended then. Instead Paddy bagged the insurance score and we were finally out the gap.
Qualifier games are, first and foremost, all about winning. So we’ve checked that box. They’re also meant to relaunch teams back into the Championship but I’m not sure today’s stuttering display will do that. It was, in so many ways, a performance that raised more questions than it answered.
But at least we’re still standing and a place in the All-Ireland quarter-finals is now a step nearer. Our name is back in the hat for Monday morning but, please, let’s not delude ourselves further with wishes that we pull the hardest possible draw then.
After today’s disjointed display, we could now do with the easiest possible route back to Croke Park. We rode our luck for large stretches today so here’s hoping that luck holds for us once again on Monday morning.
Mayo: Rob Hennelly (0-1, free); Lee Keegan (0-1), Oisín Mullin, Enda Hession; Paddy Durcan (0-1), Stephen Coen, Eoghan McLaughlin (0-1); Aidan O’Shea, Matthew Ruane (0-1); Bryan Walsh, Aiden Orme, Diarmuid O’Connor; James Carr, Jack Carney (0-1), Cillian O’Connor (1-6, five frees and a penalty goal). Subs: Kevin McLoughlin for Carr, Darren McHale (0-1) for Orme, Conor Loftus for Walsh, Jason Doherty for Carney, Padraig O’Hora for Cillian O’Connor.
Who was our MOTM against Monaghan? Pick your top three performers
- Lee Keegan (24%, 593 Votes)
- Aidan O'Shea (20%, 496 Votes)
- Enda Hession (10%, 240 Votes)
- Oisín Mullin (9%, 224 Votes)
- Cillian O'Connor (9%, 215 Votes)
- Eoghan McLaughlin (8%, 183 Votes)
- Paddy Durcan (6%, 150 Votes)
- Matthew Ruane (3%, 77 Votes)
- Rob Hennelly (2%, 54 Votes)
- Jack Carney (2%, 49 Votes)
- Diarmuid O'Connor (1%, 35 Votes)
- Stephen Coen (1%, 23 Votes)
- Darren McHale (1%, 21 Votes)
- Conor Loftus (1%, 19 Votes)
- James Carr (1%, 17 Votes)
- Aiden Orme (1%, 14 Votes)
- Bryan Walsh (1%, 13 Votes)
- Jason Doherty (0%, 8 Votes)
- Kevin McLoughlin (0%, 3 Votes)
Total Voters: 1,172
Loading ...
Great report Willie Joe. Unless we sort out our half forward line we have to be realistic about our chances this year. Some great performances today though. Roll on next week.
Need Boland and McHale in at 10 & 12 instead of orme and walsh. Move Diarmuid back to his best position at eleven. Would give us a much better forward outfit.
Forwards are the obvious problem..Conroy a huge loss. I have to say that Orme has been unimpressive in terms of taking scoring chances- not just today but in previous matches also. That was a terrible wide in the second half.
In fairness to AOS he played well from start to finish and perhaps is debunking the thought that he can’t do 70 minutes.
Flynn looked fine in the warm up.
No Doherty today…why?
Feel sorry for Boland..never gets much game time and not looking good for him now.
I thought Carney should have stayed at FF..he was lively there.
We seem to use same subs all the time…K McL anonymous when he came on.
Anyhow, what’s crucial now is to get through the next match..and keep improving.
Meath gone out of the championship to Clare.
Wonder what poor Colm o Rourke thinks of that.
I hope he keeps picking against us.
Good man Colm.
Hopefully there is a chance that we can have ROD back and fit next weekend.
He was badly missed today.
I posted Mayo by 5 and expect a big game from Cillian!
We won by 4 of course and cillian bagged 1-6.
Not a performance for the ages but back in the winning habit.Very hard to play against that 14 men behind the ball no matter who you are.
A lot to work on there but we’re in the draw so onward and upward.
Shane Walshe is what a quality forward looks like – all we have is attacking half-backs, usually blazing straight at the goalkeeper.
Our three half-forwards posed no threat today – Boland, McHale & O’Donoghue (if fit) should make up that line next time.
Having said all that a win is a win.
The good the routine expected win against a fairly limited Monaghan. The bad only 0-2 scored from play from the 6 Mayo starting forwards. The ugly going 21 minutes of the second half without a score, mostly possession football backwards and sideways
Up next one of Limerick (should beat them comfortably) Kildare (revenge for 2018) and Donegal,Roscommon (would be a similar outcome to that match today.
Shane Walsh got 1 point from play vs us. The same as Cillian and Jack Carney today.
Mayo won today Only because they played a very poor Monaghan team and some
Poor decisions by the Referee.
I would ask anyone on here talking about a ” not vintage performance”. Did you Actually see the Match.
That wasn’t pretty by any means in fact downright ugly. But a wins a wins a win………..
All the recycling through Aido is hard to watch and doesn’t get momentum going… the blanket is destroying the game.
Ugly win but we’ve been on the other end our fair share of times. Monaghan will be having their own jubilee fires tonight with some Barry Cassidy effigies
I saw the match. It wasn’t a vintage performance. We won and we’re still in the pot and have plenty to work on. The ref got the calls right in my view, but just because these calls are usually made against us isn’t a reason to say they were wrong.
Mike H – which referee decision was poor? Note, saying “I’ve seen them given” doesn’t make it a poor decision.
Pretty even handed appraisal of things wj
Would have been delighted with 4 point win before the game but make no mistake about it we were absolutely there for the taking today. Monaghan will be kicking themselves they didnt take advantage, mcmanus in particular had a shocker.
We were blessed with the people call at the end, even if he went down handy it’s a pen all day long and cassidy would have been lynched if it happened the other end.
Seriously poor show from forwards again and we can’t keep asking durcan, leeroy to come up with miraculous points from defence.
Agreed with keegan as motm, also gave votes to eoin mcl and durcan
Looking at bigger picture, we have been here before where we played very poorly in 1st round and gone up to all Ireland finals so it opens up again if we end up on right side of draw
Historically we have
Is it an open draw for next round? Clare beating meath might make things a bit easier. Clare can’t draw limerick if repeat pairings are to be avoided. They’d be a nice soft draw for us! Kildare would be okay too.
@Wide ball
Note. I never said “I’ve seen them given” and as for the rest of the comment I don’t understand.
So Mayo got a proper draw in the back door. They went out and beat another Div 1 team and an Ulster team. They showed signs of a plan to beat a packed defence by trying to take the ball at pace, particularly Oisin, Paddy, Lee, Eoghan and occasionally Mattie. Did it work all the time? No. But there was a plan. In the second half we spent a good bit of time holding onto possession but we were 3 to 4 up at the time. We (I) don’t like that aspect of todays football but every team does it. So, far from perfect but successful. We got a good return out of the bench, Darren McHale And Conor Loftus were very lively. We got injured players back on the field.
A big crowd and a lot of young fans in particular had a great day out following our team.
And so many here are still not happy.
Two hats Tommy , one with qualifier winners in it and the other hat with provincial losers in it . So we can be drawn against one of four teams , Donegal, Kildare , limerick or the rossie . Neutral venue .
Mike H – you said Mayo only won due to some poor decisions by the referee. Which decisions?
The only argument I’ve seen is that Monaghan could have got a penalty on another day. So no clear cut wrong decision.
FBD inashui: If yous say the referee got all the calls right you must be the only one who thinks so. He is Barry Cassidy and if you look back at his record with Mayo. Remember Mayo V Down, Mayo V Donegal, and again today he always gives one team a desperate time. We got his good luck charm today. As a Mayo supporter I feel sorry for Monaghan team this afternoon. They should have got a penalty but Cassidy was in the Mayo half back line (50 mtrs) away from where the foul happened. Keegan HAD had his 2 hands around Monaghan player before he fell. He gave Mayo everything going today, and you know what they needed it. Only for the frees we would be out because todays display was dire. I will await Monday morning’s draw.
@sean Burke
Is that right about neutral venue next day out? Hadn’t heard that.
@FW.i went one better and posted mayo by 4…First of all that was hard to watch but then again 25 or 26 inside the 45metre line doesn’t leave much room to do anything but they over did the backwards play. One moment stood out for me from my viewing area was a ball rolling to carney 30m from goal and path to goal clear he looks back to check who behind him and picked up the ball and passed it back out the field instead of the 1st thought to go forward though I have to say he played well overall. The bottom line is they won against tricky opponents and are through to the next stage. These qualifiers are all about winning and moving on towards croke park. We probably rode our luck with the ref and I know the monaghan support around me were furious but sure we have been there too.
Well done to the team today in what was a nervy match. We have the room to improve which is great. We need the forwards to perform better but I think we were fairly solid in the backs. If only we could take points like Keegan from the forty yard line it would be a great option in overcoming the blanket defence. But we moved the ball quickly at times and were rewarded with the win.
I think Aidan played well today but needs to offload the ball quicker and not get turned over. But we will improve and this backdoor might open to the right road to Croker. The next round may be ok.
Is the next round of qualifiers neutral venues ?
willie Joe, you have summarised the game pretty well . We didn’t play particularly well but we always looked in control. No injuries today. Returning players will benefit from this game. Next game may be an easier task, especially if it’s Limerick. Some players did not perform today and may expect the chop. We have plenty good subs. I’ll reinvest my profit from Powers next week. 6/5 Mayo minus 3 and COc 1st goal scorer at 6/1 I thought it was a good day overall!!! Up Mayo!
Banty fairly sour on off the ball interview.
He felt that they were robbed of 2 penalties.
Neutral venues 100%. Wow people are never happy. Mayo were off for 6 weeks -played against a 14man wall for most of the game. Mcloughlin sticks that goal chance and i believe we pull away and win by big margin.
Shaky start but much improved from galway game. Good to see the support get behind the team today. Looking forward to the draw Monday!!!
True Grit I perhaps should have said the ref didn’t get all calls right in his entire history as a referee. Sure didn’t he hand Monaghan a draw when they played armagh in the league?. If it wasn’t for him they’d be playing division 2 next year.
As for the other calls – McManus black card was the correct call.
The penalty he gave against Monaghan was the correct call.
The call for a footblock against Coen – that wasn’t a footblock in the sense of the rules, but that’s according to this referee here, so you don’t need to take my word for it. https://twitter.com/leodougan/status/1533135693618225152?s=21&t=U9t_ybZa0Gs726t8aCj5lA
As for the penalty call against Keegan – probably would have been given on another day but had the Monaghan lad concentrated on doing something with the ball rather than the dramatic dive to the ground they may have had a better return from that effort. He made zero effort to do anything other than hitting the deck as fast as he could. Ref didn’t buy what he was selling.
Sure Monaghan might feel a bit sore with not getting the calls but the calls above as they were made were correct. Just because those decisions more often go against us doesn’t mean the calls today were incorrect.
Neutral venues next week. Clare through to Mondays draw, they can’t draw Limerick, so we have a 1/3 chance of getting Limerick now. I’d imagine they’d put that in Salthill if it comes out of the hat
Of the other 3, I’d like Donegal. They’re a very mentally weak team and it will be hard for them to raise a gallop next day after the manner of the Derry loss.
Could very likely bring us all to Croker for a double header….
Mike H. Have reviewed the said incidents and the referee was correct on them all.
When you ask anyone on here talking about a “not vintage performance” not being at the game, does that mean you think it was a vintage performance?
The team did what they had to do although they should have won by 7 or 8. The result was all that mattered.
If we get Limerick it will be in Ennis or Galway.
Roscommon likely Galway too?
Donegal would be in Sligo.
Kildare could be Hyde Park or Tullamore.
Someone mentioned Croke Park…
I have a feeling that we will get the Rossies
We should be able to beat any of the 4 teams
Kildare would pose most problems for us.
Two points from our starting forward line. However it is difficult being a forward with the blanket system. On the one hand forwards have to run back to form the blanket and then get forward to watch your defenders play tippy tappy ball at the 45. I have decided to give up watching gaelic football because all teams play this way and it is puke football. Where did this all start. It is a complete bore.
I thought that we would win but disappointed with second half performances. However I think that we will be better next weekend as timing was slightly off today. Beating Monaghan is a good result but as in the league, their attack is pretty toothless despite their reputation. Thought Hession and Eoghan Mc Loughlan were good and Oisin stood up in physical stakes. Confident that we can win next weekend, games likely to be in Connacht if we get anyone bar Donegal which may be in Clones. Brewster and Markievicz are probably too small for expected crowd. Let’s see what Monday brings.
Exactly Joe. If anyone was asked 6 weeks ago what we wanted this evening. I guarantee you, all would say, be in the hat on Monday. Job done.
The next round is neutral unless paired with Roscommon and two counties agree to flick a coin for home advantage.
Apart from the very odd flash of decent football the only good thing about today was the result. A proper football match never looked like breaking out at any stage.
There was no atmosphere, but that’s not the supporters fault, you can only react to what you see on the pitch. Mayo in control of an error strew game once the penalty hit the net, until in typical Mayo fashion we decided to give them a few chances to get back into it. They didn’t take them and ref didn’t help their cause either. But tough, that’s the way it pans out sometimes as well we know.
Look, plenty will have views and opinions about our performance etc and I’ll leave that to the rest of ye. But the quality of the spectacle today regardless of what counties were involved was not worth anywhere near the €200+ it cost our posse today. Tomorrow morning I’ll be going to a league match and I’m pretty sure it’ll be far more entertaining that what I saw today. Probably €5 at the gate.
@CarraigDubh why do you reckon Kildare would pose most problems to Mayo?
The way they play would be ideal for Mayos running game. Donegal would be the hardest game but Mayo should be beating whoever they play in the round 2 draw by a bit to spare.
Forward line main problem for Mayo. What six players could be played there. If Flynn and R O D are fit next day possible six could be – 2 O Connors, Donaghue , A O shea, D McHale, and with O Hora coming into the back line one of the back six from today moving forward. A number of players have now been tried numerous times in the attack and none of them have shown any sign of being worth their place on the team. No need to name them.
Did anybody see the stonewall penalty when Carney caught a long ball on the edge of the square and was then pushed to the ground and he moved into the square?
A win is a win. Wasnt expecting a win when heading to Castlebar so happy with that. I expect us to win the next round (prefer not to draw Donegal but we can beat them if we do) so getting a run going. Games every week suit us.
Great to see Cillian back and getting a good score. Leeroy was super again. A lot of good performances.
Even though he wasnt my MOTM Enda Hession was a real positive. He got limited time in the league and I thought he was poor when he played. Today he was much better and hopefully he keeps this going. His pace could be a great asset over the next few weeks
Ahnow – well said. I’d urge everyone to get out and support their local club tomorrow for the first round of league games.
We need Fergal Boland in the forward line
McEnaney complaining about refereeing decisions costing his side??? Oh! The irony!!! Have a look at the 96 final banty. That’s a real shafting
Anyone know the time frame for Ryan’s return? With the return of Paddy, Robbie and Oisin looking fully fit again we are getting closer to where we want to be. ROD however takes us from possibles to probables in most games. I presume his groin issue will not be resolved by next week so we soldier on with what we have. For lots of today we were in control but in need of natural scorer…….step up Darren McHale.
Now you have it said. Mayonaze.
I don’t agree with people that are saying, ” that all that matters is that we are in the pot on Monday”.
If we are not improving I’m not sure if it matters how many pots we make it in to, we’ll be in trouble when asked a real question.
1 point from play between 5 of our starting forwards. It had feck all to do with a blanket defense either. We were getting in to scoring positions, just skying the ball wide or turning away from goal.
Anyone that’s saying six weeks since our last game and this is the reason for the lack of cohesion is talking out their backsides.
How come people aren’t saying ” we had six weeks to prepare for Monaghan and needed a fair dollop of luck not to get dumped out of the championship “.
Someone said earlier ” we rode our luck ”
The ref rode Monaghan.
It’s tough watching when we have half a dozen players who played well, really well, and yet we struggled as a team.
Hopefully we will be more cohesive the next day out.
The only positive to take from the game is we are in the hat on Monday
It was yet again the standard template of how to play against Mayo
Suffocating their forwards and man marking their wingback
It’s a tough watch but be alot of the lesser teams game plans
We know we can shine if given space but only two teams will give us space and that’s Kerry and Dubs
We need to step up a gameplan for opposition closing up shop
For me we got to get Diarmuid free of defensive duties and flat out running at them
He and Jack Carney alternating at full forward could work
James Carr does alot right and has great potential think he will hit boiling point soon and would keep him in for next game even if ROD fit he best start on bench
We need more zip at 10 and 11 but also need to free up matty and diarmuid
The role jordan flynn played is now very obvious in that he freed up the two boys
Aido while he is always first for abuse did his part today and played a clear role
I’d start him and Flynn midfield and try get matt and diarmuid floating from halforwards
Kevin mc is still as good of halfforward as we have and while walsh and orme are talented we need willy fox of kevin mc picking and disturbing at speed
Praise for Darren mchale is nice but he’s alot to do yet
Hessian nailed his place and good run out and blow out of black smoke for paddy and Eoin Mac
All in all tough affair but we know our level but need to understand this I’d the blue print of every team we will meet and need to get confident in taking shots from distance or constantly have a man on the shoulder in form of paddy eoin matt and diarmuid
Barry Cassidy signalled he thought the Monaghan player at the end dived.
Ok ok I’ve had a rethink I thought Mayo were Fantastic today, they played very well from one to fifteen and were by by far the better team and if not for the Referee we would have won by 20 points.
If they continue to play like this no Kerry nor Dublin will beat us.
Is that better for all on here who seem to be uncomfortable with the Truth.
Note. I have traveled and supported Mayo for close to fifty years and it breaks my heart to see the style (Football) they are playing at the moment.
Nothing gives me more pleasure than to see Mayo win but watching them play like they did today does not,
How many will be looking forward to going to croke park to see more of that ?
I really hope we can improve but it’s hard for me to see right now.
Keegan score was the winning of the game. Great leadership when needed stepped up. Mayos lateral passing and recycling would drive you mad, as no one wants to shoot. I spotted Glen Ryan Kildare manager at the game.
Not sure if many have commented on it yet, but Ruane’s point from way out, off the outside of the boot was pure class
Revellino – you say we needed a fair dollop of luck not to get dumped out of the championship. In what way? We led from the 10th minute to the finish. Even if Monaghan got that penalty (I don’t think it was a pen), it would only have given them a chance of sending the game to extra time. At no point were we in danger of being knocked out.
We didn’t play particularly well. Monaghan’s blanket defense and lack of ambition ruined the game as a spectacle.
Hard enough watching 2nd half but most of the blame lies with Monaghan. 3 or 4 down for most of it yet they continue to try and play rope a dope instead of go out and play football to win, the sooner there’s a rule change the better. Ulster teams in particular are ruining it. Their penalty call was 50 50 but would have been daylight robbery had Monaghan won. We need to make more use of the mark against these defensive setups and Monaghan wasted a couple of chances themselves to call marks.
As for our performance, some improvements but more needed. I thought McHale put in a case for inclusion with lovely score of his weaker foot from the wrong side. Our line breakers Oisin, Enda, Lee, Paddy, Mattie and Eoghan all did well trying to be positive but a few wrong options by Eoghan. Was a bit too close to Beggan for the goal chance so it needed a side step or a bit of trickery. We need to practice these chances. Our lads had no choice there but be patient and at times it didn’t work with some wrong decisions but ultimately we won by 4. Roll on next week. Kildare would be the best draw, Limerick no offence is not enough of a challenge and either Ros or especially Donegal have a 50 50 chance whereas Kildare were poor in defence against Dublin and we ultimately beat them well in league albeit they have some good long range scorers. As for ref, not sure from replays seen if black warranted, foot block rule just isn’t properly clear in the rules but distance from kicker seems to be factored in by refs and it was consistent with other refs there on both calls. Keegan had hands around yer man but removed very quickly and unclear if he made much contact, as P Earley said he’s seen them given. We were definitely the better team and by far the better at at least trying to win the game positively. Bit of kamikaze defending to give Monaghan that chance as well as Robbie putting Mattie under pressure with a crucial kickout and no support coming in to help him.
@ FourtyFive
There is no mention of repeat pairings being avoided in Q2.
Clare could draw Limerick unfortunately. Just as we could have drawn Galway had they lost to Roscommon.
Bloody hell Shane Walshe getting a mention again as a flag bearer for our forwards to be compared against
He is 29
He has delivered for his county in croke park on how many occasions ?
He will come alive in croke park this year with the rest of the Galway forwards though no doubt
They do that every year apparently.
How many wins in the last 20 years 😉
We need to draw Ros or Donegal and stay away from the Dublin, kerry side of the draw.. Regarding the hf line it may not improve things if our perceived best scorers are on the field if they not covering back and if they are then they’re no threat to the scoreboard like the players we’re calling to replace. Head wrecking stuff.
No harm a McEnaney experiences the feeling of being fucked over by a ref in a big match
I hear you Mike H, same here since early 1980s and I was half hoping this week we would lose until I heard we could have the same management team for another 4 years.
Eamonn fitz said during the week that he wanted to see something else from Mayo, that we had 6 weeks and what we’re doing won’t win anything for us. We did exactly the same as against Galway only we were lucky today and Monaghan are much worse than Galway.
It’s now completely acceptable to pick half forwards that won’t score, over and over again. As long as they run up and down the pitch tracking runners. Our main attacking threat today came again from our backs. What are we at?
And don’t blame blanket defending, that’s been there for years. Time for some home truths.
Good performance considering injuries and players coming back.
Surely Mullin would be better off playing out around the middle where he is best suited and would have a big impact.
Was at game, good first half, poor second half full basic errors, dropping ball, loosing possession, not that sure about last penalty call, but my god the heat in second half was awesome,
What struck me about today was how similar our approach was to the All Ireland final vs Tyrone…only difference was Monaghan are not a top class outfit that can snuff us out. Happy with the win but if it was better opposition today our Summer would be over.
We may get a few more players back and have a good run at things and grow into the championship as we often do. But I feel we have learned nothing from last year….maybe we can eventually fluke it playing the same way. But it does seem like same old story.
@Wideball.
I thought Monaghan were denied a stonewall penalty, regardless of the play acting of the Monaghan player. The Monaghan player was fouled.
I thought Mattie Ruane scored a sensational point that he wasnt even going for.
I thought McManus’s black card was harsh enough.
I thought the referee was very nice to us.
I’m not complaining about that but I do think the referee favoured us today and I do think we would have struggled to win that game if the calls had been 50 50.
I would have been raging if I was a Monaghan supporter.
Gaelic football is dead, the puke stuff that we have witnessed so far this year is sickening. Radical intervention is required or maybe teams now start to play attacking skillful football. Somehow I dont think this will happen. However I would like to see a Dublin or Kerry win an AI final playing gaelic football as it was intended to change the mindset of these negative coaches. As a lonstanding gaa supporter I dont look forward to games now and can easily tune into other sports for entertainment.
Mayo were lucky today the met a team worse than themselves, they never played as team. Still reliant on our super individuals to eke out a result. How many times today were our senior players caught in possession when the ball should have been laid off.
But we are in the hat for Monday and hopefully ROD back now let us kick on. Up Mayo
Of course the game was a tough watch at times but we are forever bemoaning the fact that we cannot beat a blanket defence team. Well we did today and from where I was seated I thought the crowd played their part at times too. And apart from Kerry who utilise perhaps only one back to contribute to scoring every other team count on half backs and mid field to tack up important scores and their is no reason for us not to continue to do so. As well our subs all arrived at the correct time today another thing we are prone to criticise. In the final 15 minutes Mayo deployed a high risk tactic to draw out the blanket, it took balls to do it as it can go so easily wrong but it largely worked. Knowing the rotation available to mangt off the bench for the much lamented half forward line, I would thing Mayo mangt are quietly very pleased after today.
Puckout, I do blame the blanket defending for the stuttery way we have been playing that seems to make our forwards look like eejits.
We played lovely against Kildare and Dublin in the League where there was no blanket.
We’ve always struggled with packed defences (I mean over the last decade).
Dublin dominated the game over the last ten years and they didn’t play a blanket. Our team developed a style similar to Dublin’s and set out to beat them.
*We were lucky to avoid blanket teams in that run* – we met one in 2016 in Tyrone and were very lucky to come out the right side of that.
Since the Tyrone win in the AIF last year masterminded by Logan and Dooher we have mass defending back in vogue again, all the rage.
I think it’d be very interesting if Armagh win out over Tyrone tomorrow, and teams move further into the Championship and Croke Park stages, will we see the blanket fall by the wayside?
If it does, Mayo have every chance with our own potent forward-motion play, provided we have our good players on the field (today’s selection plus Jordan Flynn and ROD).
Maybe the blanket will lose its fashion appeal.
On the point of the style of play it seems to be the way all the games are going because of the numbers back in defence and it’s terrible to watch but does anyone have a way around it unless we get 6 forwards like the dubs and they don’t come along very often on 1 panel. With 25 plus players inside the 45metre line it’s impossible to do anything other than playing back and watch for an opening to go forward.the only way I can see is to run at speed and maybe draw a foul if they don’t break the line.
Hession, Orme and Carney did reasnably well and are backbone players in the future. I thought we were very slow with substitutions. I dont understand why Boland for Walsh and Doherty for Carney could not have been introduced early second half. Loftus no impression, breezed by as if he wasnt there, and Monaghan no 7, rampant(where was Walsh?) . The play passed by Cillian for the most part. Thats the harsh reality.
Our half back line dug us out of a hole, whats new? AOS ball distribution and abilty to shake of markers was a corner stone of our play. Mullin broke from defence regularly with speed and purpose, its a pity we cant afford to release him to centre half back position. Coen, by comparison to Mullin was stagnant.
Hopefully we will be drawn against the best thats left on monday.
What do we do?, key players to key positions. Mullin, OConnor and Dohery up our centre line.
@Swallow Swoops It’s an absolute myth that Dublin did not bring back 13, 14 or 15 men behind the ball regularly during their winning decade. The fact that they have good forwards seems to excuse them from the “blanket” accusation, ditto Kerry.
We won that’s the job done for today.If we stay in thos and get Flynn and ROD back we are close to full strength and the injury crisis has been weathered.Very positive on Cillian as I must admit I worried he was possibly finished but he is improving.
What’s the story with the fullback position? Oisin is wasted there. Can McBrein get fit and allow oisin out field.Suerly it’s time to try Fergal Boland (3 points Kerry in the rain) and Darren Mchale or Coen to start?.
I noticed Loftus seemed to turn back when he got the opportunity to kick….finally why do we never seem to have anyone playing ” orthodox” FF?? rarely seems to be someone at edge of the square
All in all. It was a tough watch..but a win is a win. Cant understand how we tend to hit the self destruct button late on in games now. Hennellys short kick outs to men who were being counter pressed were bizarre. But we’re in the pot for Monday morning and that’s the main thing. I hope we get the rossies for the pure drama of it.
A lot of posters are complaining about the forwards lack of firepower as the root of the ‘puke’ football on show from Mayo.
But what about the tactics? And the ‘horan’ approach. Lots of all-Ireland winners like the gooch, o rourke, spillane etc are crying out for teams to play ‘football’ and actually ‘kick’ the ball into the forwards. Mix up the play.Keep it simple. Why ignore these once brillant players.
What i think people don’t realise is that I think these experts mean is this should be a tactic. And practised. So the forwards are ready and know what to expect. So the backs and forwards work in sync to create long ball opportunities. What they don’t mean is for players to unleash aimless haymakers. I have to admit i agree with them.
Just don’t get what the current team that horan is overseeing are up to.
I saw mayo players today receiving hospital punch passes even though the distributor could surely see the receiver was surounded. I saw mayo players receiving the ball well inside striking range, turn and send the ball straight back out the field. And under no real pressure.
We have been beaten many times by the long ball (last years all-ireland final tyrone goal comes to mind). And yet we prefer to handpass for 70 minutes. I don’t understand it, i’m afraid.
You can’t say in one sentence you’re a die hard and then in the next say you were half hoping we’d actually lose , ffs catch a grip of yourself man . You never let your side down , them bucks pull that jersey over their heads and bust their balls for their county , never and I mean never hope they lose .
@ no doubt, what you say is so true, and the narrowness of Mchale prk doesnt help our cause. We fell for the trap a few times ourselves by conceding frees. Monaghan did have a few bad wides having created an opening..
And you are right too about this becoming a general patern.. The wider pitches of croke park and Dr Hyde are a help…
@revelino.it was a stonewall blackcard. Watching the clip on the news McManus knew O’Shea was gone and stuck back his leg to trip and mayo penalty also correct call. @richardmgd I agree all good subs today especially the correct withdrawals and all forwards until ó hora to close out the game
Did Horan give an interview tonight after the game ?
Digits, yes, sometimes Dublin did defend in numbers for short parts of a game, but I find it hard to say their success was built on this style or they were a defensive-minded team.
Dublin were predominantly an offensive minded team.
This year, Galway, Kerry, Derry, Monaghan (today) used a packed defence as a routine part of their play to block the other team out. For me, this style seems to have regained appeal since Tyrone’s win in the All-Ireland last year.
@revelino.it was a stonewall blackcard. Watching the clip on the news McManus knew O’Shea was gone and stuck back his leg to trip and mayo penalty also correct call. @richardmgd I agree all good subs today especially the correct withdrawals and all forwards until ó hora to close out the game. I’m still behind the team and waiting for the next adventure.
Ontheditch…
‘Monaghan number 7 rampant..where was Walsh?’
Well Monaghan number 7 was man marking Eoghan mc Loughton……so I guess that answers that ?
Their penalty shout wasn’t even 50/50, nevermind stonewall.
Revellino – it was not a stonewall penalty for Monaghan. Very minimal contact involved.
Of course Mattie was going for a point, what else would he be doing?
Nothing harsh about the black card. Clear foot trip, knew what he was doing.
Still fail to see how the referee was nice to us over Monaghan. Carney could have had a penalty in the 2nd half but we missed out on that.
Sean, I didn’t say I’m a die hard but I am a realist. People talk about puke football, Horan has somehow managed to develop a new form of puke football where the tactics are skewed and we end up losing matches we shouldn’t or making life really hard for ourselves. Horan has lost too many all irelands we should have won so I really think we’re just wheel spinning until there is a change ( which there won’t be).
Another marathon session of bitching and moaning here on the Blog.
In a knockout championship match we beat a Division 1 team that relegated Dublin this season. We live to fight again.
The match was played on a great surface in beautiful sunshine and it was packed with kids who love Mayo football. Maybe one of them will kick the score that gets us over the line eventually.
We didn’t look like winning Sam today, but there’s nothing new there. Enjoy the summer for what it’s worth. We will know all about it when it’s over.
Crazy finish to that game – seems like Mayo do it more than any other county! One point on Cillian – he is so incredibly slow that unless he gets the ball in lots of space (like he did from Carr off the misplaced free) he has no threat from play. All this puts more pressure on Paddy, Eoghan, Mattie, Oisin, and Lee.
I thought Aiden was excellent (bar the last pass) today. Talk about silencing the doubters. Against packed defenses he is something else for breaking the tackle and also getting his team mates out of trouble. Definitely a bigger influence on the game that Lee, who continues to play like one of the greats on his generation.
Finally, what the hell is Horan’s problem with Boland?
Km79 you really have it in for Galway in general…
20 years ? Why leave it there? How many big wins in 25 years?
Well done to Mayo today, got the job done but I’d agree and be worried about 2 points from play by the forwards.
@ThelondonEye, clearly a man who knows how to analyze a game and look at the bigger picture, well done.
Venues
Roscommon and Donegal games look set for Markievicz Park in Sligo it would be silly to bring the Ross game to Pearce Stadium on a Saturday in Galway with the traffic chaos it will create.
Kildare game looks like Dr Hyde Park Roscommon or O’Connor Park in Tullamore.
Limerick game will be in Cusack Park Ennis
I thought after the Galway game that lesions
Would be learned and things would be
Different. But after I saw the team selection
I just knew it was more of the same.
Forwards that ‘cover every blade of grass’
As opposed to scoring forwards will never
Get you over the line ultimately.
Rinse and repeat …
Tuamstar, ye beat a depleted Mayo team by a point, fingers crossed we cross paths again in croke park, may the best team win.
First off congrats to the team and management.
That was a well executed win against a potentially dangerous opponent.
Let’s be honest about it we were never in any fear of losing that match. Fatigue caused a few slips near the end but we had the leaders on the field (again) to see us through.
As qualifiers go (for us in the past) that was easy.
If ROD is back only a Kerry or Dublin will give us a proper game.
My wish now is Ross next and then Galway.
GBXI
You never kicked a ball in your life if you think COC is a passenger.
Disappointingly there are some Mayo so called supporters who actually hope we lose. They won’t say it outright of course but they continually make snide and disparaging remarks about team and management. It suits their own agenda and they can say ‘I told you so’ when it happens. Most here are not daft enough to think this is a great Mayo team. Its not. It’s not anywhere near the team of 2016 or 2017. But they are honest and give their best. They struggle to break down blanket defences as do most except the top teams. They beat a Div 1 team today. Yes they did not play great and got some luck with decisions but they won by 4 against a decent team. Cork beat Louth by 4 also and Clare beat Meath. There appears to be some Mayo ‘fans’ waiting for a Mayo defeat and an end to this regime. Be careful what you wish for folks. At the moment we are well behind kerry and Dublin. We are probably behind galway and derry as well and on a par with kildare, Roscommon and donegal who we could beat or lose to on a given day. We desperately miss O Donaghue and Conroy (who wouldn’t) and our half forward line doesn’t score enough. The lads who don’t play are great lads (whats new). I say fair play and well done. Move on and hope for a favourable draw. We are far from perfect but still standing. Maigh Eo abu.
Ive said all year ye cant afford Conroy out same as we cant afford Mulkerrins out. Mayo need to draw Limerick and then Derry in the QF. If I was Mayo fan I would want to avoid revenge type matches against Rossies or us. Dublin or Kerry must meet in semi there are probably 6 teams who could hope to play in final but all except maybe Tyrone would be heavy outsiders.
@highorlow hey, that’s just my opinion. From play he adds no more than any other forward. Actually Paddy is as much a threat from play these days. Ryan is a way more important player now and that’s because of pace, nothing personal. Tommy is also more of threat.
Also bit daft to say only Dublin and Kerry can give us a game when we were already beaten by Galway – when ROD was playing!
What nobody has mentioned is the heat today and the effect it had on both mayo and monaghan, particularly in the second half when both sets of players would be getting tired anyhow. Heck, I was sitting supping a cider in a tent in mount falcon n I was feeling the heat…mixed bag performance, but let’s move on n support the team..
GBXI,
so you’d drop COC.
Good la
To win just once, how apt, do you ever why we haven’t won? No….?
Yes my agenda is to win, can’t see it happening when egos are in charge..
Once again some of the comments after the game are fuelled by emotion and not reason some want a big change of form and tactics but that unfortunately is never going to be the case our running game was used and effectively today now will it be enough another day time will tell unfortunately because we don’t have the huge threat inside missing rod, at this stage a win is a win is a win against a very physical div 1 Monaghan team that were never going to pack it in till the last minute,they set up defensively in the second half and it looked shocking on our part latterly Playing the ball looking for a hole but when a team parks a bus it has to be patient,truth be told there are a few guys just not up yo the task in the half forward line it’s been a slack line for quite a while but overall we got through with a few to come in I wouldn’t fear anyone in the next round we must keep plugging away f..k this talk we’re better of losing now what’s the point in supporting a team if that’s the mentality
TH, venues will be decided on can they host the expected crowd, Sligo will not be big enough to host a Mayo v Donegal/Roscommon knock out championship game. Expect a Sunday afternoon throw in if Pearse Stadium is the venue
Hession’s performance was key. Time and time again he injected pace when it was needed and brought Conor McManus to parts of the field no forward ever wants to be in. He was completely gassed and had to be called a shore. One of the finest forwards in the game and hope that’s not the last we see of him.
Our fitness was key and we had more experience to bring off the bench than they had. Really optimistic that we are on upward trajectory and rumours of heavy training close to league final likely were true?
RO’D coming back is crucial to add more firepower and Darren McHale looked back in form when introduced. Need to get tighter at the back and more disciplined. Loads to work on and tweak.
Can’t wait for the draw!
Dia daoibh a cairde Mhuigeo
The main thing is that we are in the pot tomorrow. Yes we just got over the line but a win is a win!!
It was an extremely hot day in the stand and it must have affected the players! I had to leave the stand for 20 min it was so hot and watch from a cooler vantage point!
There was a huge Mayo support 15k v 1k for Monaghan?
The fans where I was sitting did not engage, not once, with our team-no support whatsoever which I thought was strange! Why bother going to the bloody match? Maybe it was due to the fact of how the game played out-inability/afraid to shoot! I was near Horan and
He was shouting the forwards to shoot, shoot but to no avail! I thought Aidan was pivitol (except for last backpass!). In my opinion, without him we would have lost this match
Begrudgers take note!!
The backs were very good and I thought our captaen played well. He caught a lot of our kickoff. Some of our forwards need to be replaced. Walsh of the pace and Carr and Orne only ok!
Loftus created 2 p when he came on. I would like to see Boland, McDonagh and Darren Coen start and hopefully Ryan and Jordan is back soon!
I think we can improve but it is hard to see an All- Ireland in this team but we will be hard to beat if we had 6;scoring forwards!
Let’s me positive and support foireann Mhuigeo
Mhuigeo Abu!!
Lots of glass half empty comments. Thought they did really well in the first half, pulled up in second but so did Monaghan.
We won, they lost end of story.
Think croke park double header with a Tyrone/Armagh winner is a very likely scenario
My two cents:
-We are still missing a number of key players with several feeling their way back towards match-fitness. This has been a problem for us all season and you can see the effect of the constant chopping and changing on our cohesion as a unit. The amount of dropped hand passes today being a case in point.
-We were the better team for most of the game, but once again, struggled to make it show on the scoreboard. Eoghan McLoughlin’s missed goal chance, hit straight at the keeper, felt like a big turning point at the time. Nail that and the game is over, realistically. I feel that decision making is a big fault of ours going forward: even for the goal we did score, Aido chose to pass to a player on the endline on the near side, rather than popping a simple handpass to either of the two unmarked men in the centre! Mad stuff.
-We need to find a way to get more from our forward line, particularly from play. Two points from play from our six starting forwards tells its own story. Our half-forward line provide lots of graft, but we look short on creativity and a scoring threat there, and no surprise that two of them were hauled off towards the end.
-We are still reliant on the auld warriors, the Keegans, O’Sheas, Durcan etc to haul us over the lines in tight games. Jack Carney played quite well, I thought, but a few of the young guns need to start giving us a bit more.
– Hennelly played well in goal for the vast majority of the game, kickouts were very accurate until the final few minutes. When you’re winning by a goal in injury time, hit the ball into the stratosphere or MacHale Road, but don’t give it to a lone Mayo player in front of goal with three Monaghan players up his backside! I don’t care if God Almighty himself is on the edge of the D! Similarly, O’Shea’s backpass was crazy stuff and almost cost us.
-We also got the rub of the green from Barry Cassidy. For me, the Leeroy one was a stonewall penalty, and McManus’s black was harsh. Would agree with the calls on our penno and their shout for a foot block (it hit the Mayo defender’s shin).
-Matty Ruane definitely wasn’t going for a point, you don’t throw the ball up in the air like that when you’re shooting.
-Unless we either get Ryan O’ Donoghue back for the next round or get a bolt from the blue performance, I think we need a kind draw to progress, wouldn’t fancy us against either the Rossies or Donegal just right now. I’d say that we’re due a break but we might have used that up in the final minutes of yesterday’s game.
-I would agree with the posters urging us to do more kick passing, but Horan seems not to favour this approach. The second half was crying out for someone of Darren Coen’s ball-winning abilities, but he wasn’t in the squad yesterday. Also, if I were Fergal Boland, I’d be at the point of giving up football altogether and sticking with the small ball, must be incredibly frustrating for him not to get a run in a game like yesterday’s.
The Leeroy one wasn’t a stonewall penalty. It would have been very soft, if given.
No Doubt, are you sure we have better chance if we meet Donagal and Roscommon , we better chance of missing Dublin and Kerry in quarterfinals
If kick passing isn’t going to be used for a quick transition, then at least can DOC be let stay the HF line. We have to have one player there who is willing to shoot. How many examples do mgmt need to show that this is really hurting us. It was great having Paddy D back yesterday but again, teams have worked out the positions he likes to shoot from so this is what’s meant by needing a plan B.
We won, great, but I’d be very worried that if ROD isn’t back the next day, we will see similar issues. Fair play to Hession, he stood up. Mullen looked fit again. Our backs did very well overall.
Cillian was good from the places ball, a lot of comments about his pace but if his FF line are back defending it’s hard to expect him to be beating full back lines on his own.
Knowing the GA, I bet it’ll be the Rossies…
Ah it was, he wrapped two arms around the Monaghan player’s waist and no hand on the ball. If that happens anywhere else on the pitch, it’s a free, soft or not.
Interesting observations Erris Head. I did pick up on Hession, but hadn’t quite noticed his impact on McManus. McManus’s miss from a kickable free was very bad for Monaghan – I cheerled a bunch near me after it.
Yes, we were fitter. The longer the game went on the more we were in control- until out Kamikaze moment. Dead right ‘It means nothing’, kick it out to high heaven. The fact that we went right through the field after the ‘penalty’ incident was a sign of confidence.
And the supporters? I heard a few guys saying, yeah time is up – just before an extra six minutes was announced; cue a long groan from our section. That’s really when we need to be on our feet, willing the team on, rather than diving for cover.
Watch the penalty incident in real time, not slow motion. You’re allowed reach in to try and dislodge the ball. There was contact for less than a second. No way that’s a free elsewhere on the pitch, otherwise you’d never see the ball being turned over.
If the Monaghan player actually tried to drive towards goal, Keegan would probably be left with no choice to foul. That’s what Monaghan should be aggrieved with!
Agreed, Wide Ball.
Anyway that’s my last comment on refereeing decisions. The idea that Monaghan missed out on a stonewall penalty is just not true and that was the only minor controversial call against them.
Cringe interview from Banty saying they were robbed.
would we not be better positioned to get derry in qf if donegal and tyrone were in the hat along with us for qfs , im just typing out loud here and not making any assumptions . all im trying to figure out is best case scenario if we won next week , we couldnt draw galway in qf so we need to get Derry to stay on that side of the draw , if donegal and tyrone were in it along with us , we would have a better percentage chance ?
Banty saying they were robbed was a joke. Monaghan played nearly the entire game as if they were defending a 2 point lead, rather than actually going for it. No one to blame but themselves.
I can’t understand all the doom and gloom. Consensus here in Meath was that REF got all the major decisions right.
Our FF played well for a debutant. We won against a team that’s very hard to beat.
We won’t win it outright but will perform well in.
If we had Cillian to take the penalty in the final last year, who knows.
@Wide ball.
You are not allowed to wrap your arms around a player.
It’s gas.
The same lads saying no penalty are saying that a bit of a tangle that happened six minutes in to the game (no mayo player in threatening position and tangles happening all through the match all over the pitch as there is in every football match), it’s funny how the no penalty brigade are saying this was a definite black card offense.
A black card was not the correct decision.
And I’ve watched Mattie’s point back and the analysts remarked that he wasnt going for that point by the way he kicked the ball and the way he couldn’t stop smiling when it went over.
Mayo Magic I would expect our game to be on Sat.. Tyrone /Armagh game on Sunday to give each team the same rest period
We can still get to a final this year.That was very similar to Fermanagh in 2016.
In 2 weeks we could be at a much better place re injuries….other than Tommy and BH if everyone stays fit.
ROD in that FF line is a different prospect for anyone.Lets see how it goes
Revellino – who cares if he was going for it or not? Why does it matter? It went over. Would you like it ruled out because he didn’t mean it or something? Why harp on about it?
A Dub watching my 2nd favourite team Mayo.
McManus black card correct decision.
Mayo penalty correct decision.
Monaghan penalty claim 50/50.
Bottom line even if Monaghan got that penalty Mayo would have won. They always looked like the better team and in my opinion never looked like losing.. lots of negativity from Mayo fans but you won . That’s all that matters on days like that. My observation would be that maybe team relies too much on the old warriors. New guys (forwards) need to stand up.
Dublin not good enough this year , so if Mayo get the right draw and build momentum then only Kerry can stop them. In that game I will be a Mayo supporter. U deserve one!
Mondays qualifiers is an open draw , if we get through next weekend the pathway as per gaa website suggests to me that we cannot meet Galway in quarter finals. Should we still be in the hat after next week, one of Derry , Kerry or Dublin to look forward to , it would appear to me that the only way to avoid a dublin or Kerry until the final is draw Derry in the QF. Another hard fought 78 mins or so next weekend first before even thinking about that route !
‘The quarter-finals will be an open draw subject to avoidance of repeat pairings. This year’s semi-final draw pairs Connacht with Ulster and Leinster with Munster – or the teams that beat the provincial champions at the quarter-final stage.’
Unless we unearth a fairly accurate point shooter or two from 40 to 45 meters we will continue to struggle against the prevailing basketball/ soccer procession game in disguise ( no disrespect to Basketbal but at least they have a shot clock ) effort that now passes for Gaelic football in most inter county games. Even if we did I’d wonder would the kicker be allowed as the stats of holding onto the ball an limit the other team would probably out way the risk.
As for yesterday it was the old adage that you can only play what’s in front of you ,it’s not to first qualifier In castlebar that we’ve struggled in the back door against a northern team , eg Fermanagh and Derry. It was far from pretty and unless your own county are competing would you watch it , how many on this forum endured the Ulster Final ? As an entertaining spectacle I couldn’t .
Maybe we are looking through Rose tinted glasses to the past but I’d much prefer for more risk to be brought back into the game to allow lads skills to prevail or at least have a stronger influence in the game over the programmed game plans offered but that will require radical rule changes
@Dreamy.
I was asked earlier by someone why I thought we got a bit of luck in winning yesterday.
That was one of the incidents I had picked out.
Why does it infuriate you so much that I am explaining my reasoning to ” someone else “,why I thought we got the rub of the green yesterday.
We did get a bit of the rub of the green, we also went for it a lot more than Monaghan did. Like I said, they played like they were defending a 2 point lead nearly the entire match and can have no complaints about the outcome. They played with no adventure. So yes, we can talk about “the rub of the green”, but ultimately Monaghan were not unlucky and didn’t deserve to win. I know it might kill people to admit, but we were deserving winners. I still think we have a lot of problems (mainly that the younger personel isn’t good enough) and we aren’t going to win an AI but we weren’t just lucky to win that match yesterday, we fully deserved to win it.
Revellino – the black card was 100% the correct decision. McManus turned back to trip Aidan and a deliberate trip – which this most definitely was – is a black card all day long. I’ve no idea how Barry Cassidy managed to see it and call it right in real time but that he did. I’m in two minds about the penalty that wasn’t given, it could well have been and we’d have few complaints. The Monaghan player went down far too soon, though, and had he stayed on his feet he may well have got the decision in his favour. Like others, I’m amused by Banty’s post-match yodelling, in light of his family connection to real refereeing outrages involving us. Truly, what goes around comes around.
For me it wasn’t a penalty.He went down under what was minimal contact in context of inter-county division 1 football.
If he stayed on his feet he might have got the goal they needed.
Sure it could have been given but it wasn’t a penalty in my view
I see people giving off that the quality of the game was poor and that it wasn’t worth the money paid in to see it. They are not in the business of keeping people in the stands entertained, they are there to win games and they won a game last night against a decent Monaghan team. If you don’t like it stay at home the next day and save your money
@tuamstar I genuinely don’t have it in for Galway at all. I raced home to get in for the hurling !
What irks me is the lack of respect for what Cillian O Connor has done over the last decade whilst continually hearing about Shane Walsh’s talent and potential . They are nearly the same age. One delivers year in year out in Croker . The other goes well in the Spring .
And yes Mayo have had a better team for much of that time but with Walsh’s “prodigious talent” you would have expected he could have got them over the line in a quarter final or two …….
But sure all Cillian does is kick frees apparently!
But just to be clear .
I hate the Rossies not galway !
I enjoy the banter with Galway . I’ll give it out when we win and take it back when we lose . That’s the nature of the rivalry as I’m sure you know . It’s relatively friendly 😀
Hession was given a torrid time in first half by McCarron. A switch needed to be made and it was at half time with Oisin moving onto McCarron. Hession was much better in 2nd half. Backs did their jobs quite well. Midfield was pretty good. Half forward line no threat & full forward line showed some flashes of good play. We looked very laboured in attack & felt we looked quite rudderless against the blanket, which is a common theme. Plus we looked low on confidence..
However we got over the line and that is all that matters at this stage. Monaghan are a solid division 1 team after all. But much bigger challenges lie ahead. Hopefully we get a nice draw Monday, get ROD & Flynn back, and you never know
Leaving all other analysis aside a key point is that this was a very important game from a psychological perspective. To be kicked out of the Championship after two games following on from a lost League Final and AI final could have caused a big loss of confidence which may have endured for the next few years.
The next game is another key psychological game to put us back on track and dependant on injuries we are then back in the mix.
We may not have the quality of the past but two winning back to back games will help the mindset
Have watched it back from a couple of angles now, Leeroy gets caught on the wrong side, ball floats over him, Monaghan forward steps across him and is grabbed with two arms. Admittedly he goes down a bit easily but there’s no occasion on a gaelic football pitch where you’re permitted to have BOTH arms wrapped around an opposition player at the same time.
Pause it at 0:02 here and it’s fairly clear what happened.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TAzQz5I2p4Y
As I said previously, a stonewall penalty. There’s a few lads on here with green and red perma goggles who will happily call night as day, provided it coincides with our interests.
That said, I do agree that we were the better team, it’s just annoying that we seem to always find a way to let the opposition back into the game.
At this point, Limerick or Kildare at home would probably be good draws, away to Donegal or the Rossies not so much.
Neutral venues , we know that much
That’s a better angle than I seen but honestly still don’t think that’s a penalty.Did Keegans contact really make him go down…no I think he eet the contact and took his chance.
If he stayed on his feet he probably would have buried it. If it was above in Clones it might have been a penalty but that’s one advantage and God knows it has cost us against Dublin in Croke Park more than once. I didn’t think Aido shoulda got a penalty v Fermanagh either for the same reason….
Anyway we are through but yeah WTF do we always find a way to bring opposition back into games
Thank you to all the outside posters on here who bring a measure of realism and objectivity. Your contribution and constructive criticism is invaluable here right now as that is what we need. We are no world beaters right now but that was a solid win yesterday. Let’s enjoy it today.
Not a penalty in my opinion but have seen them given before. Monaghan player fell into keegans right arm more so than keegan making the contact. Looked to me that mayo ran at the blanket a bit more than usual yesterday though they still overdid the backpassing. Regarding Loftus I was impressed with how he held possession in winning the late free after 2 big hits. @mayotillidie my understanding is if we draw and beat the connaught or ulster losers we stay on that side of the draw and avoid Dublin and kerry.
And just to add Mchale park yesterday was so well presented, yep the sunshine brings out the best but pitch plus stands plus cleanliness all around was top marks. Fair play to all who work hard on turning it out, heard a lot of Monaghan people full of praise of it
I agree we haven’t looked like world beaters so far but we are still in the championship and I’m not for one second suggesting we are real contenders as of yet but these qualifiers are all about the result .so is every game I suppose but I can remember Kerry just getting past Sligo one year and still landing Sam that year . If we can get Ryan and Jordan Flynn back to full throttle along with the others who are still not firing on all four cylinders we will still be hard to beat imo . All about the draw now at this stage , would really appreciate an update on Ryan o D .
Very good comment, Down Under.
It Means Nothing to Me ,
The side clip at 2 seconds says it should have been a penalty , yet the clip at 11/12 seconds say no , good job Cassidy was 30/40 yards away
Do we know when the draw is for sure yet ?
Seems it’s nice day morning as usual
https://www.gaa.ie/football/news/all-ireland-sfc-qualifier-and-tailteann-cup-semi-final-draws-to-take-place-on-mo/
Hopefully the Sunday Game tonight might highlight some of the contentious decisions yesterday and we will be able to make a better judgment the camera never lies, even though depending on editing and angles it might not tell the whole truth either. I and those around me almost exclusively Mayo supporters all had the same views of the action, but not nesserarly the same view of Barry Cassidy decisions. I certainly don’t have a problem with Banty airing his own views as regards the refereeing decisions. His brother’s contentious refereeing decisions regarding Mayo decade’s ago are completely immaterial, … Some of that particular Monaghan team weren’t even born and are 100% entitled to objective refereeing reffing…Mayo have suffered from bad decisions many times, and sometimes benefited if we are to be honest. Armagh and Tyrone has made a dramatic start.. Have a good Sunday everyone!
Tyrone as expected are in huge trouble against Armagh’
Game should be over
Last September doesn’t get any easier does it…!!
Tyrone were beyond woeful..
Lessens our chances of drawing Derry now too
If Armagh get onto the “nice” side of the draw they could end up taking a bit of beating.. still think Galway will come through that side though, their big worry was a rejuvenated Tyrone.. which never materialised
would i be correct in saying we have a slightly higher percentage chance of drawing either donegal or limerick ?
Also… I assume this is the only time in the qualifier era the defending champions failed to win a game?
After the two matches it’s very hard to believe
ourselves and tyrone were the two all Ireland finalists last year… There will never be an easier all Ireland won than 2021
Yes Sean as both have a 33% chance of drawing us and Kildare and Ros have a 25% chance
I have a real feeling we’re going to get Donegal tbh, cork will probably luck out and get limerick
This is a completely open draw as I understand. Limerick and Clare can play each other again, ditto Donegal and Armagh.
Don’t get the comment that Lee got caught on the wrong side, he was looking for a pass from a teammate.
Tyrone bet Fermanagh in the ulster championship Ciaran
Had completely forgotten that Our time has come!!
Don’t worry it wasn’t particularly memorable Ciaran