It’s the morning after the day before and so it’s time for the match reports on our Connacht semi-final win yesterday. We got barely a mention on The Sunday Game last night and the papers haven’t exactly gone overboard with their coverage today either by the looks of it.
The nationals first. The Irish Times has a workmanlike match report and some brief post-match comments from James Horan. The same paper has a brief account of proceedings in the minor match. The Irish Independent confines itself to match reports on the senior game (with player ratings) and on the minor game. There is, probably, a piece in the paper version with quotes but this hasn’t made it to the online variant as yet. Mike Finnerty does the honours for the Irish Examiner with this report on the senior game while Cian O’Connell in the same paper provides a short report on the minor one.
As usual, the Mayo Advertiser is the first of the locals out of the traps, with Colm Gannon providing his take on the day.
Others: GAA.ie, RTÉ, Setanta, Breaking News, Hogan Stand, The Score. That’ll do for now, I think. As usual, I’ll gather up all the links I can find and stick them in the results section where, in the fulness of time, they’ll all find a happy resting place within the results archive which, a bit like the universe, continues to expand as time progresses.
Onto the competition that was running here on naming the team to face Leitrim. This turned out to be a tricky assignment for all those who had a stab at it, with nobody succeeding in getting all fifteen correct. Two entrants managed fourteen out of fifteen, with the tie-break of the subs bench needing to be deployed to separate them. When this particular bench was emptied, Donal Hallinan came out on top and so wins my last spare copy of Breandán Ó hEithir’s Over the Bar. Congrats to Donal and thanks to all who entered.
Right, time for a new poll I reckon. We won with buckets to spare yesterday but what does the result mean for our chances, going forward, like?
What's the significance of the Leitrim result?
- We only did what we were expected to do (77%, 94 Votes)
- We're well ahead of anything else in Connacht (16%, 20 Votes)
- We're ready to compete seriously for Sam (7%, 8 Votes)
Total Voters: 122
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how does this team look for Sligo match?
Clarke
Keane Caff Higgans
Vaughan Feeney Keegan
Moran
McGarrity
McLoughlin Moran Dillon
O Connor AOS Freeman
Botún of the day was made by The Irish Daily Star. In the “Man of the Match” box it shows the name and picture of Andy Moran with the following comments: “Moran completely bossed the middle of the field and was integral to Mayo’s play in both attack and defence. He worked tirelessly and pitched in with a fine point at the end of the first half. Interestingly, both of the Castlebar Mitchels man’s parents are natives of mohill in Leitrim”.
Of course I entirely agree with the sentiments even if they are directed at the wrong player!
The Leitrim game is totally insignificant. They lasted 15 minutes then their fitness let them down. Its a case of galway v Ross all over gain. Hope mayo dont make the same mistake as Galway and take Sligo for granted.
Rember 51 says, Moran McGarrity for midfield? Has this [deleted] not taught you anything. Also why is Boyle dropped from half back line and Donie now becomes a right half back. If Donie is not fit for centre back then a place on subs bench would suit.
I hate people giving a player any position but not drop him to subs bench. To be fair Donie is a great athlete but does not have great football skills. Mulligan yesterday showed this up yesterday. Again Aiden O Shea in full fordward , again he has not played a game in 9 weeks and nobody knows yet how he will play when he comes back to full training,
True Grit – I’ve let two comments from you go there, the second with a minor deletion, both of which sailed very close to the wind as regards as acceptability. Thrash-talking individual players is out of bounds and you’re coming far too close to this for my liking in those two comments. Before putting up anything else, I’d appreciate it if you had a read of the house rules (here) to remind you what’s acceptable comment and what isn’t.
Willie Joe. I dont think I insulted any player in what i wrote. I gave an honest opinion in what I saw yesterday, I read all your reports that you put up and a lot of them comes from some other person who is at the game, as you were not there,
I have been to all the games and I am giving you my opinion as I see the players performing. I did not call any player stupid. Every player does his best and I have a right to make fair critism based on how they played etc. We are only giving our opinion and if we cannot do this then this blog is not for anyone who likes to make a comment that you dont like. I am not insulting any player .
True Grit – all I’m asking you to do is to ensure your criticisms are indeed fair. I think what you’ve been putting up is bordering on the unacceptable and I’m just giving you fair warning in this respect.
Relax relax true grit. Ronan is well able to play if fit. Depends on his partner etc. he wont start against Sligo but is a good sub. Vaughan would be a brilliant wing back with full licence to attack. Feeney is too good to be a sub and he brings grt strength and aaaah…… true grit to the game. AOS wont be fit for midfield but would be a handful at ff. Just my humble opinion…………
so r51 , you are only putting AOS in at FF because he would not be fit for midfield…i dont know.. maybe….
The papers called it correct. They saw no story on Sunday or Monday. History has been replicated, Mayo generally beat Leitrim. The Connacht final will be an interesting take. Sligo will come into it with the following. Quietly since 2007 they have been putting together a little run. They have beaten Galway 3 times in Championship football. They beat Mayo easily last time out.
A win in the Connacht final will cement their inner belief.Walshe is the new O Mahony. Building a reputation away from his native county he wont fear Mayo. Already he has raised doubts about Mullholland who actually won Minor and U21 with Galway. Throw in Costelloe who seems to have picked up a big reputation in Sligo and super sub O Hara and we see their hand laid out.
Mayo on the other hand has won more between 2006 and today than Sligo has in its entire history. They would do well to dwell on that, not arrogantly but factually. Sligo since 1948 has beaten Mayo 4 or five times in Connacht football. They have yet to win a single U21 Connacht title, they posses 2 minors, one obtained on objection after being walloped.
Sligo has choices here. They have nothing to lose, they are well prepared and they dont like Mayo. In the national media Sligo’s near misses against Armagh and latterly Kerry carry more weight and respect than Mayo’s two All Ireland runs in 2004/06. If they win it will be because they wanted it bad enough. If they lose…what the hell, shure Mayo were always able to beat them anyway. No kudos but a big Breheny et al moan about the easy passage for us out of Connacht.
Mayo on the other hand have no choice. They must win this one and in winning it all that will count is that its number 45 or 46 but nothing proven. Its the next match that will define Mayo. Go in arrogant and cocky and Kelly of Belmullet linage and Costello will go to town. O Hara will come on, tanned and big white gum shield in his mouth. He will become a bigger legend, one of the few Sligo men to possess 2 Connacht senior medals. Mayo have subs with 4 and they wont be thanked.
Mayo has to go in to win, to teach a lesson, to reclaim the shame and blot of 2010. They should see this as a stepping stone, a chance for the players to vie for the available spots that are up for grabs. if they are not up for grabs they should be…centre back was a nailed certainty, up pops the floor board when Mulligan lent on it and we are not as confident. A barnstorming Connacht final will allay a few doubts.
Sligo are Sligo, they wear black to look big and bold. Thankfully we tend to stay with our original colours. Leitrim beat them last year, Roscommon the year before.Dont buy the hype about them, squeez them like an empty toothpaste tube. Dont buy the hype about us either. In 1973 we rammed 7 goals past Leitrim in the Connacht semi, we lost the Connacht final. This time we got 70 minutes of our own to do the right thing.
jaysis john cuffe you nearly have me ready to pull on the jersey myself ! great stuff.
and what the hell is that white elephant up on the screen willie joe ? surely that is too close a metaphor for machale park ?
The white elephant caught my eye too, I laughed. I think mayo will need to be very level headed with Sligo, they have the players and dislike for us that is needed to beat us. Whatever about beating London and Leitrim being almost a certainty I will not be so sure about Sligo. I expect mayo to win but would not be shocked if it went the other way. I would start the same team next day and see if the corner forwards are able or not. Mort at least is.
The elephant in question is an inflatable one, Roger, who if I’m not mistaken made his inter-county debut the night of the Dublin match. The metaphor arising from it is, I agree, more than a little too close for comfort, though if they end up playing the Connacht final at McHale Park (which I gather is at least a possibility) we’ll at least have started to see some tangible return on the redevelopment.
Good stuff as always John Cuffe.
There’s no doubt Sligo will be well up for this one, Walsh won’t let them forget 2010. They’ve been on a mission ever since.
But feck them, let’s worry about ourselves. We have the better players and a much stronger bench, so lets go out and show it. Either way, there’s no way we’re just going to sail through this one, so ignore Breheny and the rest and their talk of an easy passage to the QF. This will be far from easy.
We need to be ruthless, like we were against Leitrim. I liked how we didn’t ease up and kept going at them until the final whistle. It’s something that’s normally known as the preserve of Kerry or Tyrone, so glad to see us do it.
David Kelly might be of Belmullet linage but apart from his toughness his flair and skills are the calling card of a footballer who spent his formative years in the Quay , Ballina gleaning what he could from Town League matches where the David and Ger Brady cut their teeth also in thier younger years!! Anyway as someone who lives on the parish border between the Quay and Castleconnor I’m looking forward to this one and hope we are mreciless in gainig revenge for 2010.
I think it’s absolutely the case that we need to go out and be as ruthless as we possibly can in the final. If Kerry had lost a provincial match to opposition like Sligo as recently as 2010 you can be sure they’d be consumed with hunger/hurt/pain etc. etc. at the memory of it and would be chomping at the bit for revenge. That 2010 loss was one of our most craven displays in living memory – we’d all but given up with 20 minutes to go even though the match was still patently there to be won – and so every single one of the lads who were involved that day (David Clarke, Ger Cafferkey, Keith Higgins, Donal Vaughan, Kevin McLoughlin, Andy Moran, Seamus O’Shea, Ronan McGarrity, Conor Mortimer, Alan Freeman, Enda Varley, Aidan O’Shea and Barry Moran) should be aiming to do everything in their powers to set the record straight when we face Sligo in this year’s final.
Crete Boom, I …ahem myself can claim linage with the Quay and Rathlee, the ancient in our family hailed/was ran out of one to the other.
I have to say John that your assessment there is spot on!! Was away and missed the initial game on TV so I watched the Sligo v Galway game last night on RTE player. And I have to say that Sligo were not fortunate to win that match. It was won solely on merit!! They were ruthless, hard, tough and uncompromising. They went at Galway hell for leather and Jesus they tore them a new a**ehole.
They have several forwards who can score off both feet. Plus these guys can win their own ball. And they have a playmaker who can deliver long and short passes to keep the play moving.
The most defining aspect of the team though (in my opinion) was their ability to retain possession under pressure. Galway couldn’t lay a finger on them and Sligo walked it round them and through them time and again with slick running off the ball and a variation between long and short passing.
The score that Costello got in the second half when he kicked the ball cross field first to Marren and then went on to receive it back on the other side of the field once more was tremendous. The patience Sligo showed along with the composure not to panic when the initial opening was not there was quite remarkable. It bears the hallmarks of a very good team who have serious determination in their veins.
Mayo must be very wary of them!!
Zero analysis of from the sunday game, very frustrating. Although, Brolly would have just annoyed me anyway.
On the game itself, nothing really learned. I thought our corner forwards could have been brought into the game alot more and this was the opportunity to do so. I would love to see Freeman & Doherty point a few, which would help build their confidence.
Most of the scores came through the middle, because leitrim were hopeless here.
Kerry etc would have varied their play and kept the opposition for the next game guessing. Sligo will have more upfront, so our wing backs will be busier and they will try and stop the low ball to A Moran. Donie is a cracking player, but struggled against mulligan, which kept a poor leitrim team in the game. We need to look at this as we could be exposed in the later stages. (Remember the easy scores C Cooper got last year).
To sum it up, we are one step closer, we have a tough but very winnable game against sligo (i expect a 3-5 point victory), our corner forwards need to drop back and get on the ball more often and lee keegan is more suited to man marking than Donie.
The elephant in the background was discovered grazing at the back of Nephin. He was taken out of the Mayo county board offices after they won the 1951 All Ireland and left to graze on the broad slopes of Nephin as a gesture of thanks.
He is now grazing behind McHale Park to remind us that the old venerable ground carries a burden befitting of a tribe of elephants arses.Colmcille Prophecies predicted this ” a great mammoth with tusks will inhabit the plains of the Yew Tree, for sixty years he will graze on yon Nephins slopes and thence return to the field of modern battle where he will remain until the Yew Men finally take home a big drinking silver cup”.
So it must be true if Colmcille said it…or is it now Londonderry Colmcille? I am confused!! Seriously, I think the old Elvery logo contained an elephant. Now that was prophetic seeing as it has arrived in Mayo at this time.
when the yew man take home the big drinking silver cup we will all be fairly elephants ourselves
Hi Willie Joe
Wondering If i can suggest something – re violations on the blog – nobody likes to be reprimanded in a public space so can I make a suggestion: if someone is deemed to have over stepped the line that you contact them directly via email to discuss the matter – you can still hold their post or edit it as you see fit while you await their response but just so that it doesn’t become a tit for tat taking away from the main points of discussion – what do you think WJ? and putting this out to the floor also – elephant included!!
In an ideal world that’s what I’d like to be able to do, Nally Stand, but would it surprise you to learn that those who tend to transgress in this area are also those who supply non-functioning email addresses? Eventually, I’m going to have to move things to a situation where email addresses have to be verified and everyone is logged in if they want to comment but I know a sudden move in that direction would in all likelihood simply kill the debate, hence the way things are run now. Most people are sensible enough to know themselves what’s acceptable and what isn’t but a small minority need closer attention in this respect. Holding those who transgress up by the ear in front of the class isn’t ideal but it does, it must be admitted, have its uses too.
This Elephant would suggest that those who see fit to trumpet their opinion of players in an way contrary to rules of engagement laid down by WJ (Hannibal) are asking for a spell in the stock Tomatoes eggs and all.
Re the performance of DV ,why after on dodgy start on Mulligan is he coming in for such criticism ?
Teak tough fast uncompromising is how I see this guy I find it hard to fathom how he is among other things being held responsible for Gooch getting a few soft scores last Aug.
John I should have guessed from your poetic writing style that you had some Quay heritage , more Rathmeel than Rathlee in my opinion. Many’s a poetic insult is still to be heard in Keane’s Pub down by the docks to this day! My own linage is a mixture of pure Ballina town (Bohernasup) and Corrimbla ,Bonniconlon , my formative years being spent in Behy Mor. So as you can see it’s only a matter of time before I’m run out of the Quay!!!!!! I hope there is some room out in Erris.