Monday match reports

Nestor Cup presentation

Photo: Mayo Mick

When we won the first two of our hat-trick of Connacht titles in 2011 and 2012, I was away on my holliers both times and so spent the day after on the sun lounger but on this occasion it’s a normal working Monday so this needs to be a quick one. But, hey, we’re provincial champions once again, winning well on a day when Donegal emphatically lost their aura of invincibility and it hasn’t started raining hearabouts as yet. I can think of worse starts to the week.

So, onto the match reports and coverage from yesterday’s Connacht final, where there’s plenty about our senior and minor provincial triumphs.

Starting with the nationals, where the Irish Times has a very cursory match report and some after-match quotes from Paul Coggins, James Horan and Colm Boyle. The Irish Independent has its match reportquotes from James Horan and Paul Coggins, a game at a glance piece and a colour piece on London’s big day out. The Irish Examiner has a match report which includes quotes from James and Alan Dillon and a separate piece with post-match quotes from London’s Sean Kelly and Paul Coggins.

The Mayo Advertiser has match reports by Colm Gannon on both the senior and minor finals and the same paper also has a post-match podcast with John Casey. Staying with the locals, the Irish Post has a match report from London’s perspective.

Others: RTÉ, BBC, The Score (senior final, minor final, match timeline and a photo piece), Hogan Stand (senior final, minor final), Breaking News.

On the analysis front, Emmet Ryan at Action81.com looks behind the scores to examine what we did and didn’t do well yesterday.

On the photo side of things, Mayo Mick has a huge collection of images (including the one at the top of this post) from McHale Park yesterday.

And finally it’s perhaps worth noting that this morning, while many of us are scratching our heads about yesterday’s uneven performance, we now find ourselves installed as joint second favourites (along with Kerry at 7/2) to win Sam this year and that we’re clear second favourites (behind Dublin) to reach the final. In this regard, I’d tend to agree with those who say we shouldn’t fear who we draw in the quarters and that maybe we should be thinking about the fear others might have of being paired with us. That draw, by the way, is set to take place this coming Saturday evening at around 8.30pm, i.e. after the conclusion of the Round 4 qualifier matches.

Have a great Monday.

51 thoughts on “Monday match reports

  1. Some very interesting pieces there.

    Yesterday threw up a lot of positives and negatives.

    We know our backs and (unlike 97) we have plenty of solid cover.

    Aidan O Se was a colossus yesterday. He ruled the field ,made goals and apart from a little misplaced shooting when it didnt matter is one of the reasons Mayo are so feared. Seamus got in a lot of work and was quick.

    McLoughlin was solid throughout as was Feeney and Freeman looks the part. Coen did take a great goal and I wish he was given more time.

    The injuries? Heres the nub of it. Can we go to Croke Park with two injured lads hoping their form returns there. I would be inclined to start Moran and bring Alan on. Alan was not competitive yesterday – no ifs or buts. Would he get on the Mayo team on present form if you took his wonderful past encounters out. I don’t think so.

    I would use him as a supersub and hopefully his form will improve if we go further.

    The lads did well not to be caught up in London’s theatrics at end of game. Ref … hope we dont get him again.

    Mayo did what they had to do. Proper analysis will look at the whole picture and that is neither totally optimistic or pessimistic. I have hope but yes there are tough calls to be made.

    Donegal paid for using an unfit Lacey Yesterday- draw your own conclusions.

  2. Yesterdays match has been well and truly over analysed. We only needed to win it without injuries/suspensions and move on rapidly to focus on Game 4. We won it primarily because of big performances from Aidan O Shea & Cillian O Connor. We have issues with our forward play & approach work. We have real concerns that the likes of Alan Dillon, Andy Moran & Mickey Conroy may unfortunately have their best football behind them.
    As we approach the end of July there is no more time now for injury recovery … the focus has to be on the here & now. Our season will ultimately be decided by ourselves not by who we draw. We remain capable of winning it outright … equally we remain capable of slipping up. Time will tell.

  3. A surprisingly down beat attitude is in evidence this morning from Mayo supporters following yesterday’s Connacht Final, and I’m not sure why – what were they expecting, that we would beat the bejases out of London, words like destroy and smash were bandied about, or as I heard it said last week, it would be a rout.

    This was never going to be pretty, London lacking in ability, were always going to revert to the usual spoiling tactics adapted by any team who know they have no chance of winning and as happened the Ref who would be aware of this, let a lot of stuff go that he might not otherwise have done.

    Reading reports at this stage is a bit pointless for they all say more or less the same thing, but an excellent piece posted there by An Spailpin Fanach, is a must read. In the meantime let James and the lads put their heads down and hopefully sort out their shortcomings, while we wait with fingers crossed, for a good Quarter Final draw next weekend.

  4. Reason fans are down is not result but form of Dillon Moran and absence of Barry and Micky C.fair worries id say.

  5. In my opinion people are looking at yesterdays game completely the wrong way, in my opinion.

    1st I was very angry at Horan to see Coen and Freeman get taken off, as I felt they were playing well with Freeman probably MOTM and Coen had earned himself another chance after that great goal, while much poorer players were left on the field, but on hindsight i agree fully with Horans decisions. I dont think he took them off like a normal match because they were poor, but because he felt they had provin themselves for the next day, I would be very suprised if both men dont start the next day.

    2nd in regards to dillons and lets be honest Andy morans poor enough performance, both of theese men are coming back from severe injuries, the match time will be a massive boost to both men, I still feel they will come good for Croke Park, they are two of the best and most experienced players currently playing the game, they know what they are doing and i think (hope at least) they will be unrecognizable in two weeks time performance wise (in a good way)

    3rd While Mayos performance left ALOT to be desired remember this was LONDON. Mayo would have very tough training regime like all football teams. The weeks leading up to a match this training would be completely altered to have the players rested and ready to go. Mayo have had the luxury of not having to do this, they would have been full speed ahead for the last few weeks, lets be honest London was nothing more than an extra training session. Hence yesterday I believe the mayo footballers were suffering somewhat from physical and mental fatigue. Just look at Higgins who struggled to beat lose his man, on another day he could lose half the footballers in the country without breaking a sweat.

    4th Finally, we learnt alot about Mayo yesterday, Higgins as i have always felt is not a number six, put him back in the corner and i strongly believe we have the best defensive unit in the country, Cunnife has been a huge addition i believe. I was never a fan of Freeman but yesterday he really impressed me, he keeps his form he is a huge boost. Despite some bad decisions AOS has really improved his ball wining skills, player of the year maybe? COC seems to have finally shaken his fear of shooting from play, Last year Mayos top scorer only got one point from play, Just a taught but if he can pick up his scoring ability from play, move him into the corner and move Andy back to CF? Andy is to valuable in my opinion to be left in the corner not getting enough ball, if freeman keeps the number 14 jersey that is.

  6. Tom,
    Your logic escapes me. Coen needed match time. He has never started a championship match. How has he proven himself to start and if he does and Freeman too who loses out since you want Dillon and Moran and Freeman in and presumably O Connor and Feeney too!

    Hoping Dillon and Moran recover form- thats the point. If they dont we will be in massive trouble. Are we not better to go with fully fit men like Coen and let either Moran or Dillon be a supersub.

    I think reason Coen was replaced was that James thought Dillon would up it second half but did not happen. I love Alan Dillon- one of my all time heroes- but he is injured.End of.

    Aidan O Se was phenomenal yesterday. He made the goal for O Connor- I agree he is in running for Player of the Year but too early to tell yet!

    Mayo can win the All Ireland but hard decisions needed.

  7. Speaking off the ref.the pundits on tv 3 were saying that the London disallowed goal should actually have being given in not too sure .Anyway i have to say i was a little worried about the next game.But i do reckon the lads felt they were out to do enough to win and knew that the intensity would not be there from London .They wouldn’t play like that against Dublin.I just hope there is no more injuries.As for Donegal i always knew they were there for the beating and still believe they wont go on to win Sam this year

  8. COOL HAND LUKE,
    Ya I agree fully Coen needs match time, something I have always hated was young players with potential being subbed for older players who arent up to standard , but whether Horan was right or not to take them off I personally have no doubt that was his logic, I guess we will have to wait untill August Bank Holiday to know.
    And how has he proven himself, well he may not have proven himself to us but Horan has the benefit of watching him play 2 or 3 nights a week, and if he is as good as his goals do indicate why ruin the surprise for the team we play in the QF?
    And since you asked, I would drop Feeney, i love Richie, one of my favorite footballers but he is so much more effective as a supersub imo. The great thing about him is if a players is not performing in a match in the backs or forwards he can be slotted straight in there, no need for a big shuffle.

  9. Great comments here re players .

    I would certainly not drop Feeney. Big and strong and a huge worker. Think Coen will be the sub with Andy and Alan making the team unless training indicates otherwise.
    I think Horan will need good quick decision making on sideline from now on. Dublin probably no.1 at present with Mayo and Kerry following behind with all others about equal. I see Galway giving Cork a good rattle but not winning.
    Thought Chris Barrett was excellent yesterday- has to challenge for a place.

  10. Well, just a few thoughts on yesterday’s game.
    The general mood of the bloggers here mirrors my own. Yesterday was a very hard game to get up for and as a result, the performance and sluggish and lacked any kind of pace or intensity. Thus, I’m not overly worried about the performance, as I think the team definitely had their eye on Croke Park than yesterday’s opponents.
    There were some positives from yesterday’s performance. O’Connor looked very sharp when he came and Aidan O’Shea and McLoughlin look in fine fettle (can’t see the silly wides being continued in Croker). Coen got a good run out and is an option for Croke Park, particularly given his showing for the ball and his pace. He probably won’t start as he just hit too many wides under no pressure but he’s young and it’s a learning curve. He is definitely an option. (Remember Conroy gave an eerily similar performance against Sligo last year and he cam e in leaps and bounds after that.) The backs look good and Mayo have good options on the bench for most positions, bar midfield. Freeman looks back in his 2010 form and is a great outlet for the forwards. The Higgins experiment was one worth trying but didn’t work. It’s the corner for him! Mayo have been focused on the quarter finals for couple of months now and will be able to raise their game and intensity or then, one would feel.
    However, there were several negatives unfortunately. Moran and Dillon are not yet fit. Moran is getting there but is not close to his form of the last two years. Dillon is a serious worry, as has been noted by many. I myself still feel he is worth his place and that yesterday’s game will bring him on, but I do understand why people think he shouldn’t start the next game. His injury is definitely curtailing him and is a definite concern for two weeks’ time. Time will tell, I guess but I do have faith that Horan will be able to make the correct call after two more weeks of training. Conroy’s injury looks to have finished his participation in this year’s championship as it’s hard to see a confidence player getting back to any kind of form now. Also very disappointing was Barry Moran’s absence. Another confidence player, it’s a real shame to think we will be without our two form players of the league. But we will have to move on and at least Seamus O’Shea is there. Donegal’s defeat means Mayo will be playing a serious team in the quarters (Tyrone, Cork or Donegal are going to be serious tests.) Of those three, I myself wouldn’t like to play Cork but all are going to really test Mayo.
    Mayo are a serious team but these bloody injuries are really not helping our cause. However, I have great faith in James Horan and think he will make the correct calls. Time will tell, I guess!

  11. Also, on another note, well done to the minors yesterday. A good win and they’ll fancy their chances against a distinctly average Westmeath side. However, they won it because of Roscommon’s poor starts in both halves and a good full forward line. Their midfield was destroyed throughout the game and they have a lot of work to do to rectify it. Roscommon will do well to beat a serious Kildare team though. Well done to Enda Gilvarry’s men but they seem to be short a serious midfielder to really have serious All Ireland ambitions. However, yesterday’s win will surely bring them on in terms of confidence and in Coen and Irwin they have two fine footballers. Hopefully that match versus Westmeath will be on before the senior match in Croke Park like last year (and hopefully the results will be the same!).

  12. A lot of great talking points lads..I’m concerned about the choppy/changing nature of the forwards. Seems the only one or two that have nailed their places down are Kevin Mac and Cillian, with Freeman really pressing hard to hold/nail his down. I was again impressed with him. He can win a high ball and has a great pair of hands.

    I was disappointed to see Coen subbed when Dillion was clearly struggling. I too love Dillion but there’s something wrong there. If he’s to keep his place, we need him scoring! he didnt register a score yesterday, against London! A player of his ability should be knocking over 4-5 pts yesterday.

    Interestign stat from yesterday…Cillian by himself, as a sub, equaled the total score of our entire starting forward line. Maybe we do need a Evan Regan after all…just sayin.
    You think other better prepared teams wont have noticed come the QF’s?

  13. think the lads looked completely disinterested in yesterdays match. they don’t want to be in castlebar playing london they want to be croker testing themselves. lads are gonna be chomping at the bit the next and i think we could have a similar scenario to last years down game.

    darren coen looked a little over eager as might be expected making your first start against london. don’t think he’ll start next day.

    we seem to have a prob with depth in the half-forwards. no real alternative to cillian at chf. think dillon was given that role on sun but he struggled with his lack of fitness, mcloughlin against the rossies but you lose more than you gain by moving him and AOS was tried there in the league with similar results. would like to aiden tried there again next league not because he’s a real option there but because the passing and decision making skills needed for him to play there would add another dimension to his game at midfield. for the two ‘wing’ forward positions mcloughlins a cert and one of feeney and carolan will play but after that there not much. doherty played last year, keegan was tried during the league and higgins ended up there on sun. none of them really looked that comfortable there altough they all showed enough workrate to get by. doherty is prob the more natural of the three. think JH wants someone with the physical characteristics of higgins but we just don’t have someone like that a the moment.

    very interesting to see the different approaches the top teams take to chf position. mayo dublin kerry and donegal all have different types of players there and different approaches to the role and i think this could be one of the deciding postions of this years competetion.

    finally meath will beat tyrone next week. they’ve shown they can play to higher intensity than anyone tyrone have played so far. tyrone struggled when kildare lifted the tempo at the start of the second half but they couldn’t keep it up for long enough. meath will prob keep going for at least 50 mins they have the forwards and their midfield is competitive. it’ll be tight a goal might swing but i fancy meath

  14. I think JH will not know his strongest team going into the 1/4 finals. But that is more because of injury rather than lack of information. Would I start Darren Coen against a big team in Croker? Personally I wouldn’t. Nothing against the fella but I would go for the experience of Andy Moran or Alan Dillon.

    What age is Darren anyway – 20 ? There’s no need to throw him completely in at the deep end straight away. Lots of years ahead for him to progress in a Mayo jersey. Add that with the fact that he started the Connacht final implies to me that he will probably still get an opportunity at some stage this year anyway.

    The biggest worry I have is that without Andy Moran or Alan Dillon fit we are lacking leadership against the big teams. More fellas (ala Freeman, Feeney, Varley and several other throughout the team) will have to put up their hands and show they can be relied upon to consistently make the grade against the “top” teams.

    Thus far in their careers they have not consistently shown this. After all it’s all very well impressing against the rest in Connacht but the real football championship is only beginning.

  15. Anyone else think Hennelly was lucky not to give away penalty on one of the London goal chances? Feeney should have been pulled up for extra steps before Mayo were awarded the penalty and the London goal should have stood.

    Can you imagine the self doubt if the scoreline was 4-11 to 2-10?

  16. agree jpm think dillon, freeman and moran will be full forward line next time with carolan o’connor and mcloughlin in the half forwards. think moran and freeman could be a real scoring/goal getting pairing with dillon floating and o’connor coming from deep. think we played our best football on sun when those lads were there.

    not worried all in all. people forget that JH was a forward and i think the down game last year showed he organise a pretty effective forward. was slightly worried with the amount of ball flung in aimlessly at freeman on sun but suspect it was because of a lack of runs from the inside line. another symptom of what was a pretty lazy performance all round.

  17. Really Frostyhammer no feeney.you will play carolan who didnt feature at all even as sub,dillon who didnt score,and not feeney who did.strange!

  18. Yes MO2013 i did you think hennelly was lucky not to give away a penalty.Another ref might have given it.Anyone agree that AOS could be an outlet for Full forward and COC at 14? Barry Moran and SOS at midfield?

  19. Ah God Lads,
    AOS is out and out midfielder. To play him anywhere else would not be in our best interests I believe.
    With regard to Feeney he deserves his place. He is a worker with a big engine.
    Maybe the role of Varley being underplayed too. I think he will be vital before the yr is over.

  20. Jeez lads don’t be talking about AOS at full forward, possibly the best midfielder in the country why the hell would we play him anywhere else? Anyway did ya see all the wides he kicked yesterday he’s not a natural forward, it’s midfield and nowhere else for him from now on if we are serious about winning anything.

  21. “Monaghan did beat Mayo by 6 points in a fiery intense game”. This is the info on hoganstand but no mention of the match itself, where it was played, or what teams were fielded. Would be interested to find out if anyone had more info ?

  22. Barry Moran is injured anyway isn’t he ? I’d be wrapping the O Shea brothers in cotton will now if I could …..

  23. Don’t think Dillon or Moran have a full game in them yet so I would hold one in reserve and give Coen a start in the corner.We need to build his confidence. Freeman deserves his place. Also I believe Feeney will feature in the half forward line with Cillian ( what a relief to have him back ) and SuperMac. Feeney was very good against the Rossies and i think that game is more relevant in terms of form.

    I liked the look of AOS yesterday, he looks way fitter than last year but I wouldn’t be getting carried away about Player of the Year awards. A big display against London doesn’t amount to much and Seamus has been better than him up until now. But I do expect him to give his best performances in Croker. We need Big Baryy as cover in the middle.

    Team looked lethargic yesterday like Horan had been running them into the ground in training, expect a much more focused, sharp display in Quarter Final which has been the real target since we dsiposed of the Rossies.

  24. A lot of people talking about Mayo V Monaghan game. Does anybody have any specifics

  25. We are comming along grand lads. Yesterday we had Barrett, Dillon, Conroy, Moran and O’Connor comming back from injury. Horan wanted these guys to get as much game time as possible. Also wanted to blood Coen.
    Realistically most of us could name 13 or 14 of the starters the next day. I’d say Horan would like to have the option of Coen in the ff line as he is a bigger man than Varley or Conroy.
    It Would be great to have Barry as cover or even starting.

  26. So anyone know this team that played against Monaghan? Ciaran Whealan was going on saying on Sunday game that it went well for us

  27. Nobody is putting Monaghan into the melting pot !!! Why, oh why???
    They did beat Donegal but McFadden couldn’t score to save his life yesterday so they did have some luck. McFadden will surely make up for that. Could Donegal have been a little over-confident? Nobody gave Monaghan a chance. As is said Donegal are still there and so is Cork!!!

  28. well done mayo on a good win am happy but everyone saying cork and tyrone are in quaters i think meath and galway may have something to say can mayo drew donegal when it is an open draw not to sure

  29. We could for sure draw Donegal, Cat, and if it comes to it we could even draw Galway, as the only pairings not allowed are repeats of the provincial finals. As London are unlikely to get past Cavan, that means we could draw any of the four qualifiers whereas the other three provincial champions would only be able to draw one out of three of them should Donegal, Cork and Meath make it through.

  30. I was onto the lad who puts the weights in the balls!!!! Here is the draw for the QF’s!!!

    Kerry v Cavan…a repeat of 47 polo grounds!!!

    The jacks v johnny reb… The clash of the “capitals”

    Mayo v Donegal

    Monaghan v Tyrone/Meath.

    Sin é!!;))

  31. Just reading the comments and I’m not at all happy with yesterday’s performance,yes I knw London were very poor and dirty put as much as I respect Alan Dillion for being truly one of the best ever to wear the green and red jersey he has looked slow and only a shadow of the player he once was it is time now for James horan to realize this situation and resolve it quickly because I think we will get a hard quater final draw with either donegal,cork or Tyrone

  32. Regards the R4 qualifiers nobody is giving Galway a mention. Now that they have a bit of wind in their sails I wouldn’t rule them out against Cork who are so inconsistent and who may be more than a bit deflated after Kerry. If we were to meet up with Galway again it would require another difficult mental adjustment.
    Meath are another possibility who will have no fears of meeting Mayo. I think we have to go back to 1951 for our last championship win against them. They cannot be too unhappy with their result against Dublin considering their history over the last few years and if they beat Tyrone their confidence will be high.
    Donegal will test Jimmy’s ability to get them mentally adjusted but should beat Laois who I do not rate too highly. They were apparently extremely lucky to survive against Wexford. Some pundits are suggesting that Monaghan have given them the blueprint to beat Donegal but I do not think they have the ability or time to change their gameplan.
    Cavan, who will surely beat London, appear to be the easiest of the potential opponent at this stage. I’m told they are a team with great promise who were unlucky not to beat Monaghan but a bit young and inexperienced at this stage and they seem to be nearly as injury plagued as Mayo at present.
    Regards the minor quarter finals I do not expect to see them at Croke Park with the seniors, more likely a double header with Roscommon – Kildare on the Saturday, probably in Longford, Mullingar or Tullamore. That has been the pattern in the past.

  33. In regards to Galway.I wouldn’t be surprised if they beat Cork but i would say Cork will do the job against them.
    I was listening to the Galway v Armagh game on Galway bay fm ( have to say i enjoyed biased commentary by the radio commentators). Anyway from what came across on the radio was the Armagh team was a shadow of the team that put 8 goals past Leitrim.So that said i feel Cork will beat Galway and quiet comprehensively too .

  34. Really Frostyhammer no feeney.you will play carolan who didnt feature at all even as sub,dillon who didnt score,and not feeney who did.strange!

    john griffin

    not what i’d pick john its what i think JH will pick. personally i would pick carolan but maybe not dillon. think carolan’s youth and energy could be beneficial from the off and richie’s assurance and calmness off the bench would be an asset when carolan tires.

    as for dillon i don’t think he’s fit and i think the forward line i mentioned lacks pace. hopefully morans and freemans movement will make up for that. would prefer to see someone there who can link the full and half lines and run lines at pace. for me both conroy and varley are corner forwards and not suited to that role. coen may be but i haven’t seen enough of him to judge.

    i think as jpm said the important word here is leadership. a trait JH seems to share with a certain giovanni trapatoni (i mean that as a compliment). i think dillon will start for this reason similarly i think its also why feeney started ahead of carolan the last day but cillian’s return means its not as important, as despite his young age he is a leader in this team.

    would be wary about reading too much into sundays performances.

    hope that clears things up john. would try and go through all this in my posts but feel they’re are a little long as is

  35. hola hola hola greetingfrom wicklow… mayo were fabulous yesterday. Galway are playing cork next I think and maybe mayo then. That will give us a chance to hammer them again and that would be marvolus. I dont care who beats us as long as they dont hammer us out the gate mayo for sam

  36. hello,

    I’d be happy enough to let Alan Dillon decide if he wished to play the next day or not. I vaguely remember him being written off before?

    Also, it might be better to have Andy Moran as 2nd half sub. It is all very exciting and maybe there will be a dark horse yet!

  37. With regard to queries on the Monaghan challenge game, I heard Aaron Kernan say on the Newstalk Off The Ball podcast that it had been a no-holds barred physical encounter, that Monaghan had won but Mayo hadn’t fielded their strongest team – not that the result matters too much.

  38. And once again, regarding Alan Dillon, his pre-match interview during the week, stated in several outlets that he was managing a painful groin area injury (the same one that Richard Dunne and Alan Brogan had) so maybe it was the right idea to give him a good run out, maybe it wasn’t.

    The Galway game was a success for him but as he alluded to in the interview, he plays better with the injury in a faster-paced game, which the Salthill game was,

    So let’s see how he copes in Game 4 (and 5) before some posters talk of his demise

  39. So we should start Alan Dillon in the QF, thd most important match of the year, even though he’s carrying an injury? That’s just plain daft! And won’t happen. If he’s carrying that same injury two weeks from now, he won’t start, for he was ineffective the entire match yesterday against a poor opposition. I felt bad to see him struggle.

  40. Agree totally with mistermayor.you do not play injured players.and no one is talking of his demise just acknowledging his injury.
    Seems obvious too Barry and Micky C and jason will not be ready for quarters.coen and varley and feeney have to step up.they have match fitness.they will be the winning and losing of matches.they sre well able in my view.

  41. Dillon didn’t look sharp on Sunday, that’s for sure. But he still knows where the posts are. Why not play him in the corner, restoring Cillian O’Connor to CHF, as worked so well against Galway?

  42. I agree, I think C’OC will be at CHF with Mcloughlin & Feeney on either side. Varley will prob get his place back too, played well against Galway and has Croker experience. Freeman will get a slot so that leaves dillon & A Moran for the other corner. A Moran will prob start.

    McLough C’OC Feeney

    A Moran Freeman Varley.

  43. Im not too concerned about the display v london. however, the debate here as to will start in the forward line underlines a worry about progressing this year. Most teams that have won All Irelands have had very settled teams and we could predict with a high degree of certainty who would start. Unfortunately injury has messed us up this year. Of the forwards, Cillian o Connor, Dillon, Conroy and andy Moran are all recovering from injury and clearly not at their peak. Luckily we have good replacements but a forward line needs to be playing together regularly to build the levels of understanding and fluency required to notch up a winning score. Hopefully, we can overcome these difficulties. We need everyone fit and well and not struggling with injury. Look at the difference in Aos this year when he is fit!

  44. Dear everybody….

    I told ye the draw (see above!!!)

    Don’t doubt my inside information!!!!!!;))

  45. Alan Dillon a great servant to mayo but cannot start again in a championship match. The bench would make him hungrier, which he badly needs. Also he’s still not right after injury

  46. Make or break for mayo now. First competitive match of the c’ship and its donegal. Would literally give a kidney to see mayo beat them. What is the story with Barry Moran?…

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *