We’ve named our team to play Kerry tomorrow evening. Here it is:
Mayo (NFL Division One v Kerry, 18/2/2023): Colm Reape (Knockmore); David McBrien (Ballaghaderreen), Rory Brickenden (Westport), Enda Hession (Garrymore); Stephen Coen (Hollymount/Carramore, captain), Conor Loftus (Crossmolina Deel Rovers), Donnacha McHugh (Castlebar Mitchels); Matthew Ruane (Breaffy), Diarmuid O’Connor (Ballintubber); Fionn McDonagh (Westport), Bob Tuohy (Castlebar Mitchels), Jordan Flynn (Crossmolina Deel Rovers); Aidan O’Shea (Breaffy), James Carr (Ardagh), Ryan O’Donoghue (Belmullet).
So it’s two changes from the team that lined out against Armagh the weekend before last. Into the starting fifteen come Donnacha McHugh and fit-again Diarmuid O’Connor, replacing Jack Coyne (sensibly dropping out, in light of his rigorous Sigerson duties for UL the other night) and Jack Carney respectively.
In Jack’s absence, Enda Hession shifts back to the corner. A small reshuffle in attack, meanwhile, sees Aidan O’Shea switch to corner-forward, inching ever close to that no.14 jersey. Go on, Kevin, I know you want to do it!
The best of luck to the lads tomorrow evening.
The bench will be more interesting to see if any of the injured lads are back as options to come on or start on the night!
Can report that a mayo 15 played a 30 minute challenge game against the u20s in bekan on Tuesday night. Reffed by McStay, the seniors won well. Don’t know all 15 of the starting team, but it was something like this:
Rory Byrne
Plunkett o’hora ruairi keane
Callinan coen durcan
Ruane Carney
Orme mcstay Ethan gibbons
Paul towey cillian o Connor tommy Conroy
Believe it was just a training game for lads to get match fitness. Looks like O’Hora, Durcan, Tommy Conroy all available for selection tomorrow night. Let’s see what the bench looks like…..
That would be great . Looks like Robbie is a few games away so . Not ideal but on the other hand Reape is gaining much needed experience which is vital .
Yes, the bench will tell a lot. Interesting challenge team that Retrocut, if reliable news hounds confirm it.
Hope that half forward and full forward line starts
Lots of graft in that side but we’re still missing the scores to beat Kerry IMO, especially if they spring the Cliffords as expected. Would be surprised if they didn’t spring those plus SOS from the bench, with us doing the same with Cillian.
Perhaps not the worst thing to give a lot of the young guns a run out, keep the power dry for later in the season. Jacko seems to take the League seriously, but perhaps it wouldn’t be the best thing for us to make a league final so close to the Roscommon game, in light of what happened last year in similar circumstances.
Do enough to stay up, get a clear run at 9th April.
Interesting that McStay seems to be developing two sides in a way, a first team and a shadow side, week by week. Good way to keep those not in first XV battle hardened.
Would hope to see Conroy and the other recently injured players back before the end of the NFL campaign. We’ll give anyone a decent rattle with a full squad, a luxury we haven’t had much of in recent seasons. Just saw the Laochra Gael episode on Tom Parsons, some man to come back from adversity.
Good man, WJ! Nothing wrong, as you say, with Kevin nailing his colors to the mast on Aiden at 14. I’ve no doubt he’ll be a success in there once the management have a plan to get the ball to him early.
On that topic, great to see Touhy nail down that 11 jersey. 3 starts in a row and nearly played every minute of the first two games. He’s a lovely passer of the ball and could link up well with Aiden. Hope Donnacha starts, he’s a good man marker and we’re really short on the. Fionn had a lot of work to do to nail down a place, I’d have Oisin McLaughlin ahead of him but here’s hoping he has a big game tomorrow. Another opportunity for Reape to impress. He should take all frees from 40m out, like Hennelly does.
Ryan took and scored one from the 45 against Armagh. Cillian took the next one from a couple of meters further out and didn’t have the distance. Thought Ryan should have taken it.
I don’t understand the prioritizing the Roscommon game over a league final. Connacht is going to mean f all in the grand scheme of things this year, and I for one would take a league title over any day of the week.
I’m not saying go all guns blazing after the league, but I want to win the next three games because of who they’re against anyway. See were we are after those, and if there’s a chance of a league title I’d go for it. We’re averaging a league title once a decade since football “began” in 2001. That’s not good enough imo
Kerry just named there team both David clifford& seanie o shea on the bench.
Our te is strong will be really interesting to see the bench I am hoping for
Padraig o hora
Eoghan mcgh
Cillian o connor
Paul Towey
Tommy conroy ( hopefully! )
Good luck guys! Mayo by 2
*team
Actually eoghan mcgh should be given the night off since played mid week hopefully paddy durcan back on bench to!
@Frosthammer
The league final in 2019 was one of the great days following Mayo but the landscape has changed.
Playing the first championship game a week later means we don’t want to get to a league final just avoid relegation. I’m sure this will be adjusted in the next few years,it’s mad the way it is this year.
I wouldn’t want to be scraping around for points in our last games v Monaghan and Donegal as they’ll be in a dogfight to stay up aswell.Tomorrow is a very important game on many levels.
FrostTHammer, winning Connacht means you are seeded and that means a better opportunity of winning the group. If you don’t win the group its three games in three weeks (round 3 group game, play off round between 2nd and 3rd and AI QF v a rested group winner)
Back to topic it looks like McStay is looking to finish with his strongest side again and will be interesting to see if O’Hora, Durcan and Conroy feature.
Sean O’Shea and David Clifford named on the bench for Kerry and probably rusty. It’s a good time to play and opportunity to beat Kerry. Their named starting 15 has only 6 i believe that started the AI final.
As retrocut says the lads that did play v U20s will likely get game time tomorrow.
Kerry team named, details in a separate post. Seán O’Shea and David Clifford both named on the bench.
Lads in all seriousness it would want to be one hell of a group of death that we can’t finish in the top three of, and then we’d want to be really unlucky to draw a team we can’t beat in whatever they are calling the 2nd v 3rd round.
Post covid only four teams have beaten us.
It’s lots of games in a short time but we’re about to play 5 weekends in a row anyway, it’s not going to be something we haven’t experienced before.
Honestly it’s only the odd draw in Connacht that means we wouldn’t be using those games for experimentation as is.
As I said I think the next three games are huge and we can see where we are after those, but Jesus Christ lads we can’t be afraid of winning national titles
Actually I agree with you, Frost. Connacht doesn’t matter at all. You’d very unlucky to end up in a group with Kerry/Dublin, Galway and Armagh for example. Way more important to avoid relegation.
A physical enough looking team we have out.
I hope Aido heads straight in on top of Jason Foley from the kick off and stays there. Test them out early under the high ball and give Foley and Morley something to think about. As has been said many times if the ball in is right then it will be difficult for teams to deal with it.
I bet Jordan Flynn has an eye on Jack Barry tomorrow. Barry has left one on Flynn a couple of times in recent games and Jordan doesn’t strike me as the sort who would forget!
Nothing silly mind. Jordan is one of the first names on the teamsheet and there is plenty more to come from him yet.
I expect us to push up on the Kerry kick out and force them long which should give us some joy in midfield.
Feels like it could be a close game. Wouldn’t rule out another draw.
At this stage we expect some changes before throw in. I would like to see Hession and Mchugh switch places . I think Mchugh would be suited to full back lie and Hession would add some attacking flair to the half back line.
Would be amazed if AOS lines out at corner forward.Fair play to Kerry like Galway they name their full panel at the same time. Itshould be mandatory in my opinion.
Much as I’d like a league title the timing of it a week before we play Ros makes it a no go for me. If you get to the final and you’re looking at next week’s game and you’re playing a top team like Kerry who have a four week break coming up in a province they don’t need to peak for, it spells disaster. McStay and co didn’t orchestrate this farce, it was the GAA and let them sort it out. From the day we are safe (hopefully) McStay and his management will be focussing and rightly so on Roscommon.
Jason Doc is back in training. Will be very interesting to see how McStay utilises him and Kevin Mc this year. If either of them had been on the pitch against Armagh, at the finish, would we have let go a five point advantage?
Here’s a slightly tongue in cheek stat for those of you wanting us to make the League final this year and win it: on each of the three occasions we last did so (1970, 2001 and 2019) the Rossies beat us in Connacht …
Now you have it said William Joseph.
@Frost the hammer league titles hmm I would rather beat an form Rosdies team then win a league title. For some reason a lot of counties don’t want to be in league finals .
Just take the league final we were in against kerry we were just focused on the Galway game in championship after it didn’t want to be there at all!
Yes league is more important now as it links championship but I would still rather a good win over a good Rossies side then that just my opinion though!
@Clare … Agree with you . Stay up in Div 1 but the championship is where its at …
This league, whatever the results end up like will shape our championship squad … its will be very interesting especially if we can avoid serious injuries.
Looking forward to heading west tomorrow
Our sun bench could be very very strong
Sub !
Combine the starting 15 named with the team that played the U20s during week and that’s the guts of the championship squad.
You’d likely have Hennelly, Doherty, Walsh and McLoughlin to add, can’t think who else off top the head.
We’ll do well to stay up never mind league finals!!!! We have a horrendous home record against Kerry and Tyrone, our next two opponents. Theirs a very strong possibility we’ll be on 2 points after 4 games, which if happens, puts us into a relegation battle.
Best of luck to the.team. . Love to see Conroy on the bench. Leaving early from Tyrone. Hoping for a good night’s craic. It’s early days. This one should be a good gauge. Either way, hopefully we show well. Definitely hope they play both Clifford’s and bring on SOS. Mayo young blood needs a good test. COME on Msyo!!! It’s great be back. Lifts the spirits. Can’t wait to see them running out.
@Margie have to disagree with you there. We are still one 9f the top teams. Everyonevthought we would be wrotten off againste Galway etc.. hardly where you just never know with mayo.
I would be shocked if we got relegated and that is not a biased opinion . It’s early days and we are showing promising signs. You never know with mayo.
Teams I think will be in relgation battle are Monaghan&Donegal.
I am going to give our boys more credit then that young team with energy pace back and players like paddy durcan as captain & return of Tommy conroy and new manager bounce hardly in relgation battle!! But you are entiltled to your opinion!
Mayo by 2 or 3 tommorow I am still thinking kerry are undercooked and clifford& seanie o shea don’t have much game time. With hone crowd I am going with mayo ha!
Jarlath Burns is the new President-elect of the GAA. An exciting choice in so many ways. The best of luck to him.
@My Ball totally agree ! Championship is the big one.
I hope it’s a good game to and entertaining! Last two games v Galway&Armagh were bar our drop in the 5 point lead but we will have learnt from that!
Still think mayo are match fit ready and did a lot of pre season training & challenge matches which should stand with us.
Hopefully no injuries for either team & a good game safe travels!
This must be the tallest team we’ve ever togged. Only two of the outfield players are under six foot.
@Clare
3 league titles in 50 years. Wasn’t born for the first of those and barely remember the foot and mouth asterisked one.
I’m from the ballagh area, and love bursting a primrose and blue balloon as much as anyone, but am I going to remember it a year later? Probably not
Roscommon and local bragging rights is not the stick we should be measuring ourselves against anymore. We’ve moved on, been dining at top table for at least a decade now, about time we started carving the roast.
Roscommon is the first match in a Connacht campaign. Play Galway two weeks afterwards by winning. Have already pointed out why it’s important to win Connacht than to lose to the Rossies or Galway.
If the championship opener was on three or 4 weeks after the league final I’d say go all out to win the national title but once Mayo get 6 points on the table don’t expect any big push to reach the final this year given the schedule and required focus that will be needed for the championship by the end of March.
@Frost the hammer yes I get that. I wpuldnt want to beat the rossies as local bragging rights.
More so as it would be a great test for mayo to see where we are at.
Anyway best of luck mayo today!
Honestly don’t get some of the thinking , how is it even debatable about liking to beat Ros , every time , all the time and by as much as possible
@SeanBurke … Beat them twice weekly if possible!!
I wouldn’t be too worried (hopefully) on our recent home record against Kerry/Tyrone.
This seems like a new dawn, so let’s just start afresh.
Looks like being a strong westerly this evening.
Id like to see o hora matched with sean o shea. Provided o hora is on subs. Swanny would be ideal for him i think.
Great call Spectre, that’s a good match up.
@Clare, I fully agree we are a top team WHEN we have our best players available. The likes of Padraig, Paddy, Robbie, Tommy and Eoghan MacLaighlin (from the start) are almost dead certs to start in championship. Being without them in the league could take a toll. We were the second best team in the Country in Rochfords first term and were constantly scrapping for our D1 status on the last day. I see the same scenario this year….but Championship is different.
One change – Jack Carney for Bob Tuohy. Paddy’s been added to the bench, Eoghan McLaughlin dropping out.
Hurray for Willie Joe – keeping us informed!
Great to see Paddy on the bench.