It’s Tuesday and so you should be a bit of the way down the road to recovery at this stage. Given that, your constitution might well be strong enough to digest the final Mayo News football podcast of this championship campaign.
This was another match-day one, with a mix of content recorded before, during and after Saturday’s replayed All-Ireland final. Host Rob Murphy guides you through it all, as I do the blow-by-blow in-match stuff and Mike Finnerty talks post-match with Colm Keys of the Irish Independent and Billy Joe Padden. Rob and I then regroup back at my place for some angst-ridden final thoughts on what we’d just witnessed down the road at HQ.
Cathartic stuff, the lot of it, and it’s all available to listen to here:
Here goes! I’ll try and get through this and then move on 🙁
Hearing the rumour mill starting to churn and cliques ruling the roost and instant goalkeeping retirements. This stuff just makes me sad. Whoever are those that start this garbage time and again would really want to take a look at themselves.
Remember, we are still mayo, and we are still in it together.
We had them beaten – the supposed best team of all time. Take a look at their age profile, Dublin are no young team. Diarmuid Connolly will be 30 next year. Other sides will be looking at them now a bit differently, after seeing what we did to them. It isn’t going to be as easy for Dublin from now on.
Moving on Day surely WJ. Not before I thank you for all your efforts on this site in the last 12 months. You are correct in calling it a rollercoaster year full of ups and downs, and unforgettable weekends. This blog is our constant in the good and bad times. This is down to all your efforts and I am grateful for your hard work and dedication. You also done your bit to promote the player’s lotto It’s a worthy cause and I hope the supporters continue to play and show a bit of pride in the squad
Kerry were gifted 6 points and still couldn’t win and we gifted Dublin 6 points and we just lost. we are not far away and still the closest team in the country to Dublin.
We can build on this, but management need to manage
1 Point the last day, a draw the first day, Draw last year, all our big games….yes the stats say very very close, but we never ever put ourselves in a winning position on the home straight and you have to say Dublin did, that for me is the big difference and it counts for more than 1 point. Until we sort that we will still fall short. Overall game management needs to have this at the core of the plan
I usually love the podcast but not able for it yet
Good luck next year lads. Enjoy this forum where lot of really well informed discussion and fair play to WJ for keeping it going.
Personally think ye have to unearth 2 quality forwards. Not sure if Andy Moran is staying on but you certainly need another couple of players like him not one less of him. Has to get harder to stay on. Think lot of Mayo fans need to lighten up on AOS too – he is not superman but ye have no hope without him. I even saw one poster thinking he should dropped for the replay – pure madness – not everyone is well informed!!
Anyway – see ye in connacht maybe next year where clearly I won’t be wishing anyone other the Yeats county luck…but besides that …enjoy the christmas!
Did anyone else think SOS was immense in the game on Saturday. Watched it again last night and some of his turnover of best ever Dublin forwards were unreal followed up by his driving runs forward. At his best, think he is one of the finest players in Ireland.
We needed to hold back more of our first pick for a crack at the second half. Imagine Tom or Seamus running in to replace Barry at midfield in the second half. Imagine having Donnie in reserve to counter the running of MDmC. Imagine the headache Diarmuid would give Gavin if he appeared in the 45th minute to replace Coen. These are the inches everyone’s talking about.
Rock of sense you are willie joe. Enjoyed that podcast esp the bit on history being wrote by winners and rubbishing all the famous half time speeches etc. Once upon a time we might of lacked a bit of genuine belief but not this time i genuinely think that this panel have believed every year since 2012 victory over dublin in semi final that they were capable of winning an all Ireland.
Its heartbreaking but is it over , not on your nellie is it . How can it be. Still a top side with the potential to improve but i do think its vital we add new forwards from 21s and personally i still think darrenn Coen is worth another shot .
There is an excellent article in the independent. Well worth a read and hugely uplifting for us Mayo folk. I’m not able to put up the link. Maybe someone can do this.
Talking of discovering scoring forwards I can name one – Kevin Mc Loughlin. Give someone else the job of sweeping and put him closer to goals and he will deliver scores.
SOS was immense his brothers were very good. Agree with Cantini we too critical of one of our best. Same thing happened when COC was shooting the lights out a couple of years ago. I have not seen SOS play that well for Mayo in a long time.
Have to agree with you Willie Joe thought too we had ran out of ways of loosing finals.just hope next year we invent ways of winning them.we are not far away.one thing I liked about this year was we mixed it up in games coming to the final and no leaks from the camp, that’s why the change of goalie is so hard to take,totally out of character.
Agree Pjmcmanus. We have the makings of a winning AI Team. It is essential now that the team, management and fans stick together. Lots of hurt after the final and mistakes made. Nothing we can do about them now and if we are going to win one, its essential we move on. Maybe players and management need to sit down, get everything on their chest and move forward. Hopefully someone is looking at how to defuse what has to be some very frustrated players after that final,
Willie Joe thanks for the immense work all through the year.
Kevin McLoughlin has to remain as sweeper. As the year we went on he progressed massively in two key areas for the team. One affects defence and the other attack.
1. His positioning to prevent runs on goal and timing of intercepts by the final replay was the best in the country. Okay not many matches proof, but a hell of a lot of playing minutes to prove it.
2. Kevin Mc all wiry 12 stone of him I don’t think has ever been floored with a hit. He has great pace and the best anticipation and avoidance of getting hit by shoulders and tackles. You cannot get a hit on him. While at the same time he doesn’t shy away from running straight lines close to defenders. John Riggins the famous running back said his skill was in knowing exactly how much he could run as straight as possible while avoiding being hit/stopped. It means he never runs in circles or backwards. He is always somehow managing to move forward or kickpass forward. He was key to several promising counter attacks and scores. Keith Higgins has a similar skill. Can move forward where most players simply can’t pull it off.
McLoughlin needs to be complemented I believe by a newly freed up Lee Keegan. We can replace 90% of Lee’s defensive effort with Stephen Coen. The flipside is we get the proven best attacker in this panel actually attacking. Something he only did sporadically this year. Think of it like this. Two Lee Keegans on the pitch, one being a defender at 90% of Lee. Doesn’t that help the team seeing as Lee is operating at such a high level defenively.
* meaning above you have a choice where you can get 90% of Lee in defence and also have Lee attacking from the middle third. I think most people would take that.
* Next year I honestly see Stephen Coen being just as good as Lee defenively.
The whole idea of “finishing with our best team” is something that needs to be seriously considered for next year. Dublin’s success is in no small part down to their ability to spring quality from the bench at precisely the right time. At one time we seemed laden with midfielders – the O’Sheas, Parsons, Barry Moran and Gibbons. Is there anything to be said for starting with Moran and Gibbons in midfield with a third roaming midfielder (Parsons) and springing AOS and SOS with 20/25 minutes left, even some variation on the above? How would tiring opponents handle us then? Cantini I don’t think anyone is seriously saying we should go without AOS but in the right game there must be something to be said for springing him fresh, as noted by JP and others he finds it difficult to go for 75/80 minutes and Dublin have marking him out of the game down to a fine art. The lack of explosive power in the midfield and forwards hurt us badly in the 2nd half the last day.
Lee Keegan as a forward makes sense. Since Horan’s time we have been propping up our forwards with the attacking half-backs – Keegan, Vaughan and to a lesser extent Boyle. That kind of high-intensity attacking set up will work against most teams but against Kerry and Dublin where our backs are under huge pressure for the entire match it’s not going to fly, and has not in recent years. Ask ourselves, can the expected reward of Lee in the forwards outweigh the negatives with not having him shackle the likes of Connolly? Given that Coen did not have a bad game on Saturday at all I think it can.
Coen had the defensive moment of the season from any player on any team. An overlooked moment. He miraculously prevented a two on one developing into a goal chance. It was the best bit of shadowing, timing and blocking I seen all year. Kevin McManamon clean through and an obvious option aware to all three players outside Coen. Coen waited and waited shadowing McManamon and managed to leap up and block down the handpass.
The 30 players on the panel will make up the Mayo team for next year. There could be a couple of exceptions Cafferty and Gibbons coming back and one or 2 dropping back. One or two U21 showing up in league games. All in all we have cover and what we lack is the mindset that this is a 20 man team and it has been for some time. It doesn’t matter which half you get to play in. Take a lesson from Dublin and Kerry they have had success with this mindset.
All around me are familiar faces worn out places worn out faces Bright and early for the daily races going nowhere going nowhere Their tears are filling up their glasses no expression, no expression Hide my head I want to drown my sorrow no tomorrow no tomorrow
Mistakes made,. plenty of them,. Individual, team and sidelines mistakes cost us all year. The game versus Tyrone was the game we made least mistakes, you can easily see the mistakes Tyrone made cost them the game… So how are. we now?.. Well despite the 3goals we gifted Dublin over 2. match’s, we were only a point behind and Dublin were only a point to the good.. Our defensive system has really improved, the team and management cannot plan for unenforced errors that cost 3 goals. Our defence was even better for the Replay , and that’s incredible. Dublin were better, remember those ultra long, ultra accurate long kick outs by Clluxton that landed past our midfield as Mayo chased the game, our defence managed somehow to. stop all those attacks time and time again. Our Midfield was. excellent, but our attack was a little blunt from play.. You need serious legs bring the fight to Dublin,.. You need youth.. What about Matthew Ruane? He is only 20 year’s old, MotM in this year’s U21 All Ireland final… Any others out there?. We need an ball winning inside forward badly, Andy done brilliant this year, for a long time I taught he might even win another All Star, Will Andy stay?. He certainly has something to offer Mayo, his job running a Gym in Castlebar might make the fitness part of the training that bit easier.. What about David Clarke? He certainly has to feel hard done by on losing his place for the Replay, but Mayo definitely need David Clarke… Look Mayo, despite being a fairly tight knit group, there must be stresses and strains there… It’s a challenge for Mayo management,.. At least Stephen Rochford had nothing to do with the heave of last year, and next year the team will be a more accurate reflection of Stephens abilities. Can he and his team improve our forwards in. the same way our defence has improved? There is sure to be one or two retirements.. Next four weeks, club championship, tough stuff, what usually happens is that the players just outside the starting 15 for Mayo are brilliant, it’s tough, hopefully there’s one or two jewels to be discovered… I finish where I started, on mistakes, from everyone involved in the Mayo setup, these mistakes need to be admitted, and learned from. But no need for a public confession,. Keep it in house, find out why those mistakes were made, learn and rectify them. It will be a long winter, we are a resialiant bunch, and just the fan’s. I don’t believe in ‘curses’. But we could do with being just a little ‘more blessed’. Mayo has always been blessed with fan’s, honestly I’m flabbergasted by the support Mayo continues to have, long may it continue!
‘That’s what learning is, after all; not whether lost the game, but how we lose and how we’ve changed because of it, and what we took away from it that we never had before. Losing, in a curious way, is winning.’
What Richard Bach wrote is so true. So what have we learned from this year? We need SCORING forwards. Diarmuid O’Connor and Jason Doherty are scoring forwards but they were so busy in helping out the half back line they rarely had a shot at the posts. Aidan O’Shea is NOT a scoring forward so the management team needs to spend long hours on teaching him how to take points.
The Dubs brought in Jason Sherlock when it was apparent their shooting was wayward and look what happened! Tony McEntee has done a great job on our defence – now the best in the country – let’s have a forward supremo to show our lads the way to score. What about Ciaran McDonald?
What a season! Thanks to WJ and all contributers for such a great forum. It really is brilliant. The podcasts have got me through many a long car journey and provoke great discussion. I have had an amazing time following this team of skilled athletes who donate their lives for the cause. They truly are an inspirational team. Can’t wait to get behind the lads in Jan/Feb for another run at it. Till then !
So then, its scoring forwards we need. As far as i can see the 2 O’Connors are certainties. The other 4 positions up front are all up for grabs.
Aiden O’Shea is not a scoring forward. Contributes nothing or next to nothing on the scoreboard in the last 4 games v Dublin and against Kerry. That is not worth a shite to us. A brilliant fielder of the ball and his place is midfield. Please, Aiden back to midfield where he can lord it.
Starting with the FBD can we bring in Loftus, Irwin, and maybe Reape. I would give these fellas a long run of games. Loftus i would give him all 7 league games. Irwin possibly the same and Reape as well. If we get relegated, so be it. If 1,2, or 3 of these guys flourish, then bingo.
Going into the All Ireland semi final next August v Kerry with the same starting front 6 as we have now wont get us over the line. We will have a Munster referee to contend with and we will have to be scoring heavily to counter act that. Same next September when Dublin await in the final with another Leinster referee ready to bend us over with our trousers at half mast.
Thinking back over the 10 finals since 1989 and the 2014 semi final in Limerick i cant recall one occasion when it was the opposition who had bad luck or who were given a right royal shafting by a referee. Lady luck can be a right bitch too. As can a referee from the same province as your opposition. I suppose there is no chance we will launch an objection to one of these referee appointments any time soon.
Agreed that kevin mc Loughlin was a success as sweeper. That’s because he is an excellent footballer wherever you play him. However, in a team that seems to be a little short on players who can score from play and have plenty of lads who can defend surely using Kevin as an out and out scorer is sensible. It improves your return from posession while not really weakening your defence. Could Keith Higgins not play sweeper for instance? And who would fill that role if Kevin got injured or black carded?
The reason I’m making this argument is because of the wonderful point he kicked in the second half. We need more of that from the left side of attack.
Sorry right side of attack!
I hear you diehard but I think Rochford will hold Kev as sweeper and solidify this defence for next season. We have heaps of defenders that we’ll
Inevitably have some good players in he bench…Harry, Keane, Higgins, Caff, Barrett, Keegan, Coen, Vaughan, Durcan, Nally, Hall, O’Donoghue etc. You pick 6!!! It’s a tough one.
I believe that if Mayo are to win an All Ireland it’s going to be built upon us being incredibly tight at the back and tough to break down. Rochford & Co have tightened us up but we can still improve a bit more defensively… And if we can minimise the fatal errors then even with a slightly improved attack, we’ll be there or thereabouts in Aug/Sept.
I’d still be inclined to keep Lee back. He’s a super defender who can, at times launch forward and we should learn or develop a method to allow for this. Durcan similar. They are our wing backs.
Vaughan is a real middle third player. He could start at midfield. His form wasn’t great in 2015 or the first half of 16 but he has really come back into in in recent months which is great to see.
We all agree that we need to improve upfront. 1. Transition from defence to attack needs to be faster. 2. We need someone to step up to the mark as a scorer…a guy who will invariably be relied upon to consistently hit 4 pts from play. 3, our movement and decision making in attack must improve. For me, this is where Dublin were far better than us the last day. They scored some simple off the shoulder scorers whereas we were going town cul-de-sac’s down each flank.
I still believe AOS can do a job at 14. He can win ball as well as any man. And lay it off to a runner. Rochford though needs to decide on where to play Aidan and stick with this. 2016 for Aidan was a mixed bag, he played in various roles…a ‘Jack of all’ but master of none. Give Aidan a clear and defined role and let him master it.
Can we bring some new attacking talent through? Loftus didn’t make any inroads this season nor did Reape. Regan fell away far to easily as the summer progressed. 2017 is make or break for him, in my opinion. I don’t believe COS has enough natural attacking ability. I just don’t see it. He is more of a middle third work-horse. He played a lot during the league but scored v little and didn’t really create much. He’s big, can win ball. Middle of the park is probably his best zone but I see him being a sub to bring on.
Sean Burke mention mentioned Darren Coen… He can score but seems very hit and miss. Perhaps too much to expect him to suddenly re-emerge??
Irwin has a unique style.. He has a bit of class…he gets scores that many others players would never get. He has a great free kick on him. He also seems like a guy with the mental confidence required to be a top forward. Has he the pace? Is he liable to carry a bit of extra weight? Has he the commitment? I think he has the raw material but he’s a guy I would be sitting down, if I was Rochford, and in no uncertain terms letting him know what’s required to break into this Mayo team. It’s tough work, sacrifice and diligence but the potential reward is out of this world!
Lads either want to play for Mayo or not. Players only get a short window of opportunity. If a lad hasn’t made a senior team by 22/23 then it’s unlikely he’ll ever make a really significant contribution and will more likely be a squad player. Shane Nally was a superb defender and minor captain in his day but it was only 2016 that he really got a foothold in the senior panel…great to see him involved and I hope he improves more next season..but he is a prime example of a really talented underage player who didn’t make the breakthrough on time. You could potentially say the same about Evan Regan(2015 injuries taken into account). He’ll be 25 next season.
On the flip side Paddy Durcan is the example of someone coming through at 21/22 and nailing down a starting position.
Finally, I believe we only need one more good forward to put us in a position to be champions. Assuming DOC gets young player of the year we will be starting 2017 with two forwards who both have won back to back young player of the year. Cillian won those by bring s prolific scorer…in my opinion he needs to be deployed much closer I the opposition goals and we need to figure out how to get the ball to him in the danger zone. JDoc can score so can Duarmuid. Last year and this year they did a lot of dog work helping in defence.
We arguably have one of the tightest half back lines around and with Kev sweeping we should be able to allow DOC and JDoc take up more attacking roles…these are the lads who can score for us.
We are close. Fine tuning is required plus maybe one or two lads pushing hard for places!
Kevin McGloughlin has to stay as sweeper. He has mastered the art of it, so it would be foolish to put him back in the forwards now. We are finally defensively solid, and no teams are running straight through our half back line like the last few years. Rochford deserves great credit for sorting that out.
Now, its the offensive side we need to work on. Whether its one or two new faces needed OR a slicker offensive plan with whats already there, Rochford will have 9 months to put a better offensive system in place. Personally, I think Loftus and especially Reape will fit into this, and both should play every second of the league while Andy, Diarmuid, Cillian take an extended break.
Some people beileve we need to win a league title, I could’nt disagree more. League is all about blooding players and thats what we need to use it for, if we are in need of a couple of wins to stay up near the end, then we go up a gear or two to stay up. Like how we destroyed the poor Rossies in the Hyde earlier. The Dubs just take it seirious because of their unbeaten run, they kinda have to go harder in the league than they would like, to keep the run going. The effort they put in is starting to show later in the championshio…they’re scoring totals are on a downward trajectory and imo reflect this.
Likewise I am getting over it slowly too but looking forward to Championship this weekend .
Will eagerly be watching Ballinrobe v Crossmolina, see how Conor Loftus does .
Yes by all means push Lee Keegan forward, I was championing it all season but that said, I dont believe for once second that anyone bar Lee would have marked Connelly, Kerrigan(few years ago) or Cavanagh in the same manner.
The man is just a FIFA 10 out of 10 in man marking and attacking halfback .
Really is too good to loose in defense but yet if played midfield or halforward he would also be too good to loose from same position.
One man I would like tried nearer the goal next League campaign is Diarmuid O Conor . I See alot of James Horan 1999 about him for a role at Fullforward.
He is accurate, has an eye for goal retains possession so well, direct runner, links play, ball high in air, over top, on ground he is a top player, be worth a go anyhow .
What we loose in him playing halforward we can compensate by playing Matthew Ruane, Conor O Shea Cathal Carolan, Jason Doh , Leeroy or the likes as the 10 and 12 .
Cillian should benefit from pace in alongside too and with Loftus , Reape or Regan playing that little bit deeper we would have a very young forwardline but whats the League/FBD for but to introduce these guys .
Anyback 6 but preferably no stereotypical fullback .
_________Vaughan__Parsons
Keegan_____AOS/COS__Jason Doh/Ruane
_____Conor Loftus
___________Diarmuid___Cillian
Still don’t have the stomach for the post mortem. The utter desolation had passed but I’m still not ready to break apart the season.
Hi all. I’m a long time reader and admirer of this blog, but this is my first time to contribute. i just wanted to share a few thoughs on this years all Ireland final and the performance of this group of Mayo players over the past 6 years.I attended last Saturdsy’s replay with my son who is a Dublin supporter.Like many of you over a certain age, I was watching Mayo play in a 10th all Ireland final, (including 2 replays) in the last 27 years. When the final whistle went, I got that awful empty feeling of another final defeat. Struggling to hold back the tears, I turned to my son and told him that I was leaving, as I couldn’t watch the after match presentation to Dublin. Senseing my utter devastation, he said he would leave with me. We made our way to one of the nearby hostelries and over a couple of drinks, we discussed what we had just seen. He tried to console me by telling me we were very close, and with the addition of a few new players, we had a great chance next year. He was doing his best, but I have to say that at that moment, next year seemed an awful long time away.We parted soon after, he to celebrate with his Dublin friends, I to return home to cry on the shoulder of my long suffering wife.
Over the last few days, I have had endless discussions with friends on the match. I have been told all the what ifs, I have heard all the rumors. But I have to say that I have also thought a lot about this group of players and what a privilidge it has been supporting them over the last 6 years.Before this years final, the odds were stacked against them.Thet were meeting one of the best teams of all time. They hadn’t beaten a division 1 team. Their form was patchy, only playing in fits and starts.A number of their so called better players weren’t playing up to their full potential.The Dublin bench was way stronger than Mayo. Then in the 2 matches themselves, they suffered a number of unfortunate occurances. They conceeded 2 freak goals in the first match. In the replay, they had their best player black carded. They lost their man of the match from the first match through concussion before half time. Then we had the whole issue with the goalkeeper and the concession of the soft penalty.
And yet, in spite of all these setbacks, here they were going toe to toe with Dublin as the replay entered the last few minutes of injury time. Indeed, we all know, they were just a free kick away from bringing the game in to extra time. A phenomenal effort.
If we look back at their performances over the last 6 years, we see that they played in a staggering 12 games which was either an all Ireland semi final or final. Only this great Dublin team matched that over the same period. Kerry were next with 9 appearances. And even though, they never won the ultimate prize and lost 6 of those matches, apart from the 2011 semi final against Kerry, they were hugely competitive and kept us on the edge of our seat until the final whistle.
So I think as Mayo people, we have been very privileged to have had this group of players represent us over the past 6 years and beyond. Our hope now is that they go on next year and achieve their ambition and bring Sam back to Mayo. And I long for the day that I will leave Croke Park and meet my friends for a celebratory drink and my son will be meeting his Dublin friends to drown their sorrows. O to win just once!!!
If I had a crystal ball after that early league match against Cork and it said “your team
is going all the way to an AI football final this year” I would have laughed out loud.
So , for one, am not crying into my beer. There is a great resilience in the team since
2011. As Churchill once said — this is not even the beginning of the end ! Chin up.
At the end of the day the starting Dublin forwards scored 4 points from play, ours got 3. We scored 1-6 from play in total, they got 8 pointsl. The big difference was the 4 points they got from their forward subs, we got none. Due to the goalkeeper situation we did lose one sub, also with Donie and Lee having to be replaced, that was another two subs gone. Therefore Conor Loftus and Evan Regan didn’t even get a chance. You had a player coming on for Dublin, Cormac Costello, who had got very little game time over the last few years in league or championship games, yet he scored 3 points from play. Two with his left foot and one off his right. That was the difference really, when all is said and done. When will a player do something similar for us?
Sorry, that should be we scored 1-5 from play in total.
We’ll be back. We’ll be kicking leather in Croker in August, mark my words.
Let the hare sit for a while. We’ve 7 stages of grief to go through and when that’s all done we’ll be fine.
No surrender in our cause.
Hon Mayo.
WJ, many thanks for your dedication and manic commitment to this blog. It’s head medicine for us now more than ever.
Thanks to the Mayo team for another great year and thanks to you, W.J.for the continued excellence of this site.We can consider next year from the Mayo perspective only as other teams will have their own plans for improvement.
As I don’t live in the county I don’t see many of the club matches so it’s hard to assess what talent may be ready to join the squad.In the ideal world we would be looking for fast natural forwards able to win their own ball;fast runners who could be brought on to give fresh impetus in the closing stages and a goalie with very good distribution skills.
Of those who have been mentioned as possibilities for the future did B.Reape play for the Mayo juniors v Kerry in the final? Are any of the winning Under 21 team, apart from those who have made the breakthrough,better or potentially better next year than some on this year’s panel?
We have become very interesting tactically this year: imagine playing most of the Championship without a regular full-back! Would a regular full-back have made a difference in the drawn match?-maybe; in the replay?-unlikely.Looking forward to other tactical innovations next year.
We have had great years; I am looking forward to more.
Why is nobody talking about why Tom Parsons had to get 7 stitches or how he acquired this head wound ..?
Paddy Durcan should be tried in the half forward line
I would try Paddy/AOS/DOC across the half line with AOScoming out to receive a percentage of Kick outs.
Trying Backs in the Forwards will only give more of the same. Top forwards have a different instinct . Good players will function in most positions but we are talking about winning a All Ireland against top defenders and that is when you need Natural Forwards
Maybe Irwin if he were to give the commitment, He seemed to have that instinct. Some of the Under 21s will need another year to get up the standard physically but small changes are all that is required. Not convinced at the moment by Darren Coen or Regan but who knows what another years experience, hard work and a willingness to learn their trade might do. Ruane should make it I think.
Surely to God we can develop forwards without robbing from the defence?. I understand the reasoning behind it but we have a unit that works and guys like Vaughan Keegan and Boyle and McLoughlin that can score also. Why can we not develop out and out forwards though….
Watch rerun of the game again.
Re Rob Hennelly.
Of the first four points dublin scored only one camr directly off his kick out.
Mayo back level by the 13 minute.
The mayo gaol came direct from a henelly kick out on the 18 minute.
Did not miss one kick out from the 6th minute until the 34 minutes.
Rob should have kept going long up until ht but a poor short one led to a verh harsh
black card … This was a totally weak decision from deegan and should not be included as a reason to hang Rob out to dry.
So Rob was responcible for two point in the first half.
An the drropped ball was a mistake.
I believe that if Rob did not drop the ball for the penalty and the game developed without further errors from Rob the decision to drop would be incidental to the eventual outcome of the match
Hi Cantini,
I was one of the people who suggested putting Aidan O’Shea on the bench for the final but I’d be happy to explain why I believed so.
I believe that Dublin know how to mark him out of a game (2013, 2015 draw and replay, 2016 draw and replay were all games in which I felt he struggled). My logic was Aidan would be a huge impact sub around the 55 minute mark as he would be fresh legged coming up against a number of Dublin defenders who’d have to double up on him in the danger zone but would not be as fresh as he is. I’d compare it to Kevin McManamon’s success as an impact sub with the Dubs in years gone by in the big games. Would Dublin have beaten Kerry in 2011 without him coming on and scoring that goal?
While I’m not 100% certain it would work for Mayo, I do think it’s worth a thought.
All the best,
PM_90
I left my native county in 1985 to co incide with our first participation in an all ireland semi-final in my life where our green and red were competitive ,I had dreamed of days like those.I had watched our county in the seventies with little or no hope.Little did I realise that in the next 31 years that our cherished county would compete in 10 all Ireland’s (including two replays). In 1985 that would have being unimaginable , so now with the benefit of hindsight we need to take stock ,cherish our players of this period ,support our management team,appreciate all the support we have regularly received from virtually every county in ireland by way of tickets ,training support,incredible goodwill etc ,we really can’t afford to lose those intangibles.
If I can reference a former nemesis Alan Brogan from an article in the Evening Herald he claims – it was the most physical and intense match ever played – by both teams ,I have to say I concur with his analysis.Our team left everything on the pitch ,we can ask no more ,yes things did go wrong but they always will,so let’s not despair,let’s not engage in mindless bloodletting or a personalised blame game ,we have no right to,we may have an expectation a whole lot of hope and dreams but we are the fans and they are the performers and what performers they are .Would we discard a 2016 Ferrari because it got a puncture no we would get a new tyre and journey on.We just have to get the wheel re balanced.With all our collective disappointment I am in a much better place than in 1985 as I am sure many of your contributors are.I personally have rarely been as hopeful.Pain passes ,dreams endure.
Watch rerun of second Half
Up front mayo toothless for the first 18 min bar D o Connor.
Diamuid o Connor & Seamie on Se both tireless and fantastic in that openning 15 min of the 2nd half.
McCaully on on 50 min.
Costellon on after 56. Mayo never got organised who was marking hin initally.
57:50 on the clock ..one point in it.. K Mcloughin blatan push in the back not given, tap over…. dublin go down field quickly and costello scores… That was equally a Pivotal moment as any in the game. Bad call by Deegan again.
A o Shea easy miss and costello sores 30 seconds later.
Maybe these three minutes decided this game as much as anything. 60 minutes gone.
62 minutes Blatant Brogan pull down … No Black Card!!!!
One point behind after 65 minutes.
Dublin last score…. Mcauly loses ball and throws a boot at it… and land in costellos hands.. you could not make it up the good fortune Dublin had there.
Co Connor still has opportunity to draw this game.
Looking at this game …… this game should not entirely lay at the hands of R Henelley. People need to looks at this in the cold light of day.
The fowards become more and more blunt as the game went on I am afraid to say. People needs to realise this is a fantastic, wonderful team. Hopefully the team and the fans pull togrther this winter as opposed to pulling themselves apart which would be a shame. These are wonderful men and players. We as mayo supporters have had fantastic days following this team, with hard days also.
But what a wonderful journey we are on ……. We will Rise Again.
Mayo held dublin scoreless for the next 10 minutes.
High hopes for Reape..A couple of names mentioned for next year that have had their chance to shine and for whatever reason it hasn’t worked..Honestly think Andy has more to offer and would be extremely sorry to see him finish at this point..
In defeat we all concentrate on the failings minor or major. They will always be analysed and may appear bigger than they should. Our defense was immense and improved with every game. Great credit has to go McEntee on this. His input is now all over this team. Great credit also to Donnie he has left his mark on these guys and they have blossomed since he joined up. Their foot passing really impressed me this year and I love the fact that it becoming a vital part of our game. I am not sure if Stephen is responsible for this aspect of their game, but I would like to think he is. Corofin had a similar trait but they had it down to a fine art. Agree with John McHale regarding the services of a forward coaching approach. We need the defense to attack transitions to run much faster and smoother that’s for sure
When push comes to shove we are not good enough up front to punish a team like Dublin. We weren’t in 2013, last years semi and replay and this year x2 yet again. Aimless kicking at defining periods, dropping the ball short into the keepers hands, unable to unlock their defence has been our downfall.
An injection of new blood up front with pace is needed and u would be looking towards Loftus, Reape etc in that dept.
We may not make a semi or final next year. There are no guarantees in sport. While I believe we are best places to take Dublin next year we can’t keep traveling o er the same road, making the same mistakes. Something needs to change (and not necessarily much) or we forever remain in the house of pain
Billy joe has a great article in The Mayo News!
Colm Keys is Ireland’s best sports journalist by a big distance. I always feel his views are totally honest, calling it as he sees it. I don’t get that sense with a lot of others. He sure does know his stuff too.
No White Feather I’m glad you decided to contribute. You have given me a lift. Thank you.
Tis a cliché in some ways but evolution not revolution is required now. Slight refinements in attack with particular reference to full forward line/half forward line. We’re well on the way. I agree that a couple of forwards are needed and would expect that the league will be used to good effect in that regard.
In answer to a few queries earlier twas reported to be a headbutt from a recidivist from the north side that inflicted the damage to Parsons.
Rise again, that’s good analysis thanks. Of course goalkeeping error cannot be the only factor taken into account. It was just one factor
The points from play that D got were scored because they played themselves into positions that ensured success. This was achieved not accidently but by smart movement. Interesting what the last three letters of that word spell for it is an art. We had improved beyond recognition as I think I’ve said already after the first game…but..we still are not there in that regards to the extent that we need to be to heighten our chances of ultimate victory.
The new game and the old are now like two long lost cousins because of the pace modern players bring to the play. Big points from out the field are now a rarity because of the presence of ever so tight massed marking. Of the twenty nine points scored the last day only two could be classed as from distance …the Durkan wonder point and Connollys single score from play. All of the others were generally embroidered from intricate patterns of swift intelligent manoeuvres. This is what any aspiring scorers are now confronted with….they have to be fast thinking and discerning and as tough as nails. Above all they most know where the embroidery stitches go. It’s what can make this game one of the finest spectacles of all. It can also I might add, present the very opposite in incapable hands.
The winning scores on Sat evening last ( two by Costello) resulted from turnover situations at the other end where in fact we should have gotten frees and two points therewith and they therefore two less. So we should have won the game by a point. We were denied by a criminally inept system ! It might be going on a bit but it has to be said that when all respective official bloomers are summed up, our side without any doubt was robbed of this AI. We weren’t good enough up to this,sure, but we were good enough this time and we proved it. Best team doesn’t always win the day and that has been put to bed as well.
Watched the game over x few times and each time I am thrilled by the qualities I see displayed by these fellas, fellas on both sides!
I’m moving on now personally after this text with the belief that we in our present position are the number one team in Ireland for the first time in my life and next year I expect this to be ratified by all!
Come on Mayo! You are number one.
i have an observation to make and it was science and statistics haunted mayo on saturday
not a curse
Hours of studying the stats suggested Robbie Hennelly could possibly have further distance with the kick outs
the stats didn’t show that David Clarke was more reliable was a better shot stopper and made the defenders in front of him feel more at ease