205 thoughts on “Mayo 2-14 Fermanagh 1-12: second half revival sees us through”

1. We’ll take that win. At least we won more than that penalty as wasn’t one. Much more improvement today but still few questions to answered.

2. Congrats to the team on a devent second half. But its nothing toget carried away with considering the teams in the pot for the next day. And a lot of improvement is needed. Good that the bench is there though as they were needed.

   AOS coming in for a lot of criticism for the peno dive. Fair enough in one way although in another you can argue it was a professional decision he took to try and get a scoreable opportunity. The biggest problem for him will be in future matches due to the reaction in social media and in the press.

   Its the big talking point and he’s presently getting a lot of bad PR from it. Things like that tend to stick to you and I would say he will find it hard to buy any frees in future matches from now on regardless of what abuse he gets.

3. Andy is still as greedy as ever.Dillon performed well.This was an ideal test.Barry not finished yet—looking forward to the draw. sure refs will give Aiden lots of attention—perhaps they might notice the fouls on him.

4. Good character shown by the lads in the 2nd half. A few leaders stood up – Cillian, Boyler, Dillon and Keegan in particular.
   Still, much improvement is needed. This ‘system’ just doesn’t seem to suit us, the players seem to look confused over their roles. Higgins should have been kept back in the first half to shore up our defence, Fermanagh were always going to go at us with that strong wind.

   Agree with you there JPM, Aidan is going to get dogs abuse over the dive. He’ll have to be decapitated to win a free now.

5. He doesn’t get them anyway JPM.
   There’s Lots of whinging about the peno. I’ve seen the TV replay a few times and frankly, it’s inconclusive! Looking at it in real time Joe Mc made the correct call.
   The goal was coming, it was only a matter of time, the Fermanagh FB line couldn’t handle him or Cillian. In fact Cillian was denied a clear peno a few minutes before that and instead there was a free out! The ball was floated in on Aidos side so good positioning on his part! Advantage Aido and a superb finish by Cillian.
   Big improvement needed for sure if we are to go long this year. It was hard work but we’re still alive. Well done lads.

6. re AOS and peno

   he is fxxxed if he does and fxxxed if he doesn’t! they were well on top at that stage any way! but a talking point none the less.

   The bench were very impressive today. lets see what awaits us.

   Hon Mayo!

7. I’ve a great time for Andy Moran but he frustrated me today time after time he didn’t pass the ball to a colleague in a better position.

8. This one was always just about getting through it with a win. Nothing else mattered. 6 points down at half time, playing poorly, disjointed and lacking intensity, it was, to be honest, looking like the end.
   Managers earn their corn at half time and Rochford sent the same players out for the second half, but that’s where the similarities ended. Intensity, movement on and off the ball, supporting each other and forcing the play, even though we still weren’t fluid and were snatching at things. We moved the ball quicker through the hands and created more space up front. Subs were used in time and they all had an impact, which is what you want.
   Fair Fucks to every single one of them. The heart still beats fierce and that’s all we wanted answered today.

9. It was a dive but lets not be to critical Fermanagh got some soft frees too and I think there should have been a penalty earlier. We would have won the game even without the penalty, but I don’t know if we can improve that much to compete at the end of the year, A Moran need to learn to pass we would have won the game by a lot more if he wasn’t so greedy, hes a sub and he needs to except that, and do the right thing like Dillon did.

10. Thought Clarke was excellent today

11. Barry moran has to start the next day.

12. Mixed feelings after that.

    Woeful first half even taking into account the wind. Constantly carrying the ball into traffic, giving awful passes, standing off players, wrong decision making, getting beat up a stick in midfield and silly fouling. Possibly our worst half of football since THAT London match.

    Anyhow the positives. Great workrate and intensity to get back into the match in the second half, we moved the ball far quicker, picked out passes better and tackled well in numbers. Kicked some good scores too

    The main thing I felt is we finished with a far better team than we started and hopefully that’s reflected in our starting 15 next week. Barry Moran absolutely has to play as does Vaughan. Very disappointed in young durcan today sadly. Is there another push in Alan Dillon? He was a massive difference and credit to rochford for making the call. Regan and coen were disappointing for me which is a huge pity as they’re new champ additions

    Despite what rte claim cillian was far from our best player and his form from open play is a huge worry. That said he should have had a penalty. Il let the moral outraged brigade discuss the aidan one to death. Diarmuid was immense however. Impressed with Kevin mc too even if it isn’t a role im happy to see him in

    Anyhow it’s a results business and we march on. I think there’s a push in us yet and that match will stand to us. Credit to fermanagh they were well organised and committed and gave it a great go. Now go and get promotion next year

13. Was that a penalty or not I have doubts time to move on a forget about anything think Longford got beat Monaghan.

14. Game plan all over the place. Surely Kmac has to be out number 11. He is a gear play maker and mad a great pass for the peno. And play keith at the back for christ sake. Harrison and Keane looked very shakey.
    Cannot see us progressing much further TBH. Players totally confused by the system, if there is one.

15. Durcan, Regan and Coen not great , Diarmuid my man of the match. What was wrong with Andy excellent at winning the ball but then bad wides when he had unmarked colleagues in better positions. K McLoughlin very good attacking

16. I hate to admit it but id rather lose all Irelands playing the way we did under Horan then watch what we saw today, I hope it improves.

17. To be fair to Regan, he set up 1-2 of our 1-4 in the first half. Then we started going down the opposite wing! Any decent ball played into him he used well. Bar the wild right footed effort in the second half (which would have finished off a wonderful move) I thought he did well.
    Diarmuid on two occasions tracked back 60 yards to tackle his man brilliantly, Boyle put his body on the line, as always, Keegan looked more like himself and Aidan contributed better, although he MUST release the ball quicker.

18. Mayo deserved win. All that mattered was result. Seems that using the older guys is this years way of crossing the line. Penalty was an embarrassment and did us no favours. Ask Meath v Louth 2010 and Sheridans “goal/try”. “Feeling contact” is a soccer contagion , I like to think of the Ger Loughnane call to arms “real men wanted now”.

19. Yeah he dived but fuck it it’s gone against us in the past and we should have had a penalty in the second half. The whole country wants Mayo annexed by the viral abuse we are getting online…fuck them.

20. I’m not 100% against using Keith as a forward per se but we’re very light at the back without him

    Cafferkey and Barrett are huge losses

21. Will Rte show every contentious call to the defeated managerfrom hereon in? I doubt it!

22. Ye won the game so well done, Aiden didn’t cover himself in glory with that dive but aside from that poor snap decision i thought he played very well and made a huge difference for mayo. If Fermanagh had any kind of a kick out strategy I think ye would have been in major bother as ye wiped them out on their own kick outs.
    I felt that Killian could on another day been given a peno for that challenge in the square but that’s the way it goes. In the final analysis Mayo were the better team and had the physical edge on them. Andy is a great man and I have huge admiration for him but he should have played the percentages out there and passed to better placed teammates especially considering the game was still very much in the balance when he over played.
    Good luck in the draw tomorrow, this run of games could be the making of ye come august in the colosseum.

23. How long is barret out for?

24. All I got right was the feckin weather!
    They splutthered and farted to an inglorious result. I still have a pain in my head after all the bad passes, poor tackling,hands on hips,running into walls as colleagues stood off and watched from afar,long kicked passes to nowhere much.And you can forget about the famous roar … it’s just not there.It seemed that the whole set up is mysteriously stuck in gear.
    On the other hand there will be one more day out at least unless my poor fathers eternal belief ‘pacing themselves’ has any substance! Maybe gearing up they are!!! OK ..I’ll settle on that for a while.

25. -I said after the Galway game that they needed to man up and most of them did.
    -Its a win against an average team who were allowed to kick fantastic points from play with a very strong wind, no pressure on kickers.
    – I was not worried at half time because I was convinced the wind was worth 6 points.
    -We won because our subs in particular Dillon and Barry made a difference and our experienced players reverted to type.
    – Regan tried but lacks the physicality required to win possession and he was bottled up exactly like the Galway game. Freeman is a nice footballer but that is his problem too nice no aggression. COC poor from play but super penalty.
    -Aido got the penalty because McQuillan messed up big time when OConnor should absolutely have got one a few minutes before.
    – While I am glad we won I cannot ignore the thought that maybe we are just postponing the inevitable as there were no coherent tactics except everyone run at Fermanagh from all angles.
    -Cork at home next please…….

26. A mixed bag overall but Mayo probably deserved the win in the end.

    Will get the negative out of the way first. The first half was poor enough, the intensity easnt there from everyone on the field. Sweeper system failed again and they cut us open at will midway through the first half. Cleaned out of it in midfield until Bigbird came on. Again left a lot of scores behind us. Passing is an issue, alot didnt go to hand and too much passing to players who were marked. Again too much running into contact and not releasing the ball, the same culprits at fault again for this. Higgins in the hf and Mc at sweeper simply doesnt work.

    The positives. The second half preformance, the intensity, aggression, passion was finally evident. The defensive effort was excellent, keeping an opponent to 2pts in a half is good no matter who they are. We were more clinical in front of goal in the second half (still wasted opportunities). The peno clearly wasnt one but who cares, time we developed that win at all costs attitude.

    Clarke, im sorry wasnt excellent as a previous poster stated. Hi kickouts were very mixed in the first half, the first put KMc under severe pressure and one didnt go the required distance which could have been costly (Hennelly would have been crucified for that one on here). David didnt put a foot wrong in the second half and dealt with everything comfortably a good preformance not an excellent preformance. Should keep his place for the next round.

    MOTM for me goes to DOC, was everywhere and scored a couple of pts. Special mention to bigbird who for me changed the game in our favour when we were struggling at mf.Dillon, still life in the old dog, brought calmness and intelligence to the attack, nice couple of pts.

    Overall a decent preformance, a long way from AI contenders but at this stage we dont need to be. All we need for now is an improvement for next weekend and take it one more step at a time.

27. Both sides scored 1-10 with the strong win but it’s Mayo 1-4 against the wind 1st half to Fermanagh 0-2 that was the difference.

    Penalty without doubt was a turning point it was embarrassing dive and lets be honest Mayo were not 5 points the better team tonight.

    Best players for Mayo was all defenders Higgins Keegan Boyle.

28. As said by someone last year o shea would have to lose a limb to get a penalty..not today he didn’t.Completely understand where the moral outrage is coming from but for once I couldn’t give a monkeys .Judging from online comments we are the villains of the day..boo hoo..

29. Watching the game from the stand side with the incident with o Shea you could see a pull of the jersey and that’s what the penalty was given for.now he did go down easy but hey that man gets dogs abuse from defenders and gets nothing!
    Hopefully this incident would come back to haunt us n future.watching a clip there from rte you cannot see a pull but there was a definate pull of jersey to be seen from the stand side and that is what ref saw to

30. A win is a win. I’ll leave it at that!

31. Seems Aidan O’Shea will be grabbing all the headlines again, albeit for different reasons this time. It was a dive and not a penalty, but who cares? Mayo were well on their way to winning the match at that point anyway and there was a clear penalty not given earlier.

32. How was the penalty a turning point? We were all over them for ages at that stage

    Think people are just being outraged for the same of it tbh. A dive, yes, but until proper retrospective action comes in, diving will – unfortunately – remain a part of the game. Not a hope in hell it made a difference to the outcome though

    Anyhow great to see Kevin mc leading the poll. An oft criticised and highly underrated player for us. He was super today. I think even cillian himself was a bit miffed to pick up the gong!

33. couple of comments. Mayo need to start getting out of the blocks quicker and play for more than 30-40 minutes out of the 70 minutes. they would be the 2 crucial things for me. They showed today how good they are when they get going but must start better.

    As for the pen, I really couldn’t give an F. Just remember the shafting we got in Limerick and in 96 our best and there worst player being sent off. Also there looked to be a shove as the ball came in for their goal and Cillian had fair claim for a pen turned down befor the pen that was given

34. To anyone who feels guilt or embarrassment for the Aido penalty, go on YouTube and watch the 2014 replay in Limerick. We’d need 2 of those decisions in every game for the next 3 years to equal out for the dispicable antics of O’Reilly. We’d have won with or without the penalty and this soft, fair play attitude that still prevails with some of our support is asinine. F-off and find another team to support if you want gamesmanship and gentlemanly conduct, I want an All Ireland.

35. I have to laugh at the controversy about the penalty decision. Why is there no controversy about the non awarding of a penalty a few minutes earlier when a posse of Fermanagh men pounced on Cillian? Dead right to look for the peno and leave the decision to the officials.

36. Just saw Monaghan in big trouble. Don’t underestimate the dangers of the back door that was a vital win today no matter the circumstances

    Not to tempt fate but it eliminates the toughest team from our draw Monday too if it transpires

37. Spot on Liam and Garland!

38. @Aidan,
    yes, there was a definite jersey pull, I saw it from stand side as well,

    soft penalty, but foul was committed

39. I say most posters are better readers of the game than I ,so can somebody please tell
    me why:
    1 Why do so many players decide to go into the tackle[s} and then loose the ball,
    and then misdirect the pass
    2 Why, after a good number hand passes do players then suddenly kick a long ball into
    a closely marked colleague
    3 is there a serious lack of awareness of where the space is.EG many times there was
    acres os space at a comfortable scoring distance but nobody runs into it .Clearly this is
    a coaching matter.[watch Dublin use this every time]

    Answers please.Thank you.

40. Longford beat monaghan !!!

41. Longford just bet Monaghan….please please please let us draw them in the next round! Put them 2010 demons to bed.

42. Clarkes outstanding point blank save in the second half was magnificent. Caught and held every high ball and was assured throughout.
    Higgins man of the match? He was atrocious in the first half and his piss poor pass set up their goal. He was much better second half but he needed to be.

43. It was a dive but the referee simply evened things up because that was a clear penalty on Cillian earlier. The usual characters seem to love moaning about us though, let them at it.

    I don’t know how COC got the MOM, McLoughlin clearly deserved it imo. He has all of the attributes to play sweeper. He has pace, he’s very comfortable on the ball bringing it out, has vision to pick a pass and is a fierce tackler for a man of his size.

    Barry Moran was great when he came on, minus his miskick! Fair play to Alan Dillion too, the man still oozes class when he’s on the ball. Took a lovely score too! Vaughan also done well. I wouldn’t stick the boot into Andy too much either, he missed a few and should have laid a couple of balls off but on another day it would have come off for him, at least he put himself in a position to win ball.

    DIarmuid had a good game, some engine on the lad. Thought Keegan was very smart too in that second half, he was always looking to cut in and offer an option to the runner on the outside. Aidan O’Shea drove us on at times, fair play to him considering some of the stick he took. Zippy is Zippy, could play him anywhere. Davie Clarke is rightfully back at number one, there’s a calmness there when he’s under the high ball.

    Overall lads we can be happy with the second half, they stood up when they had to. At the end of the day, despite the breeze, we were down by six at half-time with one half to save our Championship and we cleaned them out. That shows character. Hopefully we can carry that half through to next week and start to come to life.

    We’re still down but certainly not out. Let’s get another big crowd next weekend, Castlebar or where ever.

44. Spot on Liam well said I want an all Ireland too we’ve been nice footballers for too long gallant losers mehole we deserve every bit of luck we get

45. Well i hope the Longford win over monaghan puts things in perspective. This qualifier craic is a minefield. So relax on the criticism and be happy the lads gave a great spirited performance in the second half and are into the next round.

46. At least Mayo won stop complaining I know was not the best performance strange feeling that it’s Longford next.

47. That Longford result cost should show us all about the dangers of the qualifiers, particularly the first game you play after a provincial defeat.
    That could have very easily been us today, so fair play to the players for turning it around in the 2nd half and showing us all that they’re not finished yet.

    Christ, what a social media storm that “dive” has created! It’s obviously being blown out of all proportion because it’s such a high profile player.

    For people wondering why COC was named man of the match, it was chosen by that absolute tool Tommy Carr on RTE. Should be explanation enough.
    Having to listen to him for 70 minutes nearly brought me to tears.

48. Was very worried about Monaghan who are a good disciplined hard working outfit and possess great ball winners in middle third, with not to mention one of the best footballers in the country up top. Remember they won two of the last 3 Ulster titles and are a stellar division 1 side

    Il take nothing for granted but I’m resting easier ahead of mondays draw with them gone tbh

49. Cait, its not Longford yet, its one of Longford, Kildare or Cork.

50. A win is a win is a win! When a decision goes for you, take it and run. God knows we have had enough decisions go against us down through the years. Like Dublin in a lot of their games, the bench won it for us today. Congrats and well done to the lads, they showed great heart and determination to get the win. Roll on the next game!

51. Well done lads – pulled it out after a slow start

    I think we are going to miss Cafferkey and Barrett the further we get cos our defence is obviously under pressure. Maybe the best way is to counter this is really go after teams a la Horan and try and pin teams back – especially if we meet middle of the road teams.

    Thought the introduction of subs was good today – and good to see them all making an impact. I could not for the life of me figure out what Fermanagh thought they were at wasting time before the penalty – given O’Connors record from the spot they were about to be 2 points down with time running out – Crazy stuff – but sure if that’s how they want it – no problem lads carry on rolling in the grass.

    I note Fermanagh played a far more defensive system than us – keeping only 1 forward in our half – would this system not suit us better as if we bring everyone back we have 4 very zippy lads to counter down the field when we turn it over in Higgins Keegan Durkan and McLoughlin . Just don’t feel the sweeper is bedding in well at all.

    Longford at home God – pretty please

52. Avoid cork and we really should be looking at a very winnable match. Cork will always be dodgy even if I expect us to still have enough for them but the collective effort of beating them followed by possibly Donegal and a provincial winner in successive weeks could take its toll.

    Buzzing for the draw and next weekend already these qualifiers are becoming strangely enjoyable in a bizarre way!!

53. Dan, agree with you on that tool Carr. He is a complete and utter spoofer. Hard to listen to some of the shite he comes out with. Why RTE use this guy i’ll never know, much better options for analysis out there IMO

54. were in the hat for monday thats what counts. What a good piece of vision from kmac to pick out pass to aiden. Had aiden simulation on his mind when he went after the ball? No he had not. He felt contact and then decided to fall. He got the decision and coc stuck it away. Aiden played well today and his application was alot better. The site is awful for negative analysis. Lets stick to what we did well and improve on what we did not. We scored more than them therefore we won the game. The wind was big factor and was not easy play against. Management got subs on at right times and they all played a good part. Dillon is accurate and if stays fit could start next week. He also has composure and thats what is important as a forward. Vaughan played well and i remember him playing well as a rhb when he came on the scene years ago. We could play leeroy more central and boyler at lhb.

    We won the game and our leaders led better than they did against galway. Our full back line is suspect and i can see why we need cover in front of them. I think the calls our management made worked out today so lets look forward to next week. Monaghan cant say that …..

55. What’s wrong with people. Well done to Aidan he won us a penalty. I don’t care how he won it he won it. If ref and umpires got it wrong that’s their problem Aidan has been on the wrong end of their poor decision making many times. Well Done Aidan.

56. Watched the game back again and was a lot better watching it second time. Men really came to the fore. Clarke Kevin mc Keegan Vaughan AOS Higgins Cillian and diarmid were every bit the leaders aided by Dillon and Barry when they came on. Credit to the lads they had one hell of a challenge and rose to it.

    I think this game will really stand to them and unite them even more knowing that if they have to go to the well it’s still there and they will win at all means necessary.
    That maybe just be a turning point in this team where they kick on with a we don’t care for you or anyone attitude and win by any means.
    Sure AOS went over bit easy but how many times was he man handled and got nothing.

    Delighted for them and hope they push on.
    Clarke showed not only Hennelly but all keepers just how good he is.
    keane done well on a tricky customer and gains confidence from a solid display.
    Coen grows each game
    Keegan needs a little bit more freedom to attack cause he is best halfback in the game
    Vaughan dispite his limitations is a leader in the team and showed a level of maturity we need.
    Seamie was solid v a good midfield.
    AOS despite looking as if the world was against him showed his true value and he was a leader. Needs a little confidence and a run of games
    Diarmid is emense and once he is fully fit watch out
    Cillian was a captain rock solid bar one dodgey free
    Kevin Mc too was very mature and a leader. I wanted him to stay as sweeper as he can dictate play in the Karl Lacey role and he did that only better.

    Well done to Rochie on the subs was quick to add Vaughan and all who came on showed well.
    Loftus still kept in reserve for another day.

57. Didn’t think it was a dive. I was in the stand fairly close to it and I thought the Fermanagh defender put his leg in. It wasn’t clearcut but I thought it was a foul. It wouldn’t have been seen on TV if the cameras were in the MacHale Road side. Maybe some people think that big men shouldn’t fall at all. I also thought that Aido should have had a penalty earlier when he fell in the square [no foul there] and he got a hand in the back as he tried to get up. A push in the back is a push in the back and is a foul.

58. Would have to give AOS 8.5 for artistic merit and well executed fall, unfortunately Barry M only gets a 3.5 for pirouette and miss kick and finally Joe McQuillan geta a perfect 10.

59. Lads!!! The support was quality today. The roar from the Mayo fans was a great sound!!!!

60. Great show my our lads today. I did not know what to expect before the game started, but in truth we were well in the contest right up to the end of the first half. The second half display was immense great character and fight in this team yet. Fermanagh could not stay with us. Today was about exercising the ghosts that haunted our every step on the 18 of June.Fermanagh are a decent side, good discipline, and well organized. The first division factors vs the second division showed in the end. I voted for K McL but I could have gone for AOS, Diarmuid, Boyle, Keegan, Higgins, Dillon, Moran, or Clarke Who will relish a trip to Castlebar next weekend.

61. I presume Carr was wearing a Fermanagh jersey he was brutally biased Think Mayo deserve a lot of credit. They were in bad position at half time but won second half by 1 19 TO 0 2 Whinging about penalty is typical Cillian should have got one earlier and Fermanagh goal was dubious. We didnt play great but appetite and character were in evidence and thats what matters. Thought or FB line were in serious trouble in first half. Some subs great, especially Dillon and Barry. While Andy didnt score his experience was crucial Just look at the penalty. Andy took the ball for a minute and all the abuse that followed thus allowing Cillian to concentrate on job in hand without having to withstand the bickering. Watched RTE afterwards Tom Carr almost crying at Fermanagh defeat, but credit to Jarlath Burns who called it as it was and also to Pete McGrath who though disappointed with penalty was gracious in defeat. We not fantastic yet so would like home draw v Kildare or Longford Up Mayo.

62. fair enough —- — we were given the `wrong penalty` but would you all please build

    a bridge over that …. and cross it. There are more important things we need to discuss.

    Something is out of kilter. Dirty petrol. Sometimes today we looked like lads who were

    brought together for the first time. Please help! I`m looking for answers. How are we

    going to fix this? Is it a lack of confidence? I`m baffled , bothered and bewildered

    even more after today. Answers on a postcard.

63. Only fear is the fullback line but with Clarke back there will renewed confidence.

    I like Harrison but wonder about him v top quality forwards. If chrissy barrett get s fit he starts as I. You can keep Bernard brogan quiet then keep anyone quiet.
    With Tom P back maybe we can shift coen or Boyle back to add bite to it maybe both but anyways fully taking the positives and move on

64. Phew! Wasn’t that exciting. Had it all. For me the MOM was Boyler yet again. He is so consistent and so determined. He played well in both halves.
    I’m happy and relieved because I just didn’t know what kind to expect.
    But we’ve a ways to go yet.

    there’s a lot to learn about the system we are trying to play. It’s not exciting to watch and the players are still a little bit unsure of where they should be. But we need to persist with it in the long run.

    Really glad to see that our attacking game is still there and will get results. We could have done that against Galway but we’d have leant nothing.

    The difference between today and the galway match is that we had all of the second half to attack and get the scores we needed to get the result in the end.

    As for Aido and the peno. Look he’s being pulled and dragged for start to finish of most matches and he gets nothing. So I say take it. We’d have won anyway. We had all to momentum in the second half. The only thing that was going to beat us was the clock and boy was that keeper trying to slow it down on the kick outs.

65. PS. Sorry …. I mean confidence in the `system`. Is everyone behind it?

66. Great to get the win. Improvement from the Galway game and attitude from most of the players was much better. Shocking dive from O’Shea for the penalty. Not what we want to be seeing in our game and terrible example for kids. Andy M needs to learn to pass the ball. Shockingly selfish when he came on.

67. Fair Play, a win is a win. I think we deserved it. Aiden got a break getting that penalty, How many times in the last 2 years, he got fouled but a free out was awarded instead. Don’t think he’ll get a penalty in a hurry again from Joe McQuillen . Joe is one of the best Refs out there but that wasn’t his finest decision . But wait for the Sunday game, that’s not what they will be talking about… Spoke to one or two of the players after the match, one said it’s great to see come back from 6 points down and finish the game on a positive note. Sort of the opposite to what happened Vs Galway. Our subs worked well, Barry was excellent as were Dillon and Vaughan. Question for Rochford now will he start them Vs whoever we draw on Monday?.. I imagine that one or two of would expect to be picked. Andy needs to give the ball to the man in best position immediately, it doesn’t matter who scores. Taught the sideline decisions improved on the the Galway game, I still think they should have moved sooner in the game.. Monaghan are now out of the Championship, that six day turn around, How few teams come through. Of course Monaghan had to deal with two games V Donegal, so that makes a difference. Today we survived, but let’s remember that Fermanagh had to travel to Wexford last week as well. Whoever we draw on Monday, we won’t have an advantage over them in terms our preparation time. We did have that advantage today. The result is what matters most, the morale of the team will be a little better as well. I taught DOC probably shaded the MotM.

68. One of the Fermanagh lads down with cramp as the penalty was about to be taken?Bullshit. He was very lively running into position before he went down like he had been shot. Just like all the arguing in the Donegal league match last spring it was purely tactical to try unnerve the penalty taker. Also there were at least three Fermanagh men inside the 21 on the stand side as the penalty was being taken under the nose of the linesman. Had it been saved – and one of them picked up the rebound?? That is quite clear on the video.

69. Ciaran prior to the penalty Fermanagh led by a point 1-12 to 1-11. After the penalty only 3 points was scored and all those scores probably came from the turning point of that converted penalty.

70. Got the result and this evening that’s all we can focus on, particularly bearing in mind what’s happened to Monaghan in Clones.

    Lots to ponder on. Desperately poor first half again. Roared back into it and I think we deserved to get over the line in the end.

    The bench had a huge impact today. Barry Moran changed the entire game for me and was my MOTM. Vaughan added some real impetus too. Alan Dillon turned back the clock with two super points, including his trade-mark dummy hop. Andy got on some great ball but was a little selfish on occasion.

    I’m strill not convinced we have found the right personnel for a number of positions. Much to ponder ahead of the draw on Monday morning.

71. happy with the result, but the performance not good overall. it’s the same players always getting us out of trouble and others letting the game pass them by. need a small clear out at at the end of the championship, to many players under performing year In year out. higgins, boyle, keegan, seamie, diarmuid, McLoughlin, Barry and Dillon played well today in difficult conditions

72. Tommy Carr is the worst thing about football on Rte. How does he get work when there’s so many people more deserving.

73. We were too slow out of the blocks. The team seemed almost reluctant to go forward at times, afraid to take shots against the strong breeze. We look like a team who lack a coherent plan going forward. What was Regan’s role today? Alan Freeman spent too much time dropping back deep. We lacked a punch up-front, McLoughlin playing the sweeper had an element of robbing Peter to pay Paul. Don’t get me wrong, McLoughlin was excellent today and was far more settled in his role than last time around but things seemed to ignite for us when he switched with Zippy in the second half. It’s clearly still a work-in-progress and maybe the scenic route will be a blessing for us, more games to nail down the attack and impress our game on the opposition. For too long in the first half we were reacting to Fermanagh, responding to them packing their defence by packing our middle third and hoping they wouldn’t be able to punch through, which inevitably they did with the aid of the breeze.

    Unfortunately our full-back line were off the pace today and we are going to miss Cafferkey a lot more than I thought. Keane wasn’t tight enough on Quigley. He was unlucky for the goal but points were conceded because backs seemed to go to sleep at times. McLoughlin shored us up today but that won’t cut it against bigger teams, we got to tighten up at the back and stay switched on for the entire game. The second half wasn’t so bad but Fermanagh seemed to run out of gas in the third quarter and they had such a torrid time with our midfield that they could hardly get the ball past our 45 for long stretches of the half. Again the structure and the strategy needs to be further developed here. Let’s hope for serious progress which we will need if we are going to get to Croker in August.

    I thought Coen did OK but the switch with Moran was made at the right time, he was like a man possessed when he came on. It’s good to see youth being given a run and also having the experience to call on when needed. It’s important to get the mix right. Vaughan, Dillon and A Moran all made an impact when brought on.

    Kudos to Aidan O’Shea, he answered his critics in style. Who remembers the bone-crunching shoulder in the first-half? The guy made a serious statement of intent today. I don’t care about the circumstances of the penalty. We are in the next round of the qualifiers and that is all that matters. F*** the begrudgers.

74. Not sure if Cillian was MOM today, three players played well for full match, Boyle, DOC and Keegan, one of these are MOM. Monaghan losing is a big surprise, the draw might be kind and it may help us get some momentum. We need Parsons back as we face tougher challenges.

75. Ya tommy carr was all over the place today on rte. I could not make head nor tail of what he was saying there was no sense to it. crazy stuff give me the lads from Midwest any day

76. Hats off to all today. SR got all his calls right. The impact also off the subs bench today was spectacular. DV AD and BM were immense. Aido’s switch to the edge of the square was a game changer also. Perhaps this is his true position provided he gets the right ball and support – this was his most productive showing in a while in my opinion.
    However,I think the charge was led by SOS LK CB DOC DV BM and my MOTM KH. No shortage of leaders there.In fairness they all pulled their socks up for the last 20. There is lots of room for improvement which is a good sign and we live to fight another day.
    Mayo Abu.

77. Tommy Carr’s commentary has generated a lot of personal hassle for Aidan.
    There was a jersey tug and possibly one foot tangled with his heel. He went down easy but thats much different than straight dive.
    Entire match Carr was, “not much in that”.
    Then for him to jump to talkin about this being reason Fermanagh are out of the chamlionship.
    Whiter than white Tommy, the man who was shouting in Maurice Fitzgerald ear from two yards away to try and put him off from scoring that famous sideline.

78. I just listened to and watched post match discussion on rte player. E Ni Chuillin totally let penalty dominate the conversation and that is feeding the blog frenzy. Not a word about the penalty call on Cillian that the crowd reacted so badly to. Nor about the many cynical fouls mostly by Fermanagh but we weren’t blameless. Or fermanaghs time wasting.
    The main point is we need to close ranks and defend our guys no matter what. We have had zero luck in calls like this going right back to 1996 and here we are almost apologising. We are still too nice off the field. AOS has truly earned a break from a ref afte years of being absolutely assaulted.

79. Gone south obviously a shocking day for you By the way Mayo won. Sure Aidens peno was soft but what about the shocking decision not to award the penalty to Cillian earlier And as for Andy ,yes he could have scored or laid off the ball better but he got on possession really well though admittedly made poor decisions. Once again the old timers did well .I keep saying they deserve their places until new lads prove better. I like Coen, Durcan and Regan but the fact remains that it it is the guys who have done the business since 2011 that keep driving us forward We should be so proud of them and recognise them for the great men they are rather that constantly calling for new blood when one of them has a blip. Well done to Clarke great last minute save, but kick outs were poorer than those of Robbie, Look at the first half for evidence. Robbie was crucified for one bad kick out. Think we have 2 great shot stoppers. Clarke in possession at moent. More power to him. Overall good result, lots to work on but a good draw on monday should see us progress.

80. Ultair, for Fermanaghs goal Colm Boyle was marking Quigley. He sort of got horsed out of it. Not There must have been some mix-up in the Mayo defence because you would imagine it should have been Keane!

81. We’re still there standing. Fermanagh never stopped fighting. We just about held. . Mayo showed some signs today but I am still very unsure about where we are going.

82. Hello, i thought Rochford looked shattered in the post match interview. He has always appeared unruffled. He was staring at the Abyss.
    The players must be delighted. The past will really be the past for them now. Rochford will know the players so much bettet now and they him.

    Kevin Mc looked good to me and so this Sweeper system must be working? Why would they persist after Galway game if not, and Higgins also seemed good to me. Maybe it is an improvement when the half backs are allowed to attack. Did not Kevin Keane almost score a point? as well.

    I must confess Clarke looked good but maybe should have given away a penalty for their goal?
    Andy probably was a little anxious to get a score. Next time hope someone comes on his shoulder and shouts at him. Still he does score when others might not.
    Aido helps out all over the place.
    There is really only Loftus, Caolan and Reape to get game time in the forwards.
    I am sure they will sort out the backs with Nally, Drake, Barret Coen to provide cover plus others.
    They will all gel next week. The tackling is back and it is easy to be hopeful. Vaughan made a great return. Dillon is class.

    Expecting fireworks next week.

    Ciaran 2.

83. Tommy Carr is a failed footballer manager and pundit.Enough said.

84. Well done today . Good win with lots of improvement needed but will take the ,,,. Rang my mother on way home from match . She is 80 and don’t think I’ve ever use bad language until she described tommy Carr as a bollix .! ,, he must have been terrible ,, anyway sure it makes it all the sweeter when they win .

85. Result is all that matters in a work in progress. Hope the management tram have learned from the day. It clarified for !e that Hennelly is ahead of Clarke for the following reasons
    1) First half kicks out were poor with at least two resulting in Fermanagh scores.
    2) He was lying on the ground before Quigley rolled the ball into the net. Robbie would have stayed on his feet and made him work harder but in s one on one the forward always wins.
    3) Clarke flapped Fermanaghs second last point over the bar. Robbie is on video holding and clearing at least three similar efforts.
    Let’s be impartial in the comparisons.
    Very disappointed with Durcan, hasn’t reached last year’s level.
    Coen not a midfielder now or in the future.
    Barry has at least a good half hour to offer which is important even when Parsons returns.
    Freeman a complete enigma, can’t figure out what’s missing.
    Cillian has to do more than be a reliable freetaker. Very one paced, maybe the captaincy is too much of a burden.
    Regan not physically equipped for this level. Can we afford somebody for maybe two left footed frees.
    Dillon always worth a spell except on AIF day when he manages to hide in the wide open spaces of Croke Park.
    Andy Moran was poorer than v Tyrone 2013.
    We live on but the task is daunting but not unachievable. Are we up to it?

86. Just finished looking at it now on the recording. Completely frustrating day – my original plan to fly back to Spain on Saturday in time for a possible Connaught final appearance well and truly stymied after the Galway game. Then flight scheduled for throw in time, flight delayed, ‘free wifi’ which timed out after 10 minutes and necessitated a iPad reboot, completely screwing any attempt to hear the first half. Aagh!

    Anyway, on a TV viewing, I thought the first half not bad at all up until the 32nd minute – only three points down against a gale, but then Fermanagh’s three points really put us on the back foot.

    Lot’s of good energy in the second half and the ‘wave’ effect let Fermanagh know a thing or two. Couldn’t care less about the legitimacy of the penalty. Fermanagh got away with murder all day – just look at the fouls on Boyler, every time he got the ball. They are borderline dirt, crafty, very well drilled and of course McGrath is shrewdness personified, so it’s no bad result at all, probably the hardest of the possible opposition.

    Are we any good? Still very hard to say – forward waywardness is quite worrying, but at least a lot of guys now have game time under their belts (Barry, Donie, Diarmuid, Seamie even, Freezer) and the fitness levels have definitely improved. Two week break is a Godsend.

    If take off was miserable at 6 down, landing to a 5 point win was exhilarating.

87. Bill Connolly, Clarkes choice in goals was proven correct, he commanded his box, he pulled off numerous saves and is more solid than hennelly and wouldnt make his mistakes every game. Clarke will be in goals next week. Maigh Eo Abu!!!!!!!!!

88. Quickfire question, would longford, cork and kildare have grounds to meet the crowd expcted for a visit from mayo?

89. Frustrating first half but team spirit really came through in second half including Aidan’s ‘one for the team’ dive! Unfortunately we all know that cynicism is an essential tool in any serious teams toolbox these days.

    Great performance by our old-timers who deserve great praise and Thanks after all they’ve given us in previous years.
    Onwards and upwards!

90. Billy, I would concur with alot of what your saying. The result is all that matters in qualifiers, there was an improvement from Galway game particularly in the second half. I wouldnt consider us AI contenders at the moment, definitely 2-3 teams going alot better. But at this stage we dont need to be, we need to be round 4 contenders and with another improvement on todays preformance we will be.

    Regarding Clarke, overall he had a good game. His kickouts were very mixed, the first one put KMc under severe pressure then there was the one which didnt get the required distance, that could have been costly, Robbie would have been racked over the coals for doing that. Clarke handled everything that came at him well in the second half and probably deserves to start the next game.

    Dillon is Class but is only a 20min man at this stage as is Andy who was infuriating for repeatedly ignoring players in good positions for personal glory.

    Cillian probably is living off frees as he tries to regain top fitness and form but he will be our go to man down the line as things progress and he will improve game by game.

91. Good questions Sean, and the answer to all 3 is no.

    BTW I think I was wrong in the last post that we have a two week gap – ah well games are the thing to bring a team on, if the stuff is there.

92. Mayomagic we outscored them 6 to 1 at that stage in the half and were rallying with 8 minutes of normal time to go and a huge wind behind us. I don’t care if we were one behind we clearly had winning momentum regardless

    We should have had a penalty before it anyway . Im sorry im just sick of people claiming all day it changed the game. I’m in disbelief even some of our own fans agree. We were pissing all over them all second half they got what two points the whole period? anyhow it was given shit happens i for one will make no apologies for getting the fortuitous call! 🙂

93. its lovely to see dublin fans being all pissy on some forums about Mayo winning today. Theyd be really really pissy if Mayo were the ones to finish their run as holders of Sam.Anyway, one game at a time for Mayo, my bet is we draw cork away on monday and that will be quite the test, though i can see Mayo win that one too if they can settle down and by that I mean near the oppositions goal, just for a second take that final look around.

94. I dont think it makes a difference this round sean but IF we get through i assume our 4th round will be in croker?.

    Now conspiracy theorist hat on. The draw is done off screen… castlebar sure is a money spinner for the GAA 🙂

95. Well said Dave, We asked had Mayo the pride and passion in the jersey and they answered that with abundance. Roll on Maigh Eo!!!!!

96. Wikipedia says the capacity of Pearse Park in Longford is ten thousand on the nose and 16,500 for Pairc Ui Rinn. Kildare’s Conleth Park in Newbridge holds six or seven thousand. I think all those figures are very well padded because they have McHale Park down to hold 42,000 which seems a real exaggeration. Anyway Sean, I’m not sure where that’ll leave us faithful but all will be revealed.
    Felt the old stock are still the backbone of the team today but what harm. We know we have good bucks coming thru but I suppose we’re all a bit impatient when it comes to taking time for them to develop fully. For me Donie Vaughan is worth his weight in gold for sheer work and effort. Rarely he’s gotten the better of and if he is he works tirelessly to ensure its a once off. Mayo had a bit more presence and force when he was introduced. My hope going forward is that little by little SR’s plan is taking shape and that the players are integrating it into their play with each game. We still won by five points today without our full back and first choice midfielder. As for the penalty well there was contact and AOS made the best of it. There could have been a few more during the game and I still feel we would’ve won anyway. We were well and truly on top at that stage.
    When SR took the job he was clear about his intention and that we needed to be patient. One game at a time. Keep the faith.

97. There’s life in the old dog yet.
    Just what we needed today.
    We’ll improve again next week and………you never know.
    It can be done.
    One day at a time.

98. Pearse Park is out of commission – the stand is closed for health and safety problems. If they hadn’t dug up the Hyde we could be headed there! Carrick, maybe, if we pull Longford away?

99. Interesting reading here but I’m not sure if I was at the same game were so talked up in some of the comments. We struggled to beat an average Fermanagh team at home! If we had been playing a better quality oposition they would have been out of sight by half time. There were some serious problems. Full back line very vulnerable.sweeper system doesn’t seem to shore it up either. Midfield outplayed in first have but did improve in 2nd half particularly after BM came on. Forwards again patchy getting a modest 1-6 from play.
    Overall it was an improvement on the Galway performance but still below what’s needed. 16 scores is more encouraging but I feel things are not right and I think we could take a thumping at some stage in the championship this year and possibly next weekend if we have to travel to Cork.

100. I’ve watched the game back home again too and McLoughlin as sweeper does look to be working.. but I agree with the robbing Peter to pay Paul analogy also. Most of all, I think we panicked a bit in the second half when we just simply needed to have cool heads.. we had completely over whelmed them in the second half and instead of simply punching the ball over the bar we were trying to put the ball along with the Fermanagh goalkeeper through the stand into the carpark. I guess we were desperate to win this and it showed. Silly mistakes like Boyler been left isolated on Quigley for the goal should not happen.. mistakes like that will get punished.. but all in all it wasn’t a bad defensive display but we do need Barrett back. As was pointed out I had to laugh Andy taking abuse for the penalty before handing the ball over to Cillian.. very good. Now let’s see who’s next.. no one will want to get drawn out against us on Monday morning that’s for sure.

101. If Aidan dived, he was taking a big chance. He was getting to the ball first and all we needed was to keep tapping points over. The ref didn’t blow for a push, but rather for shirt pulling. I think he may have been held as the ball was kicked in. He usually is and never gets anything from it.

102. Leaving the ground today there was definitely a spring in the step. Most Mayo fans talking bout DOC, big Barry and the great Alan Dillon. I’m delighted for him because he was shamefully treated last year and he still has a part to play. Two classy points. DOC work rate, scoring and general play is phenomenal and boy he was definitely missed against Galway.

     I found the first half to be totally bizarre. I couldn’t fathom what our tactics were about. The players looked lost and it was so frustrating to watch. Our forwards kept getting bottled up and our defenders kept turning over the ball. Fermanagh scored at least 1-3 from the likes of Harrison, Durcan, mcloughlin and Higgins giving silly passes away.

     We fought bravely in the second half. Aidan’s peno was harsh on Fermanagh but damn it we needed some luck for once. Cillian should have had one a few moments before that anyhow.

     I suppose the big thing we learned today is that our bench is strong and had a big part in us winning the game, there’s lots of fight in us yet and rochford and the players can take great heart from our unwillingness to never give up.

     I’d love it if we get Longford. We owe them one. Plus with cian o Neill with Kildare I’d like to face them too. His departure from the Mayo set up was bad timing in 2012 letting it break out before the Donegal game.

     Onwards and upwards. I thought the Mayo support was great today. Loud and proud. Up Mayo.

103. Cork were taken to extra time by limerick in back door the year they won AI and the year before Kerry scraped past Sligo just about

     Food for thought, all about scraping results in any way and building momentum from there!

104. Can’t sleep. Up Mayo

105. I am LOVINGthe bitterness from all sides tonight
     Too nice for too long
     Up mayo

106. Still wide awake here!

     Delighted with that result, if not the performance itself. I thought we left ourselves wide open far too many times in the first half – Ger Caff is a massive loss – and were way too slow to take on our men. Still bewildered by this “system” and I feel that once we cast off the shackles and started playing our normal half we were better.

     That said, I haven’t watched the game back yet and sometimes a calm re-watch is what’s needed.

     As for the penalty, it was the softest, most dubious penalty ever won but I couldn’t give a fiddlers. It was never, ever in my nature to condone this stuff, but I lost my moral compass below in Limerick in 2014 when James O’Donoghue gave us a masterclass in diving, and there it will stay until we win an All-Ireland.

     Being honest I would sooner the whole country hated our guts for winning dirty, than face into a winter of more pity after another poxy moral victory. Nice guys finish last – we know this – and when you’re at the stage this team is, you do what you have to do to win.

     And at the end of the day, Joe McQuillan was the same game as the rest of us and he had two linesmen with him; as far as I’m concerned the blame rests with him.

     It’s between Barry, Kevin, Alan (immense) Boyler (lionhearted) Higgins and of course Diarmuid for MOTM for me…

     The supporters were absolutely brilliant today. The noise was unreal and it sounded more like 24,000 than 12,000. More of the same next week please!

107. What’s with the line of players across the field though? Some new tactic maybe, Clark strong in goal and God knows we need that, maybe improvement with game time … But maybe not time will tell

108. On the O’Shea incident, that level of opportunism and cynicism happens across the board in the GAA, so it’s not just our Aidan who’s “sullying” the name of the organisation. All the most successful inter-county teams do it. O’Shea did his part to to get Mayo over the line. That’s the kind of leadership and go-gettery that people have been calling out for and if anyone thinks that the likes of Kerry or Dublin or Tyrone don’t do things like that, then they’re divorced from reality. All of the above do this and more, and they don’t care what anyone else thinks because at the end of the day, it’s a results game. Nobody’s here to engage in moral victories or be the rest of the country’s “second team”. Mayo got the desired result today. That’s what matters.

109. Well said there Ann Marie. If you really want a laugh go to reservoir dubs.com and see what the hateful yokes on there are saying, how useless Mayo are and how we robbed a decent bunch of Fermanagh lads but are not even on dublins “raider” as a threat to them.
     A big thank you to any one that went to Mchale park and roared the team on today. With a bit of luck you’ll have s few more days out to do some more of it.

110. It’s amazing the difference a week makes last week people calling for o Shea to be dropped this week he gets a deserved standing ovation for the sheer work he put in.now fair enough went down easy but but but unless u were behind the bacon factory goal or n the stand you would not have seen the pull on o Shea and rte cameras missed it from far side!!!
     A Fermanagh player was trying to swap jerseys with Keith Higgins n ist half he had half he jersey off!
     If anyone was down m Limerick n 2014 we were robbed in football decisions that went against us.to me that was the Sam that got away!!! Kerry should not have being in that final and only for a certain ref they were!
     So anyway fuck the begrudgers in and outside or county whether we win or lose we keep trying the green and red or black and lime here is still pumping!!!

111. Woke the wife up at 4.30am reading the blog-fecks sake! Am proud of the lads and especially second half performance today. Ya twas an easy penalty but glad to get the job done. It’s hard to know how far we can go but every game is a chance to improve. Hope we keep moving forward and tweaking the engine. Should be in better shape for Croke Park! Well done Mayo. Abu

112. Well done to Stephen and the Team,it was a high pressure game for all involved and ye came out the right side of the result. Improvement needed for the next round. Do not underestimate any team in the draw .For all in involved,Team,Management and Supporters it has to be ONE GAME AT A Time.

113. I have to say I’m delighted with what AOS did. For too long we have been too nice. Football is about winning however you can. You see people going down easy all over the pitch. At the moment he is public enemy no. 1 and so are Mayo, it’s time to circle the wagons onwards and upwards.

114. D o c man of the match for me his tackle on f player I think was second half stood out for me a very close behind was boyler.

115. Agree aiden played clever , just like a lot of top county forwards . Great to get the win , lads will look forward to going back training , after a poor start ground out a win . Lots of improvement needed. Still no one giving us a chance to win the all ireland and that suits us grand ,. Another win and we are in quarter finals. Good luck to the minor team to day and who knows galway might cause an upset too ,!

116. Delighted to get back to winning ways but at what cost? It is a shame to see all the negative publicity again surrounding our role model player. AOS caused havoc in around the square and did not need to resort to diving, that is a really poor example to set for all the young guys looking up to him. Mayo has a proud tradition of honest footballers which is very quickly becoming tarnished by the antics of last year and again yesterday.

117. I had to have various glasses of John Lidl’s Chilean red last night before and during a re watch of the MC Hale bebackle. I would recommend the same too for Evergreenandred on such occasions. The expectations we have of this team are indeed very great so when you start witnessing what looks like a rerun of a v bad film you saw recently in the same cinema you wonder if you re in the right place at all. Or would it be more appropriate to be over in that other building for the bewildered!
     So, 1-10 to 1-4…dirty diesel,low oil,gears catching,ageing model? Head scratching , faces in hands,wind, second half?chatter, questions.ah fxxx it anyway!
     I suppose we had to remind ourselves that we re on a journey and the second half brought us a bit further along to the destination…whatever that is.
     Congrats to all for pulling through.To walk on the field afterwards is a fair assist in coming to terms with what went on and you’re reminded of when you were there and had your turn and how did you do??Its not as easy as it seems.
     They got the throw in and first two scores of second half, generally stepped up and took the honours so on we go.
     Couple of things.Mc L has to go in CHF area. They re still not in tune/time for the offensive movement.What does it take? B Moran ..a strange jewel to have around the place..fair dues! Very poor mopping up in first half esp but greatly improved in second.Shocking running into walls again.What do you do? Its the one aspect that’s going to stop this team from reaching its ultimate goal.A line of black jerseys right across the field…what was that for? Were they waiting for the band to strike up again?
     The penalty claims! As Dolan said , isn’t it time the tech was brought in for these occasions.And look at the amount of time was spent sht hawking before it was taken just like in Ballybo in the league…bizarre!
     Overall it was grand to see the battling qualities return. They ll be much needed for this backdoor shamozzle!!

118. I agree with Lahan Man, we were opened up at the back too easily, particularly in the first half, loose marking and just no sense of us having a cohesive defensive unit, one that looks like a wall. Time again there were pockets of empty space for the opposition to take advantage of. I agree that this needs to be shored up immediately otherwise a decent team will open us up.

     In attack we were disjointed. Fermanagh were actually incredibly poor in the 2nd half. They’ll be very disappointed once they look back over it.

     We showed fight and plenty of resolve but reality is we have lots….loads to improve on. Like some have said, most of the questions we had prior to the Fermanagh game remain unanswered.

119. Nephibeg. It is that proud tradition of honest footballers that has cost us over the years. Kerry got two very iffy ones against us in Limerick. O Shea has been too honest in the past , staying on his feet when he could have gone down . Its time we got a bit of cuitness, I couldn,t care less what others think about us

120. Nephinbeg we have a proud tradition of nice honest footballers that have no all Ireland senior medals maybe it’s time to win ugly and at all costs like Kerry (the day in Limerick being a prime example) and Meath in 96 I’m tired of losing don’t care how we win Sam as long as we win

121. It one thing being cute in an All Ireland but against Fermanagh in the first round of a qualifier? Every referee will be on to AOS after that display yesterday. It would be different if it was a once off rush of blood to the head but he was diving throughout the game yesterday so it was an obvious strategy. We need a better strategy how to unlock teams than that. That’s just the way I feel and from the reaction on social media a lot of Mayo people feel the same way.

122. Agree with O’Sullivan and Backdoor Sam.

     Also think Regan needs more bulk up, he struggles an awful lot physically.

123. We won ugly and I’ll take that.
     Midfield cleaned out by Fermanagh, who had an absolute star in midfield.
     Defence gave up 1 -10 in 1 half of football. Mayo Sweeper no where in sight for their goal.
     Our forwards don’t look like they’re enjoying themselves.
     Maybe we can get all this bad football out of our system and play ourselves into form.
     I thought we’ld be playing more of a Corofin style football at this stage. There was nothing on view yesterday that other teams haven’t seen before.
     We’re so slow & predictable in our build-up play, the Fermanagh defence had loads of time to set up against us yesterday.
     The future is uncertain and the end is always near in the backdoor.

124. Can sympathise in a way witj him as he is often surrounded by two or three by the time the ball comes into him. He should have done a whole lot better with his goal attempt.

125. I agree OShea will be a marked man by refs but this might not be a bad thing as they might see how often he is fouled.Reagan is a bit slight but will be better on drier days.Big Barry was excellent.We need to tighten up in the backs—I would persist with Mc Loughlin as sweeper

126. I got a black card on here last February for suggesting Evan Regan wasn’t good enough (prior to the Roscommon game) he didn’t have a great game yesterday he was bottled up but I think he has potential and if he bulks up a bit and gets proper forward coaching he will be a big player for us in the years to come

127. Im loving the abuse we as a County, and Aidan are getting. It will only make the group tighter and create that siege mentality, which is not to be under estimated. Will galvanise the squad and enhance the team spirit. Could’nt give a monkeys whats been said. We’ve been “honest” and nice since 1887 and have won 3 All Irelands, The Dubs have won 3 since 2011…so time to toughen up, get cuter, and as cynical as possible…its all about winning at this stage, if you want to see a good honest game of football, go and watch ur local clubs U-10’s or U-12’s etc. This is the big time.

     Having finally watched the game on tv last night, I couldnt stop laughing at Tommy Carrs commentary, the guy is a clown and obviously hates us which is grand, but a co-commentator is ment to be neutral? Tommeen either had the mortgage on Fermanagh or had picked them in his facetheball predictions, coz he was very distressed ;).

     Hopefully we draw Longford or Kildare in cbar and keep the momentum going, one game at a time.

128. as i said yesterday nice to be in the draw tomorrow and journey goes on although destination unknown. The first half was not good showing but against a stiff breeze and heavy defence its never gonna be easy. At least in second half the fire that our players showed was great to see. The subs were brought on in good time and made good impact. Fair play to sideline ye get critisised often enough so credit ye yesterday.

     The biggest problem mayo have is loosing possession around middle of the field. It has cost us big time over the years. Sices goal last year in salthill. Macloone in ballybofey in the league and yesterday the same thing happened again. This needs to be worked on as coughing up possession with our half backs mowing up the field is futile. Use the full with of the pitch and be composed and get the right runner on the ball. We have guys on our team that can run all day. Doc. Kmac. Keegan higgins are guys who can cover some ground. The right runner must recieve the ball and the ball must go dead at other end.

129. dillon changed the game. Still class. And always will be. As for Andy needs to stop trying to be the hero and let the ball go.

130. Have to agree with you there Juan, Tommy Carr was clearly biased. I watched the game back again last night, both Fermanagh scores in the second half came from virtually identical events to the Penalty decision. Minimla contact/push in the back, Fermanagh man goes down. Commentary -“Soft, but legitimate” from Marty. Another from Tommy”that’s the easiest decision for a referee to make
     “, when referring to a push in the back.

     Now I don’t know about the rest of you but as far as I know a foul out the field and the same foul in the penalty box is still a foul. It shouldn’t matter what colour jersey is being worn,or the size of the lad being fouled.

131. Over all I feel positive about Mayo going forward. There were a lot of uncertainty going into this match, I think as a team we can be a lot more confident, the question of our intensity and hunger for the win today was answered. The concept of knocking at the door for too long is out the window for me. The top performers were the very men who have been within a hairs breath of victories in Croker (and indeed Limerick) in the past.I feel the Galway game was a much needed jolt. Today was a scrap and a scrap that we got through, games like today developed belief in both the players and the fans. That is a big positive for me.

     The wind in the first half was a major factor.I didn’t feel it was as strong in the second half, it didn’t feel as breezy in the stand.

     What Rochford is trying to achieve in his tactics still has not bedded in with some of the players. There were driven passes to an empty pitch in the expectation of finding a Mayo Jersey.

     Barry Moran, Alan Dillon and Donal Vaughan were very good additions today. I felt they were far better than the men they replaced.

132. The entire presentation by RTE was desperate. they never put a caption up to say who was replacing who. A very good and fair report of the match in today’s indo

133. This game will bring us on but we have a lot of work to do.. still think we are not getting the best out of AOS.. almost like he himself and management want him to be everywhere to do everything and as result arrives late for a play or it passes him by. He’s a big man and can’t cover ground like DOC.. he needs to take up one position and stay there until his fitness levels improve further which will come with each game. At one point half way through the second half he looked a dejected figure after a Fermanagh man tried to put his knee through his back while tearing the ball away from him at midfield. Aido is trying his best and we are often constructively crictal of him here because we know what a special footballer he is, the heights that he can achieve and we want the best for him and Mayo football. Now outside criticism of our AOS is not on, questioning his decision to go down in the square! do the defenders ever make an attempt to go for the ball when marking Aidan. . No.. there always trying to knock seven levels of shite out of him and couldn’t give a damn about the ball.. same in this case. So the media and everyone else who question any of our players can f*%k of! with themselves. One game at a time.. no more injuries please.. get players back… home draw.. no game will be easy but I would like a crack at Longford

134. 1. The sideline made timely and game changing substitutions yesterday. A major issue with many people in the Galway game, myself included.
     2. Diarmuid O’Connor has an identical twin, it’s the only explanation for the way he can be everywhere on the pitch at the same time. You knew, 100%, every time he tracked back on a player that he would spoil his run.
     3. All this faux, social media driven outrage over Aiden is fantastic. Hopefully the refs will now look a bit closer and see the 48 frees he should get per game. If we have to sacrifice a goat in the middle of the field in order to win, I’ll sharpen the knife.
     4. I don’t always see the tactics and game plans that others see at games. I read a game on body language and emotion, who’s winning the 50/50 balls etc., Kevin McLoughlin won a ball in the second half surrounded by 3 Fermanagh men that was 70/30 against him at best, Boyler won 2 similar balls. Seamie won a power of dirty ball also, that’s what wins games.
     5. Lee Keegan is the best wing back in the country.
     Yesterday wasn’t the best performance we’ve produced, but there was a call over the last 3 weeks for leaders to make themselves known on that team and yesterday a few good men stepped forward and put up their hands.

135. Some of the abuse towards Aidan and Mayo GAA in general is bordering on hatred….much of it coming from Dublin on social media. Some have even resorted to a using our minor team…GAA fans have steeped to new lows

136. Liam the line ‘If we have to sacrifice a goat in the middle of the field in order to win, I’ll sharpen the knife.’ is brilliant ha

137. Very poor quality here in Galway at the minor match so far. Neither team deserve to win it on that performance. As yesterday Mayo need a serious improvement in the second half. ..

138. We are at nothing bringing on Dillon and Moran. Fermanagh were out on their feet at that stage and anyone would have won the ball. We won the u 21 and cannot find players-it’s a joke if it was’nt so annoying. Dublin can find young guys. How many young players are in the CF today?
     We should try something new besides our current tactics. We should pick players like Brian Cody does that can win 50’50 ball with pace. Not a great fan of Barry Moran but I could see him and Aido in ff line,quick ball in and a few pacey players picking up the breaks.
     Still could not fault their attitude-now is the time for management to try something new.

139. Yew tree, using the minors to vent sime hatred is a low act but you you get that sort of thing from some sections of so called football “fans”. I actually find the whole hatred against us as entertaining long may it continue, it means we are still relevant and still a threat, even though much improvement is needed. We have been the nice lads from the west for far too long.

     It wasnt a penalty but Aido did what he had to do to gain an advantage. The ref linesmen and umpires are there to pull him on it. I hope each and every other player would do the same in that situation to ensure a mayo win.

     Tyrone didnt care when Cavanagh pulled the monaghan lad down, meath didnt care after the joe sheridan goal, kilkenny didnt care after the peno v tipp. Kerry didnt care when Kennelly should have gotten jail for what he did to Murphy at the start of AI final, Dublin didnt care when Connally got off for striking leeroy. Its not good too see but winning is all that matters at this level, the nice lads will always finish runners up.

140. Yeah rather be hated then felt sorry for and all that. Our minor team is very poor this year again by the sounds of things in radio. Only 4 points scored and time nearly up. They play the Leinster champions in August.

141. It’s very strange but in a perverse way I’m almost enjoying the vitriol aimed at Mayo over the past 24 hrs..

142. RTE Panel a joke. Galway v Ross final and they spend half the analysis time putting the boot into Mayo. Bring on the Siege Mentality. This could be the making of us.

143. I’m laughing my head off at those langers that Rte pay with our money. What a bunch of assholes. These are allegedly educated men? Cavanagh skinned and hung out to dry a few years ago and now they’re doing it to AOS. To be honest I’m praying that contrary to what Spillane is saying, that Aidan is feeling quite pleased with himself cause God knows he has suffered enough GBH over the years without too much sympathy from anyone outside the county. When kerry and dublin do it they are called cute but anyone outside those two should be castigated if we are to listen those tools in the studio. As for people venting vitriol at minors just because they’re from mayo needs to take a look at themselves in the mirror. We have suffered more than anyone from reffing decisions, including 2 bad ones yesterday before we got our penalty, in the glare of the public eye and ending up as the button of people’s jokes.
     Good man Aidan keep it up you are learning from the best and for that act alone I believe your standing ovation was deserved.

144. Nasty nasty people on that panel. How can they get away with saying those things about an amateur on a national broadcaster. They need to be taken to task. No fairness whatsoever. They want everyone bar themselves to be playing nice sporting football. We’ll f**k them. Mayo Abu.

145. If they hate you they or fear you or resent you.
     Dublin for all their millions and premiership style are a crowd that fear Mayo. It’s the fact that we have no fear or give no respect to them or Tyrone and very little to Kerry anymore at this level that has caused the uproar. dublin were rubbing the sweaty hands with glee at half time yesterday, and probably thought we were gone, when we got the penalty it was cold water down their shorts. Lovely.

146. AOS was obviously told to go down when fouled. Fermanagh scored two points in second half. They can make all the excuses they like like soft penalties! I don’t care what the gob shites from other counties say. We are in this together. Stuff like this makes us more united. Mayo posters stay positive and stay loyal. No rats here please.

147. Glad we are
     Not in the connacht final. Look at the weather 🙂

148. The abuse AOS and Mayo are receiving on social media is extreme to say the least. We shouldn’t apologise to anyone. AOS is not the first person to ‘win’ a penalty, even though you’d swear he invented the art form.

     It’s about time we all woke up and realised that we don’t have the support of thirty one counties when we play, that myth was exposed when Horan made us a tougher outfit. Let’s enjoy the begrudgery and pain while we wait for tomorrow’s draw. We are all Aidan O’Shea!

149. Pundits, ex managers are just waiting to put the boot in after last autumns actions. I usually dont read McGee or Brehaney but this week I think I will have a look to see the utter vomit they come out with.

     Mayo don’t need nor want the support of 31 counties. The support of our own is more than enough, the rest can just keep on hating 🙂

150. Jaysis, Pat Spillane isn’t holding back either. He’s on the record calling AOS a cheat. Pot callin black arse to the pot if you ask me. A short memory if there ever was one. Doesn’t remember St. James in the Munster final last year? Well no it seems he doesn’t. And that other stutterin fucking twit Brolly beside him agreeing. It’s between James and Tom Daly for the gold in Rio.

151. pat spillane can barely open his mouth because brolly cant shut up for a second. he loves his own voice and is there because like eamon dunphy, he is controversial.

152. Great to get win .The main thing that I was delighted was we showed up in the second half coming from 6 points down at half time it would be easy to throw towel in.As for the peno with or without it we would have won.Fermanagh couldnt keep up with intensity and you wont win games scoring only 2 points in a half of football.Regan and Boyler impressed on me.What did frustrate me which was highlighted by another poster is bringing the ball into tackles time and time again very frustrating to watch instead of using the space.Anyway onwards we go.

153. Third last line Joet has a glorious ring to it! Gra thu!!

154. Je suis Aido!

155. Delighted with all the stick we’re getting. No more Mr Nice Guy. Rockford should be doing a Fergie on it – us against the world.

156. Do you know what? I think this controversy is uniting us bloggers as it will with the team and it’ll make the fans cheer even louder next week where ever the draw takes us.
     Strong rumour going round that army are assisting garda in arresting AOS on accusations of simulation. It’s believed that a verdict of guilty has already been reached and we should tune in later to Rte for the execution. Langers all.
     Mayo Abu

157. Seriously though, the online abuse is ridiculous and Spillane and brolly are tabloid. Aido can’t buy a decision for years and then this comes along. It’s the refereeing that’s the cause. Too many bad decisions in s game and then the ref feels an obligation to right things… One wrong after another. It’s a joke.

     This might galvanise the panel not that it should be required. I agree that one or two more u21’s should have come in yesterday. But let’s face it, yesterday was not a good performance. We haven’t played well in almost a year. The Monaghan performance in the league was as good as it got and that wasn’t inspiring. We can only hope for a turn around in fortune…

     I was in Salthill today. Disappointing return by the minors. In the senior game, gslway threw away a huge chance. Ros looked nervous, you’d imagine they can’t play that poorly again.

158. Mayonaze@ 4.30
     My sentiments exactly.

159. I know you don’t like rumers WJ but there is one goiñg around that Aiden has been approached to do the lead in Swan Lake!
     I don’t believe it for a minute I think he was just watching too much of the Foreign Game for the last 3 or 4 weeks *

160. Connacht final replay confirmed for MacHale park next Saturday by Connacht Council in the last few minutes. Guess that’s our chance of a home draw tomorrow gone out the window?

161. Connacht GAA ?@ConnachtGAA 1m1 minute ago
     Ticket prices reduced for Championship final replay. Seated stand €30 and sideline seating €20. @Galway_GAA v @RoscommonGAA #gaa

     Connacht GAA ?@ConnachtGAA 10m10 minutes ago
     Connacht GAA Championship Senior Final replay Sat 16th July in MacHale Park time to be confirmed #gaa

162. Anyone else think we should tweak our attack next Saturday and play Barry Moran or Kirby (if he’s drafted in) at 14 and Aidan at 11 two big men up front I think our attach lacked a bit of focus yesterday Barry Moran looked in great shape when he came on

163. I wouldn’t take a bit of notice of what anyone says about the peno. That game is over. Just focus on the next game and get ready.
     Some positives in the second half particularly the change in attitude and intensity. We need more of that. But for the next day we need to do the following:
     1. PLEASE release the ball quicker and not be bringing it into contact unnecessarily.
     2. Could Andy Moran PLEASE give the ball to players in a better position if he’s brought on
     3. Put Aidan O Shea either at FF or MF and leave him there – FF is my preference with 2 corner forwards in support.
     4. Bring Keith back into defence either corner back or HB and give him, Colm Boyle and Lee Keegan permission to tear upfield if the opportunity presents itself.
     5. We need to get more out of Cillian and Evan Regan from play. They need to be getting more scores from play.
     There are lots of other things that need work including some shape to our attack.
     As regards who should play the next day I think Alan Freeman will be lucky to start as will paddy Durkan. Stephen Coen may have a role on the field but not in midfield. Clarke or Hennelly in goals it doesn’t matter – both are good keepers.

164. The worrying thing from yesterday was the ease at times fermanagh were able to run through the middle. If the CHB was told to stay put at let the wing backs bomb on, would that not sure up the middle, could coen take up that role. I think Higgins is needed in defence. After yesterday there’s tweaking to be done, if parsons and Barrett can be added in, some shoring up of the central corridor, it could be a long summer yet!

165. While the RTE duo milked the penalty incident quite a lot of their analysis was spot on. It was a below average performance. The one glaring absence is possibly two players who can kick points from distance. The Fermanagh half backs managed it yesterday with ease. We need to develope this skill quickly. While we are still in the pot I regret to say that all I can see is a team which is older, slower and tired.

166. Seems ridiculous to fix conn final for McHale park next sat before tomorrows draw is made. If Mayo get drawn at home it cant be a double header as there will be arguments over ticket allocation/availability. Oh wait a minute, sorry, that would just be the type of thing the connacht council would do!

167. If Mayo get a home game is it now likely to be moved to Sunday???

168. Commiserations to Mayo minors but they were very poor. Although it was a very bad day for playing it did show up the absence of very basic skills of Gealic football in our Minors. Added to the fact that seniors and under 21’s are not able to kick points plus the lack of coaching structures at under age and Mayo football oes not appear to have a bright future as this golden generation comes to an end.
     As for the Senior final today plenty of honest endeavour but Roscommon really under performed and you would expect them to win it next week.

169. Alarming how easily we were carved open yesterday by fermanagh. Cillian is offering very liitle from play. Any news on when parsons and conor loftus will be availble?

170. Fermanagh going forward got more space and time on the ball first half than we did. Does that mean they have better forwards or our defence is too loose? I couldn figure it yesterday.

171. Presume a home draw will now lead to a sunday match. Nothing changes with Rte panel. Brollix used the word useless to describe Roscommon. Its a term better suited to describe himself and spillane Obviously the kerry dives for TWO penalties against us in limerick have been forgotten about. Cant see why our game should go to sunday if we get home draw. Six day turnaround if we win. Thought Conn final was not great. Galway unbelievably negative when they should have driven on with wind. Ros played badly but showed a lot of character to score last 2 points to get draw

172. Hey, why all the negativity about yesterday? Jarlath Burns – a very good analyst, who should be utilised far more – couldn’t praise it enough, and his pre-match identified the strengths Fermanagh have and the hard nut they are to crack.

     Rochy seems, as are other managers, to be trying to get players to be fluid and play in any position – note Keane’s appearance for a goal chance when Aido fisted over. But forward shooting is very poor so far.

     BTW question for those at the match? Were McEntee or Buckley to be seen?

173. Connacht telegraph a few minutes ago….

     “The time of the throw-in will not be decided until after the tomorrow morning’s draw for the next round of the All-Ireland SFC Qualifers.

     In the event of Mayo being drawn at home to Cork, Longford or Kildare, the Castlebar venue could host two games next Saturday.”

174. Is there a simple way of getting rid of this handball game and reverting to something that used to be entertaining to watch.
     That stuff today was shocking to watch as are most games.No team can carry out what it wants to do because they all show that they don’t have the where with all to do it.That is excepting Dublin and Tyrone it would appear.What about a restriction of the pass to three in a row and then kick…forward! It would have a lot of consequences for the rest of the game…for the good.Or would it?

175. Catcol, mcentee was on the sideline most of the match and was probably on the pitch longer than paddy durcan yesterday, with all the running in and out for messages, Donnie was with Rochie in the stand for the 1st half, didn’t see him it the second half.

176. Bill Connolly – I believe you are disappointed Mayo won that game yesterday and I feel sorry for your situation. There are a number of other contributors on here in a similar situation, and I suggest you find some solace in their company to help you get through this tough time.

177. So many posters unhappy about RTE coverage of the match. If I have to watch the game on TV I only watch the coverage of the game nothing else. I have no interest in the opinion of a TV personality I believe that RTE are a shambles (not sure if I am allowed to say that). Over paid, over hyped, and under performing in my lifetime anyway. I don’t expect much so I am not too disappointed. Just wish we had TV3 covering the GAA games again with one Matt Cooper.

178. well said PJ, he seems very disappointed Clarke played well and made some top class saves to keep Mayo in the game. Roll on the draw tomorrow. I’m delighted the lads showed courage,passion and never panicked and believed in themselves which we all know is in them. We will not be afraid of any team left. Maigh Eo Abu!!!

     If we get a home draw, will the connacht final be the curtain raiser for our game?

179. On yesterday’s performance Keith is needed in defense but when you have a team like fermanagh practically bringing every player back you also need him in the forwards. People are saying we should shoot from distance or learn the requirement to do it quick rapid time. What happens when we are playing against a gale? Or should we shut up shop and wait for the second half?. We need Keith in the forwards in a game like that because he’s quick on his feet, quick of mind, reads the game well and makes good decisions so there’s less chance of him taking the ball into traffic and the swarm converging on him. In my mind he’s better than McLoughlin who has in the past coughed up a lot of ball in this territory. This is a crucial area if we are to progress further in the later stages in the competition and while Keith struggled yesterday l think he is improving and will only be better in the wide open spaces of Croker. But of course we have to get there first and there’s a long and dangerous road ahead of us. Seen Mcentee run onto the field a few times to chat to the forwards

180. Though yesterday was an ideal outcome for us. A good tough test that we just about surmounted. Performance was way better than what we produced against Galway and yet not good enough to put us on the radar – ideal position me thinks.

     All the pundits focused on the penalty but i think we would have won in any case so it’s a bit of a red herring. What other people think should mean nothing to us, who cares what these clowns think about anything, let them mouth off and fill their newspaper columns, the only thing that matters is that we are in the bowl on Monday morning.

     What we need now is quiet progression, there were some good signs yesterday that the appetite is coming back and if we can build on that and keep improving bit by bit we might just arrive in the quarters knowing a lot more about ourselves than if we’d gone through the front door.

     Feel a lot more positive than I did leaving Castlebar three weeks ago. The team have shown that they will stand up and fight and that’s good enough for now.

     Roll on next Saturday

181. Anyone think the mayo fans generated a very loud atmosphere when we were mounting our second half comeback? I thought the noise in the stand was great….more next week please.

182. Well Fermanagh only had 1-2 men in there full forward line so if Keith was back there he’d be at nothing so it made sense to keep him in the forwards. I noticed that Kevin Mac spent most of the first half in front of the full back line and tbh I wasn’t sure what he was doing there but we were quite solid defensively except for the mix up for the goals. Most of Fermanaghs points were long range with the aid of the wind. In the second half he moved up in front of the half back line and started picking up a lot of ball around the middle which was a major factor in us asserting ourselves. What this all planned by management based on the conditions and the Fermanagh set up?
     I’m not sure but hopefully it is and we have a tactical genius of a manager! To be fair the substitutions were made at the right times and made the difference. There’s stil a problem with our forward unit, it’s just not clicking yet, we have to work too hard to get scores and too many of our forwards are afraid to take on the shot. The shackles was taken off our half back line which is a massive plus going forward.

     As for the huge amount of anti Mayo sentiment and bile being spewed towards us at the moment, f**k them, it’s about time we learned how to win ugly. I’d rather be disliked then felt sorry for and Fair play to all those who gave aido a standing ovation as he walked of the pitch.

     Mhaigh eo Abu.

183. All The Way
     Agree entirely with you. I’ll be happy if we start the way we finished last night. Let’s not give up on the young guns just yet as they’re still cutting their teeth at this level and they’ll be needed before this journey ends. I think DV could solidify central defense and free up LK and CB. If we can keep improving we’ll be ok. I’d start same team again with DV at chb They will have a 2 week break after next week’s game but it’s as much about player management to keep our older lads fresh. Things are looking brighter.

184. After spending the weekend coaching underage and being in Mc Hale park and Pierce stadium I seriously fear for the future of gaelic football . What we are watching today is rotten compared to what gaelic used to be . We coach our under age players to be the most skillfull that they can possibly be and enjoy watching them reach their potential and then turn around when they are about 17 and turn them all into defensive zombies.

185. I don’t know that I’ve ever seen as much unity on the blog after a game. I hope the vitriol headed our way now drives the lads on.

     The Dubs (in particular) on social media are beyond parody, and mostly illiterate so I wouldn’t lose too much sleep over them. Those types are the only supporters I’ve ever encountered that seem to derive more pleasure from taunting the losing opposition fans than enjoying their own victories, and for some reason, they really hate us. Time to circle the wagons now and push on – I’m delighted the days of us being everyone’s “second team” are finally over. Let them go and take pity on Roscommon or someone instead.

     Speaking of Roscommon, that Connacht final was an awful shambles. I was actually looking forward to the game and all. Thought Brolly’s comments at the end about Roscommon being useless were out of line, but sure, it’s Brolly. In fact I thought they actually showed a bit of character to claw it back against the wind at the end. They’ll watch that on playback once or twice during the week!

186. Is kick passing gone hand passing ruining the game.

187. I must say I’m also finding the penalty craic totally hilarious. I mean, after what Aido has been subjected to over the past couple of seasons?!?!?! And especially in the context of the hauling down of Cillian, and Quigley fowling Boyler in the same match. I mean, come on!!!
     To us, this will matter not a jot because he was getting absolutely nothing from refs anyway so let them all cry away. I thought Aido had a cracking second half yesterday and that is all that matters to us here in Mayo. He looked well up for it and that is all i wanted to see from him. Let everybody else go to pot. If we are lucky to get a run of matches, perhaps he might stick it to them and make a few more headlines of a different kind.
     I must say though, I thought our goose was cooked at half time. There was still uncertainty with our approach in the second half, but we were all over them and this gives me hope that there is still fight there at least. I won’t ask for too much more at this point. We’re still there and that feels bloody good right now.
     Kevin Mc was my MOTM with Diarmuid a close second. What a tackler.
     Even though the system we are trying to employ isn’t fully clear to me, I think we should persist with it. It would be pointless to change it now. We need to try to improve what we have and what the team have worked on and are continuing to work on rather than ditching it and starting afresh at this point in the summer! That would be a recipe for disaster in fairness.

     Yesterday was an improvement on Galway and who knows how we’ll go in the next match. I said it after the last match, and I will say it again: We need to play matches and get the crap out of our systems and try to invent something different this year. If we fall short so be it, but we are now where we probably need to be (getting a run of close together games) regardless of what happens. So far, we are not showing anywhere near the form we need to be even close to challenging this year. Our passing and shooting is really poor. I would be much more hopeful if there was evidence of a coherent system. At least then, we could focus more on the skills side of things. As things stand, we need to work on everything!!!
     But as I said, there was some fight evident to me yesterday, and it’s a glimmer of hope to build on.

188. Fermangh has the right to feel hard done by. They were a credit to their county. I can honestly say that I know after the limerick charade exactly how they feel. I’ll never forget wandering aroud after that bullshit wondering if if I should take a shit or get a haircut. The cut and thrust. Mayo showed some signs and I have to follow and support. I wasn’t that happy about Aidan falling like he was at the Somme but he has been hard done by in the past, I’d love to see him doing that “Sort of thing” against Kerry or the Dubs, the masters of the dark arts. Fermangh’s efforts deserved better than that.

189. My only criticism of Aidan O Shea for the dive is that if the ref hadn’t given the penalty Aidan would have actually screwed up a great scoring opportunity by doing what he did. It worked out but it was poor decision making. I wouldn’t want to see him try that again.

190. In my opinion we can get overly sensitive about what other people from different counties say about us. As they say “you have to listen to thunder”. As for TV panelists, that whole thing is artificial(in most cases its about the panelists, not the game) and regarding a certain “two” they’re as predictable as those two ould codgers in the Muppet show. I hope that in 20 years time we don,t have to resort to defending Aido’s honour outside chippers at 3am.

191. Would someone mention what is this system that is thought to be in the oven.As far as I’m seeing and the sight is still fair,there is nt even a sign of a sign in evidence.
     Liberal role, what do you think you see?

192. You’re so right, Anne-Marie. The Dubs, in particular those truly sad people behind Reservoir Dubs, are constantly – and I mean constantly – tweeting about us. I must admit I can’t even begin to fathom why they’d want to engage in such pathetic, attention-seeking behaviour but they do.

193. Sorry Fundo….meant to refer to your comment but got sidetracked by Liberal Roles interesting piece.
     Perhaps it hasn’t registered with the Gaa that the game is in a mess…. called the leaves/ trees syndrome.With all the crowds breaking down the gates and the swarms of kids storming onto fields after games,sure things look good!
     There’s been a lot of fiddling around with things over the years..can’t recall rightly just now what, but fiddling it was or maybe fidgeting might describe it more aptly. Course the midfield catch is looking to be fostered gan mhoill next year and that ll be a big thing!! phew…

194. Well done to all yesterday. They got the job done. This game is over and done with.
     I hope Rochford will start the young lads again the next day, and if the elder statesmen are required we have them. I cannot see our older players giving it all for 70 mins.
     People are saying the two games cannot be played in Castlebar on Saturday?. They are both championship games, and would it not be nice for all the supporters to see 2 matches. Overheard a fellow saying “Aiden O Shea will miss the next few games for Mayo as he was added to the Irish Diving team for the Olympics”. All we want is to win One Game at a Time.

195. Hard to feel sorry for Fermanagh.
     They brought very little in the 2nd half and the peno incident actually gives them respectability.
     Lets hope RTe show all managers controversial incidents after the game now! Pigs will fly first.
     Thought Aidan was immense …dont let penalty detract from that.

196. Thanks Castlebarred – McEntee definitely a 16th man against Galway too. Didn’t see Donie B at the Galway match so glad that he was by the gaffer’s side yesterday.. I do feel that this management team is on a learning curve also. Question is, have they the capability to evolve and adapt over the season?

197. Portugal…Green and red ribbons on the cup!:) they are an example of how having a very well organised defence and having a never say die and determined attitude can make you winners!

198. Ah it’s very hard to know Inbetweener. It get’s even more complicated given that substitutions were needed early on, and those that came on were game changers really. But I guess it’s impossible to predict what individuals will underperform on a given day.
     I like Kevin Mc as sweeper. I said this after the last match. I thought he it was effective yesterday. His ability to jink and dodge is a massive asset and he reads the game better than any Mayo player…by some distance in fact. We should persist with him here because he hasn’t been scoring in the half forwards for the past couple of seasons. However, in my view, when at his potential, he is our most important player. So I fully understand where Rochy is coming from on this tactic, if that makes sense? Key with Kevin also is his outrageous engine. Not only did he sweep yesterday, he also moved forward quite a bit….mightn’t have always got on ball but his movement was excellent. Again, not every player can do this, but he will run all day.

     Also, management are also persisting with Keith playing high up, and I’d continue with this, or at least trying it for parts of the match. I generally think there is evidence on yesterdays showing that we are going to start committing our half forwards a little more. We have to as our forwards aren’t scoring enough. We simply can’t continue to wait for them to suddenly ignite. Again, we saw Leeroy and Boyler committing forward yesterday and vital scores came from this. We generally pressed Fermanagh hard in the second half and pushed up on them. Mayo always look at their best when they do this and they make trouble for opponents when they play like this.
     While I see the above as positives, it still is feeling disjointed. So maybe Rochy is trying to retain the sweeper while retaining our attacking from deep when possible. Perfect if it all clicks.

199. I have to say, WJ, it’s a bit worrying that hobbies are so thin on the ground for some in the capital, but then, the quality of discussion here is actually (a) half decent and considered and (b) decipherable, so it’s hard to blame the couple of individuals who run that other place for peeping through the fence to see how it’s done.

     Can I just take a second to repeat my appreciation of Diarmuid … He is just magic to watch – sheer joy – and his intelligence would restore your faith in the game. Have to also acknowledge the contribution of Alan Dillon when he came on too. Our elder statesman rolled back the years and steadied the ship.

200. P. J. MacManus yuot sympathy is misplaced and your conclusion is flawed . My first conscious memory of Mayo football was listening to the late M . O Hehir describe big Pat Mc Andrew as the mighty, mighty McAndrew, my first Connacht final was 1950 in Tuam. I was in Croke Parke for the drawn semi final v Dublin in 1955 and watched the last truly great team we had having their last hurrah.. I was in Castlebar in 1966 to watch the most complete team we had since and I watched the peerless Willie Nally defeat an unbackable Galway team in 1981. Then you have the effrontery to tell me that I am disappointed when Mayo scramble a win. I have been waiting all my life to see what I was too young to see the last time it happened and now I don’t, thinkn I will ever see it. HOW DARE YOU!!!
     E

201. Fair point, Bill. PJ – you might want to review that comment you made in light of Bill’s response.

202. Thanks WJ.

203. Anne-marie, I agree Diarmuid is awesome, was everywhere on Sat and scored a couple of points. A player of the year in the making.scary thing is he is only back after injury so havent seen the best of him

     I find the whole Dub comments very amusing. If e had their success I would be too busy enjoying life to post those type of comments. The people posting on the Reservoir Dubs site are prob the same little scum bags that lined Dorset st after 2013 final to abuse fans leaving. Not real football supporters, just illiterate scum bags.

204. Mayomad – you do realise the irony in what you just posted there, do you? In my opinion, a bit more respect on all sides is called for.

205. We need a few more Martin the Dubs in cyberspace, if you ask me.