Oisín’s off to Oz

The news that, in truth, we’ve all been dreading to hear has tonight been confirmed – Oisín Mullin is definitely heading off to Australia. Geelong Cats have announced (here) that they’ve signed the Kilmaine club man on a rookie contract.

This is obviously a great opportunity for Oisín. He has all the qualities to succeed in the professional game and there’s every chance that this is what he’ll do.

The flip-side, however, is that this is an enormous loss for us, one that weakens us significantly. Players of Oisín’s calibre are a rarity and what he brought to the county team over the last two years simply isn’t going to be replaced any time soon.

So while it’s only right and proper to wish Oisín all the best for the future, it’s with a very heavy heart from a Mayo perspective.

32 thoughts on “Oisín’s off to Oz

  1. He is right to give it a go, I hope he does well there. Australia seems to be the main destination for young Irish people.
    The physicality of the Aussie rules game will be hard to adjust to.

  2. Gutted, go and enjoy it Oisin but please
    Come back in a couple of years to win Sam ala Conor McKenna. The physicality won’t be a bother to Oisin in my opinion

  3. The very best of luck to Oisín. It’s such disappointing news for Mayo but a thrilling opportunity for him.

    I hope he has a fantastic experience, and that he keeps safe and injury free. I also hope that he scratches that itch, becomes desperately homesick down under within a couple of years and returns home to us to a very warm welcome!

  4. I’d say he was genuinely torn about going. There was a lot of talk at the weekend that he was still undecided. Best of luck to him but having had a taste for all Ireland final day especially this year in front of the crowd may have created an itch that he will want to scratch with Mayo too in the future.
    I really hope he stays injury free. Its one of the most attritional sports in the planet.
    It will all come down to his ability to kick the oval ball accurately at the end of the day. The main reason Irish players don’t make it is poor ball use by foot.

  5. Oisin will do well down under. Raw talent , skill and hardly ever puts a foot wrong. And the way he marauded up and down the pitch. The Ozzie S will have their hands full trying to deal with this fine young mayo man. An example to the county and beyond. Good luck Oisin and try to be back by Christmas !

  6. Good luck to him, but I think he is a few years too old taking up this game, could be back in a year or two.

  7. Best of luck to him. Very few make it and I predict he is a little too late and will get a land with just how physical the game is over there. I think he will be back soon enough, hopefully with not too many injuries. If the itch to travel and live abroad is there, it won’t go away and he has to go and experience it.

  8. He is 100% correct to go. As for those worried about injuries? At least out there he will be paid every week he is injured, and will be paid every week he is in rehab. If his shoulder pops again while playing club/county football here in Mayo that will not happen. I also feel the fact he had a taste of Mayo in two All Irelands, with the same end result, might actually have strengthened his resolve to go. He knows that we’ve missed the boat containing Celtic Crosses and this opportunity may never come before him again.

  9. I think Oisin Mullin is dead right to go. Most inter county footballers never get to play in an Ireland final yet at 21 Oisin has played in and lost two senior finals and in truth would probably have never gotten a better chance to win Sam than against Tyrone. I think he will do very well in Austrailia and I hope he makes it and build a wonderful life over there. Thanks for your service to Mayo football Oisin. best of luck

  10. Best of luck to Oisin, dont think the comments about “being too old” etc are warranted at a time like this, perhaps its just fair comment but sounds a bit sour in my humble opinion.
    A young man with his skills, you couldnt but wish him well in taking up this opportunity and I hope hes as successful as he can be with it. Mayos loss is Geelongs gain.
    go n-éirí thu Oisin

  11. Best of luck Oisín. You are young confident elite athlete with a positive mental attitude. Give it a blast. Ignore the negative comments, we have so many expert posters on AFL giving a plethora of reasons why you’re not going to make it.
    No doubt it will be challenging but you are a unique talent.
    “Choose a job you love, and you will never have to work a day in your life.” Confucius

  12. Best of luck Oisin. I dont agree with those who say he is too old or wont be able for the physicality, Oisin has every chance of making a career out there. Personally I think he will succeed out there and his days in the Green and Red of Mayo are over (though id say he will wear the colours representing Kilmaine now and again). As for the oval ball, this move has been on the cards for a long time now, im sure he has been working away with the ball and is further along on his ball skills than people realise,.

  13. Alan says:
    November 10, 2021 at 11:04 pm
    Not a chance In hell he will master this game…he will be back in two years…

    I’m wondering what qualifies you (Alan) to make out Oisin won’t succeed at Aussie Rules.
    I hope he has a great career out there and proves you and a few others wrong!

  14. Good luck Oisìn hope it all goes well for you.
    What a shame we did not play Oisìn in midfield for Mayo.
    To anyone who thinks Oisìn is too old for oz rules Speak to Cora.

  15. Best of luck to Oisin ..im delighted for him he’ll fly it out there. as for Mayo I’m sure there’s others who will step up to the mark.

  16. Absolutely…. He’s gone now and best of luck to him … Opportunity for someone else to fill the gap .. We need to be strengthening our panel annually. Suppose in many ways we are still getting over the loss of Barret , Parsons, Seamie, Keith, Vaughan and others ..
    Onwards we go

  17. Best of luck to Oisin, we will miss him for sure but I’m optimistic for the future. I think it will present opportunities for others to come to the fore. Safe travel to him and I hope we may see him back competing for a Mayo jersey at some stage in the future.

  18. I wish Oisin every success. I can see no reason why he won’t make a success of this wonderful opportunity.

    On another topic I see we will be playing all our league games outside the county as Ballina not deemed suitable. Any idea when the fixtures will be announced and indeed when the championship draws are taking place.

  19. Lots of sentimental stuff here about wishing Oisin the best of luck in his new career. Really? Do we actually want to spend the next decade looking at him doing a Pearse Hanley on it while Mayo keep ramming every chance they get?

    If anyone here is being honest they will be hoping it doesn’t really work out for him as a professional in Australia and that he decides to come back home while he’s still young enough to get the job done for Mayo. That’s not being mean spirited, just basic cop on.

  20. P is on a different wavelength to me, I’m as sports-mad as anyone but sport is not life, it’s a diversion for most of us. I thank Oisin for the massive good times he gave me and others and hope he has a great career in his chosen job.

  21. Nobody on are being sentimental, we are just wishing Oisìn the best. Honestly, Very few Mayo Supporter’s will spend the next decade hoping Oisìn will fail.
    It’s time The mean spirited cop on to that.

  22. P, we all love football and especially Mayo football, but there’s more to life than that.
    He’s a young man who has the balls to move to the other side of the world and take a chance that his abilities will see him make a career out there, and you hope he fails. Most people would hope it works out for him, while also in the back of their minds wondering what might have been.

    But there’s a long way between wondering what might have been and actually hoping he fails and has to come back.

  23. Talking about bad defeats in Croke Park, who remembers 1981, we famously beat Galway, thanks to Willie Nally. Before the Semi final the county chairman, fr Leo Moraghan RIP said we were confident but not cocky. It was 1-8 to 6 points at half time against kerry. We were annihilated in the second half, I don’t think we scored. I said we played against Kerry in the first half and the wind in the second half. In 1969 we changed free taker against Kerry in the last minute for an equaliser free and it went wide, 2 Ballina men but one from the wrong club.

  24. Interestingly – haven’t heard a peep out of Tomas o se on the move of Oisin to Geelong.
    He couldn’t shut up about how terrible this was for the GAA when a Kerry man left a couple of years back

  25. I remember that game Jrb. My memory of it is of Eugene Mc Hale scoring a good goal for us just before half time & giving us some hope . I think it was about 2.07- 1.06 at h.t. But ya not sure if we improved on our tally in the second half. They finished on something like 2.17.

  26. Yeah I remember that game.Mayo played in white I think in those years we had no real ambition or belief at all other than we going to show up to be slaughtered…….Willie Joe Padden said that his biggest regret was the utter chaos at intercounty level when he started his career.
    Those were the times he referred to…

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