Monday morning so that means it’s Mayo News football podcast time. It’s not a cheery episode either, I’m afraid, as it focuses on the horror show that was our tanking by Dublin at Croke Park on Saturday night.
Because it was at Croke Park, Rob and I went our separate ways for this one. Rob hosts the show from up in the gods in the press box, while I fulminate about what was going on down in the lower Cusack, with Club 51’s Anne-Marie Flynn providing some much-needed balance to the analysis.
Post-match, Rob kicks through the entrails with Seán Rice and Billy Joe Padden and there’s also some post-game reaction from Stephen Rochford. The podcast is available to listen to on SoundCloud here:
I know it was depressing on Saturday night but no different to last year against Cork in League and Galway in the Championship.
The Mayo of September last ear is a different animal – a well oiled machine where we put the opposition on the back foot through hard running and precise passing.
Our Achilles heel is that four of our fabulous backs are not man markers and we are vulnerable when the opposition run at us.
This and Kevin McL. as sweeper to secure our defence will make us once again a formidable outfit.
Add in Aiden and Seamus O’Shea and their power and we have a real chance of success.
Dublin were magnificent last Saturday but the Mayo of late Championship will be a real test for them.
I have full confidence that Stephen R. And company will have us geared for the real prize ahead!
Keep the faith and remember the heroes of September last!!
The more I look at the Mayo players (it’s now on you tube) the more leaden footed they appear. Is it where they’re at in strength and conditioning? Certainly they looked like a division 3 team on Saturday evening. Or, horror of horrors, is this just a ploy by management? Were the players told to take it easy in the psychological warfare against the Dubs. I know it all sounds stupid but how else can one explain their demeanour? They know they have only to beat pointless Cavan at home on Sunday week to stay in Division 1.
Like so many others I can’t see any sense in playing two of the best half backs in Ireland in the full back line when we all know Keegan and Durcan will be at half back when the championship rolls around. In the meantime why not give O’Donoghue at few runs and shift Keith Higgins to give a little variation to a forward line that at least on Saturday was bereft of ideas. When he was tried there before by James Horan he created a few headaches for the opposition.
As was said on mid west after the game we know what Andy Moran can do. Give him a break, and more too, especially Keegan.
Loftus and irwin need to be given the next 3 full league games to show what they can offer. Forwards that can score has always been the problem, always. We compensate in other areas but it’s always the issue. Players that can score freely with both feet. It’s a bug bear of mine, how county players cannot kick with both feet. It should be a given at U14, otherwise you don’t make the development squads.
A few points re the match last Saturday:
(1) Forwards – I said pre-match on this forum that the key to beating Dublin was for our forwards to ‘crack’ the Dublin defense as we struggled against it last year in both finals matches…………we scored 2 points from play! Its the single biggest issue we have with Dublin at the moment as their defence is quite strong. They may as well have built a brick wall 30 metres out from their goal last Saturday night, bar McLoughlin’s first half effort, we did not threaten their goal. How can you expect to win matches against Dublin if you struggle to score?
(2) In relation to the above point why is Rochford not giving more time to some of the young forwards? Liam Irwin has been in the squad for the 4 league games and has played 5 minutes against Roscommon. Ridiculous! It may be the case that he is not good enough……….but how will we ever know if he’s not given a chance?
(3) Did you hear Jim Gavin’s interview after the match? He said that Dublin wanted to get a higher scoring return against Mayo as they had come up against some tight defences in their other games……and then went on to state that they were happy with the ‘space’ they got against us! If this is not a wake up call to Rochford re our defending, what is?
(4) Let’s be honest Dublin ‘have us’ mentally. We can’t beat them at present and instead of us laying down a market, it was they that put the marker down. Dean Rock took the piss with the time of some of his frees and good old McMahon always seems to ruffle the feathers of some of our forwards.
(5) Two years ago we were seen to have the better midfield and Cluxton did not kick the ball long for kickouts. Now it is they that have the better midfield and Cluxton has no issues kicking long – more athletic. Should we try young Scott from Westport?
Our biggest problem still remains our scoring rate from our forwards. Evan Regan has started three league games this year and scored 0-1 from play. He has started 14 games in the last year and failed to score from play in six of them. How many chances does he get.
I hope to see Conor Loftus get his chance now. Having watched Liam Irwin he needs to do some serious conditioning work before he could play at Division 1 level. I hope that Saturday night was a bump in the road, cant see us playing to that gameplan against Dublin in Championship.
On another note, this “tactic” of naming teams that have no chance of starting is not only disrepectful to the players and their families but also to spectators who are purchasing match day programmes, This is the Allianz League not the f——- championship.
Gawd!depressing listening to that podcast.I hope the players and management have a private meeting where open and honest views are expressed,address them and move on.
Billy Joe Padden’s view of this Mayo team that they are not good enough to go toe to toe with Dublin and play a style like Tyrone or Donegal is a pragmatic one and realistically is the only way forward.
I would play Lee Keegan centre back,Aidan O’Shea centre foward and a two man inside line of Cillian O’ Connor and Andy Moran.Those five playing their positions in a traditional manner and the rest adhering to the blanket defence policy.
Problem with playing A Moran & C’o Connor up top is pace or lack their of ….
To play Dublin I wold go with following formation:
GK
3 full backs (bh gc kh)
1 sweeper (kmc)
3 hb (pd can lk)
1 sweepers a (sos)
2 Mf (tp & aos) plus 1 (DoC)
2 hf
1 ff
The critical point here is not to give away pocession cheaply. And break at pace with 3 players each time.
Our formation in last years final was like that.
I think the three forwards left up need to be able to take on their men. The three who come in support need to have driving pace and power.
Yes it’s probably the most effective way to setup. Use the bench to freshen up that front six of three up and three running on as support.