99 thoughts on “Team named to play Kerry + Minor and LGFA team news”

1. Do the people who go around carrying mad rumours in the week before matches ever think they mightn’t do it the next time, when they see the team named??…. I see one fella that was out for the rest of the year with a torn hamstring and another fella that was clocked by a teammate both in the team for Sunday!!….

2. Good team. Now the question arises? Who is on the bench?

3. @hop it ref. Couldn’t agree more. Every single build up to a game its….if what I heard is true, and it probably is because it came from a good source. Then we’re goosed on Sunday. It’s beyond boring at this stage. Best of luck to the team that’s playing. Theyl do us proud.

4. How he’s gone with Coen and Loftus again I give up, they must be class in A v B games.it will be a miracle if we win on Sunday.only 2 natural scorers from play out of the 6 forwards starting.Feel sorry for Fergal Boland,Swanny and Darren McHale for missing out.

5. @Hopitref,
   I ask myself the same question over and over again,how many times does that eejit on Twitter have to be wrong and shown to have an ulterior motive before people to stop parroting his tripe?

   That’s a very good team and it hints that Horan might be thinking a bit tactical,will Aido play as a third midfielder (defensive) or a sweeper or maybe in at FF.I think it’s a good move to start him maybe around the D or in front of the fb line to snuff out early highball which is a trait of Jack o Connor V Mayo.

6. Much stronger team that lined out in the league final. Knock out championship football is where Mayo come alive. One thing is for sure that group of Mayo players will give their last ounce of energy.

7. Centre halfback is a massive weak link, keep making the same mistakes expecting a different result. Hope I’m wrong and he has the game of his life Sunday

8. Bench will be crucial, hopefully ROD is fit enough to play some part.

9. Hopefully that means Mullin is sound?. So frustrating to see our two best, and fastest forwards out injured, Conroy gone a long time obviously, but jesus christ if we win this game it will be a miracle.

10. I think it’s fair to say the rumours swirl as we don’t get information from Mayo GAA.

11. Best of luck to the lads on Sunday. As strong a team as could be expected named. Horan must see something
    in our number six for him to persist with him in there. Sunday is a day for Carney and Carr to come centre-stage and take on the mantle of some of the older warriors. Maigh Eo Abu!

12. Some rightly predicted we’d start all three of Jordan, Mattie, Aido. Obviously there might be a change if Ryan’s fit. If he isn’t Aidan will probably start. None of the other forwards (ie ones not named above) have been shooting the lights out, so James may well start with this team and put his faith in muscle. Risky, i.e. will we have the legs around the middle… let’s see what happens. His choices, to be fair, are limited. Swannie may yet start.

13. Best of luck to all teams tomorrow and Sunday. No real surprises with the senior men’s team – Jordan Flynn coming back in was always a certainty if fit. Couldn’t care less about the rumours leading up to the game. Concerned that he’s started AOS again. He’s long passed his best and is now really only good for 20 mins at best. Once he went off the last day against Kildare we actually improved -and what does Darren McHale have to do to get a start? Was his match winning cameo in the last quarter against Kildare not enough? Would have also liked to have seen Swanny start – hes better than Coen at the moment. Disappointed that ROD is not back to start but hopefully he’ll make the subs. We’ll know Sunday if they are the correct calls. Either way I hope the lads who play do us proud.

14. I hope JH was reading the blog Willie Joe. I tipped Aido and Jack Carney both to play on the small square near the Kerry goal, have Cillian and Boland / Carr buzzing around them. Would create mayhem with the high ball in the Kerry back line. Diarmuid could play as a sweeper, he has the engine for it and is a good passer of the ball. Delighted Flynn is in Midfield. Mayo need to mix it up. Bomb it in on top of the Kerry backs create goal chances and keep White and Morley engaged at the back. Goals will this game and Mayo need to score goals. Between Aido and Jack Carney 3/4 Kerry backs could be made redundant.
    A Mayo win by 2 points.
    Mhuigheo Abu.

15. What does Boland have to do to start.Well worth his place in my opinion.a few starting that have shown very little.
    Really really hoping for the learning promised…not waiting to make changes,afraid to make changes and so on.
    Cant see a win tbh…will travel with hope but not optimism.
    Those who disagree…I have never missed a match with Mayo in it in Croke Park in 50 years.

16. I’m more interested in seeing the 26 than the 15 named today. It would be massive to have Ryan doing what Ryan does either starting or coming on with 20 to go. Would be surprised if there wasn’t one or two changes to the staring line. Form and logic says Kerry all day long but when have these warriors ever taken notice of these things.

17. If Ryan is declared fit to be part of the match day 26 – could be a great option to spring him when Carr starts to fade. Carr has shown a pattern of being at his best in the first 25mins of a game. If the ball bounces the right way for him he could be lethal. Fingers crossed he’s in there. Left half forward selection raises eyebrows.

18. One Cusack Stand ticket,section 308 to spare .Face value.

19. There were strong rumours about Mullin and we won’t really know until Sunday to be sure.

    I believe he’ll makes 1 or 2 changes to the team before throw- in.

    Boland and McHale are more suited to come off the bench- that’s why there subs.

    The question marks are over Coen, Loftus, Carr and the 2 O’Connors. Cillian is not sharp from open play and Diarmuid has been inconsistent.

    Don’t agree re AOS – were too eager to dismiss him. He played well against both Galway and Monaghan.

    I genuinely believe that not enough credence was given to the fact that we played Monaghan the week before the Kildare game. I think it impacted on our energy.

    We have a better chance than we realise on Sunday – they are not as good as people make out.

20. Can only pick players that are fit. Can’t blame Horan for that. Probably positional changes. Lay off Horan or put your self forward even to manage a junior B team.

21. We’re all rightly concerned about our captain’s form but I always remember Andy’s words about Stephen a couple of year’s ago, that the likes of Mattie, Loftus, Diarmuid (the U21 group) “trust him”. That really resonated with me. It’s a powerful thing to say, and conveys a lot about the true character of the Hollymount man. Moreover, it’s crucial in sport (trust).

    Obviously that won’t be good enough on its own on Sunday. We need a massive performance from him. McStay said he’d start. He probably will and here’s hoping he has a stormer.

22. Anyone know is their a special train from Ballina/Westport to the match Sunday?

23. Were we meant to beat Cork in 2011, Dublin 2012, Tyrone 2016, Kerry in 2017?

24. I don’t believe Mullin is fit. Too many credible rumours flying around about that.

    Probably the best team we could field in the circumstances. But O’Shea is gonna get run ragged. He’s not a Croke Park player at this stage and that will be obvious again on Sunday.

25. Stephen Coen gets too much stick. He played well against Monaghan and did nothing wrong vs Kildare. Kept Ben McCormack quieter than any other game this year. The problem was we were 5 down midway through the 2nd half so Keegan had to be pushed forward to chase the game. That’s why Coen got subbed and O’Hora came on.

    We were missing our 3 fastest backs in the league final so I don’t see Stephen getting caught in a mismatch like that on Sunday.

26. Kerry will ask a lot of questions of us on Sunday.
    I dont think the fire power is there in half forward line. We will be relying as usual for half backs or full backs to come forward and take scores. Despite weaknesses being shown up in recent matches, were not making changes. We could be in for a tough afternoon

27. Kerry team named.

    David Clifford and David Moran start.

    No Jack Barry or Adrian Spillane in the 26 so must be injured.

28. We probably should start Aidan O’Shea now since Moran is playing for them.

29. What Mullin rumors? I live 5 miles from Kilmaine and I have not heard a single rumor. Also I am not on twitter…..

30. Love it, km79!! : )

    I do think this team has the character of stars and galaxies (was feeling poetic there, but you know what I mean). They’re tough, tough cookies.

    I do think there are ways.

    (I’m intrigued by the suggestions of long fast ball into the forwards and/or fast diagonal ball into one or two big target men.
    I’m wondering how will O’Connor and Tally’s blanket defence affect this ruse?
    I love the idea. Can it work?
    Maybe if we do it just a few times early and it works that’s all we need to get them well rattled early.
    Would we need to time these long fast or diagonal balls so the defence isn’t set?)

31. It’s a decent looking team but can’t see too many scoring opportunities been created . I think it’s got to be defensive defensive for the first 25-30 minutes to see where it takes them. Stay in the match for the second half Bring on Ryan if fit McHale and boland and possibly Dorthery for the last half an hour it could work.

32. Best of luck to the team and hopefully all those rumours and the guys who peddle them are untrue and nonsense. Time to stop whining about Coen starting (give me the alternative) and Boland starting ( he does much better when he comes in as sub) Those nearest the team surely know best. Having said all that it’s so difficult to see us win this one. Hopefully Ryan is on the bench because to be honest it’s hard to see where enough scores will come from. However I expect we will give it a right lash despite being without a number of our better players. Maigh Eo abu

33. Looking forward to this one. If Mullin was injured in A vs B game last weekend then he would not be named. Teams are sent to Croke park I believe on Thursday/Friday so I am sure management would not deliberately use up one of 26 places for the sake of a team announcement. If the team was not meant to like out as named, the David Moran addition could well change things. Best of luck to all. Up Mayo.

34. For some strange reason I am upbeat about this game, not the usual doubt as the game is drawing nearer.
    I would love to see a few curve balls being thrown by Horan, this could open the door for a certain few tactics and guys to exploit.

35. JamesM83,

    Why would David Moran change things ?

36. There’s potential for curve balls… Carney and Carr around the square – two proven ball winners, and two confident looking FF players, but they need support if high ball goes in…. it’s a viable option, but it’s more likely to be Horanball…..

37. @JamesM83, I know what that means, ” David Moran could change things “.

38. There will be changes to both teams before the kick off just to disrupt plans and tactics. Looking forward to see the rest of our squad but dont expect to see that until much nearer kick off. Fingers crossed that ROD will be available even as a sub. Difficult for the lad to be up to full tilt after his enforced abscence.
    Wish those rumour and fake news merchants would now become real genuine Mayo supporters and get behind our warriors this Sunday and desist from undermining our teams preparations.
    We need a full 75+ minutes of controlled and energetic engagement. The game v Kidare came a week after Monaghen and then travelling up on the day made some of the players look leggy.
    No passengers allowed on Sunday and must must be addressed early regardless of reputations.
    Good luck to JH and the lads, also to Sean and our minors and our ladies team. All heroes giving us mighty entertainment this summer
    Kerry will encounter the white heat of championship football for the fist time this year. Mayo by 2 points.

39. Don’t think this is the final team. Surely Boland will start. Also think Swanee should have a place in the forwards. Has vision and pace. Aidan is still too slow. Ruane and Flynn centre field. I really hope Horan makes the changes. We need our best players to start.

40. I still think Jason Doherty will have a say in this match….

41. Lads,I’ve two season tickets near halfway line,lower cusack Row H.
    Face value to whoever replies if @WJ doesn’t mind putting us in contact

42. Section 306 I should have said

43. Jr. I’ve been involved in coaching and managing for over 10 years. But my opinion carries no more weight than any person on here who never donned a bib on the sideline. Luckily we live in a free country and and luckily we have this forum to express our views. The management and the team are fair game for backed up criticism just as they are entitled to the praise they get after a good performance. That’s sport and supporters whether you like it or not.

44. Sorry tix gone.

45. Jordan and Aido holding the middle. Mattie bursting forward. Diarmuid at his best position at 11. Bring it on!

46. James Horan should stand in the dressing room and point at the 26 jerseys and say. This is it. The 26 men to represent Mayo today. Over 130k people plus 000s more all over the world. I’ve picked ye and trust ye to do the job. Nobody else can do it. Forget about injured players for now, they can’t help us . A MK 2 cortina is better than a broken down Ferrari in a getaway. Now go out there and do it.

47. But Ahnow, if us plebs that ” that never donned a sideline bib”, can read the game in realtime, then we expect that the experienced management know even much more.

    I have looked back at the Kerry championship games this week, and have spotted a few things, surely the management know this.

    Mayo need to stop respecting Kerry, and test their mantle.

    I have a funny feeling about the 4 games this weekend. If their will be surprise results in tomorrows matches, then it’s all set for our final match v Kerry.

48. Was expecting Horan to make a few subs a day tweaks to keep the Kerry end guessing but no. Disappointing to see the same team more or less there, expected at least two more changes in the half backand half forward line but alas no luck. I think it’s time for Horan to go and give someone else a chance. Kerry will be out the gate before Mayo get going on Sunday and it will be time to head for home for the rest of us. Sad for the supporters but can we do about it, nothing. Of course, we will all fall back in line and blame all our injuries.

49. I disagree, Everhopeful. JH is a man of habit. It was always going to be a similar team. He will have studied Kerry. Fall back on you chosen name and hang in there. I don’t think you’ll be baling out as early as you seem to think

50. My God @Everhopeful, you have no hope for us at all v Kerry.

51. Ah Everhopeful,
    The 15 named were always going to be in the 26 , if fit. That’s all we know for sure. I’m just glad that they are all there. Afaik he can make 11 changes to the starting team. Very unlikely, but we don’t know and neither does Jack. If I’m wrong, I’m sure I will be told.

52. Yes Louis, Mattie as an auxiliary HF. I like that. He needs a new lease of life and it’s his natural instinct to attack.

53. Mayo 88, you may well have spotted a few things, I don’t doubt it. And maybe our management spotted something’s too, but we’ll probably just go out as usual and play our own game regardless. Did the Tyrone v Kerry game not clearly show how not to play against Tyrone. Your correct, they should know more but do they?

54. Christ, get a grip It’s Mayo v Kerry. Not Longford v Kerry. We lost a league final many of us didn’t want to be in because we knew we were at our weakest in years with 8/9 first choice players not available. I’m no expert unlike most of ye here but I felt we would get a hiding that day or more injury. My biggest fear was a hiding plus another injury.

    We didn’t play well in our last few matches but we still won. We ground the result out. And not for one minute did I ever feel like we would lose the Monaghan game. I didn’t feel it in Kildare one either. Often I feel more comfortable 6 down than 6 up. We lost to Galway by a point with many first choice players still out and if we got another few mins we could have won. Momentum was with us. We lost to Kerry a few months ago by a point with more likeness to the current team named. Take the league final out of it because it doesn’t matter. Even if we won it the same supermanning the opposition would go on now. When did these Kerry lads become supermen. They have proved nothing yet. I hope we keep them unproven and tinted yellow. Sick listening to how effin amazing they are. If they beat us on Sunday in a proper knock out battle then maybe this Kerry crop have finally changed and earned a right to be seen as all Ireland ‘hopefuls’. FFS what have they done of note to even earn favourites tag?! NOTHING yet. A league final win against a half strength Mayo. Whoopee! Great men. 6 years of nothing and being overhyped. I hope we get into their heads. Sick of the fear here. Our lads are up for this. Don’t think they aren’t. I just hope they have a hotel this time. Even half way up. And I hope Armagh stay and shout for us.

55. The Heather is Rising talked about a diamond around the FF line.
    I notice there’s a midfield ‘diamond’ – Stephen Coen, Aidan O’Shea, Mattie Ruane, Jordan Flynn.
    Maybe with the exception of Mattie, those are tall strong men there.
    If we go a line further back, talking physical strength, we have Lee.

56. @Sinead37.
    Good stuff. You would swear we lost this game weeks ago with the chat, and I wonder at some of our own fans and them hero worshipping Kerry players.

    They should be worshipping.their own players who have done it repeatedly for the past decade.

    I cannot wait for the throw in.

    Hon Mayo.

57. Well said, Sinead37!!
    Also, LOL to your first sentence : )
    Hon Mayo!!!

58. Good girl Sinead. Don’t show the white feather.

59. Everhopeful Change your name please. Calling for Horan to go 48 hours before the match is dire. Sure we may lose to a strong Kerry team on Sunday and if so life goes on but your post resembles the lad on twitter who seems to spend his life attacking JH. For the record I expext a Kery win on Sunday but that does not make me forget 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014, 2019, 2020, 2021. What happened in those years. As Mayo manager JH stered us to AI Semi finals. A bit of credit and respect where it’s deserved.

60. Hope kerry start David Moran . Played a big part in drawn match in 2014 against Mayo , but that was eight years . Made a big impact when he came on against Cork . Maybe Kerry midfield is not as strong as we think .

61. High balls in to FF line for the first 10-15 minutes of the game. Two big target men with two men waiting for the breaking ball. The rest of the platoon covering our own half of the field. May not be pretty nor tactically radical but who cares. Worth a go – get right into their heads. May work and may not – but it could – goals are the aim.

62. Well said ,Sinead 37. Good post.

63. @liberal role – I think Jason Doc is no longer pacy or explosive enough to make an impact at this level. I thought he was badly exposed in his last two games in Croker, against Kildare last time out and against Kerry in the league final.
    I hate to say it, but I think he’s now only effective as a winter footballer. When the pitches are heavy and wet and there’s no lads tearing around using their pace to break games open. It’s no coincidence that he played well in the early rounds of the league against Donegal etc back in Feb.
    summer football in Croke park is a completely different sport to slugging away in the muck in Ballybofey or Tuam in the last weekend in January.

    Luckily we have plenty of other lads perfect for croker in June.

64. @Grain of Rice..I think Jason Doc could have a role, coming on as a Sub.. but you are correct that pace is King in Croke Park or indeed McHale Park in any championship match on a Summer Day.

65. I fully expect a Mayo win on Sunday and can’t wait for throw in. What we need is the kind of intensity that only Mayo can bring but we have to ha enough it for the 70+ mins. The battle of the middle eights will be crucial and if we can get a stranglehold there the game can be won. Too much nonsense talked about a lack of scoring forwards but it’s more a question of lack of forwards in form up to now because they are all well able to score if they regain top form. I think they may leave a few pundits and indeed a few Mayo fans with egg on their faces. Hit hard, hit early and keep hitting till the final whistle.

66. I agree with alot of what you say Sinead.I dont think we are as far away as people seem to think and the Tralee game is a closer benchmark.
    Kerry are favourites though and rightly soThey won the leahue geatibg teams with a big score.Still though there will be a bounce in our guys.Question for me though is will Horan do something different does he have that in his locker.There is no evieence that he will.
    Twin towers approach with AOS and JC is certainly an option mixed with his normal running game.To be fair he has gone for AOS at FF on many occasions but not doubling with JC….he just never managed to get guys to kick it in

67. Reading the Kerry forum , the same way I’d read the Kildare forum or Dublin forum when playing against them . What do all these forums have in common when discussing mayo , they don’t rate Aido but they all never stop yapping about him , the last ten posts in Kerry forum , several of them talk about aido and how ineffective he is . Let’s take this season so far , players who are in poor form and been less effective than Aido , imo Stephen Coen , Conor loftus and Mattie ruane but hardly a word about them boys . Ummm I dunno , I’d like to hear a completely neutral opinion on why Gaelic football supporters put so much energy into thinking about Aidan o Shea .

    My prediction, Aido will be motm tomorrow .

68. Great tribute to Keegan in the Indo today.

69. Just catching up on messages. This is directed to MichaelK. Is that Cusack ticket still available. Thanks

70. Sinead 37. If the Mayo team come out on to Croke Park as Fired up as you, Mayo will win. As a Kerryman I must say, I have never seen the Sam Maguire won in April. There is a big performance in Mayo & this is it for both sides. Winner takes all & no excuses. I’m not too happy to see Young David Moran in the starting 15. Kerry’s defence is not as good as people think. The tactical battles will determine the outcome. Jack has failed on big occasions in the past. 2005, 2010, 2011,. The ones you win are not as important as the ones you loose in Kerry. If Horan gets his match ups correct, the bookies could be in trouble. This will be a far different game to the League Final. I think there will be 3 or 4 changes to the Mayo team before the throw in. Best of luck to all.

71. Sean – agree there. The obsession with O’Shea is unbelievable. You’d swear he had proclaimed himself the best player in Ireland such is the investment people have in tearing him down.

    For what it’s worth, I do think Croke Park is a difficult place for him due to his lack of pace, but I don’t think he has ever claimed to be anything he isn’t and I don’t think you could ever accuse him of not trying. Haven’t seen as much vitriol so needlessly directed at an individual and over such a long period of time in GAA in a long time. Plenty of people won’t be happy until he just leaves GAA all together. There are valid criticisms to be made of O’Shea and his limitations and how he has been utilised by managers over the years, but most of the criticism is truly rooted in petty nastiness, and sadly a lot of it stems from certain places within the county.

72. Really disappointed that ROD isn’t named. Was hoping he’d make it.

    While I like the look of the team overall, you’d have to question where the scores will come from. Already feels like we will probably need 3 goals.

    Questions do need to be asked about the way Mayo are training and approaching games though. We are consistently hindering ourselves with injuries. This has been going on since 2018 and it seems we haven’t had a big game since then with a full deck to choose from. It can’t be described as bad luck when it’s as consistent as it is. In the last few seasons, we have lost Parsons, Seamus O’Shea, Doherty (x2), Boyle, Harrison (x3), Conroy and Cillian to serious, season ending injures. There are probably more that I haven’t mentioned.

    We really need to sort this.

73. Totally agree Unstoppable. And that’s not counting the hamstrings, quads etc. that seem to be always cropping up.
    People will argue that every team deals with injury, but we’ve had a huge injury crisis this year and constant trouble with injuries over the last 4 years that I don’t know how/why people keep wanting to put it down to bad luck. At what point does bad luck just become questionable choices?

74. Sean Burke and Dreamy, I would love to see Aido shine this Sunday, in whatever way – big or small – that is. He’s a smart, brave, skilful footballer with a heart of a lion. Whether we see that on Sunday or not, we don’t need to see the whole thing, but we might see some glimpses. And that can have a sizeable impact.
    Eamon O Corcora, thanks for popping in.
    I also hope Robbie shines for all the right reasons this Sunday – really happy to have him in our corner.

75. Rewatched the game in Tralee last night.

    There’s a good blueprint there for management to use, and makes me confident that they will have one ready for Sunday.

    Moran starting addresses the fielding advantage Mayo have around the middle. I don’t think it covers it completely though, and it reduces Kerry’s pace around in that area, possibly tilting that side of it Mayo’s.

    This is going to be a humdinger of a game. Confident in a Mayo win. Kerry’s s&c hasn’t been tested yet, it will tomorrow

76. No Ryan

77. Bench named , disaster .

78. Willie Joe. I read your Irish Times interview-fair play. Just curious why you feel if the Kildare game was played in any other ground other than Croke Park Mayo would have lost? Just curious. Thanks

79. I also cant understand the obsession and abuse O’Shea gets- especially from Mayo supporters.
    If Aidan constantly performs below what people expect- then they need to lower their expectations and he is not as good as people think.
    He is not and never will be a Michael Murphy or Kieran Donaghy. The least you would expect is Mayo supporters to stand by him.

80. Here’s the subs list: Rory Byrne, Padraig O’Hora, Rory Brickenden, Donnacha McHugh, Conor O’Shea, Fergal Boland, Aiden Orme, Jason Doherty, Kevin McLoughlin, Mark Moran, Paul Towey.

    So no ROD and no Darren McHale either. The hits just keep coming.

81. Do some people still think our subs bench is stronger than Kerry’s subs bench

82. No Ryan, no Darren McHale. Very light on defensive and midfield cover. And a lot of unproven forwards. My optimism has taken a big hit

83. Stop the lights, our bench isn’t what it’s needs to be. For the first time in Horan’s era I fear for a trimming.

84. It’s just a feeling I have, Travelling Wilbury – I think that our Croke Park experience stood to us when we began the comeback from six down and I’m not sure we’d have summoned the same fight in a provincial ground. Just an opinion, though!

85. Sound Willie Joe, thanks. I was at Croker for the match and couldn’t believe what I was watching. I am less confident of a win tomorrow now based on the subs list released this morning. Wish the lads all the best and pray that Horan has some proper tactics in place tomorrow. Up Mayo!

86. Beware of Kerrymen hyping Mayo and having a sly cut at their successful manager. Here is a reminder of O’Connor’s amazing record
    He first got a taste for football management when he took Kerry County Vocational Schools teams to All-Ireland wins way back in 1992 and 93.

    2004-2006 Seasons (First Term)
    We all remember Jack O’Connor’s Kerry in 2004 and again in 2006 collecting two Senior All-Ireland titles.
    Kerry also won two National League and two Munster titles in those three years, before resigning for personal reasons.

    2009-12 Seasons (Second Term)
    In 2009, On his return to managing Kerry, they beat Derry in the League Final and then went on to beat Cork in the All-Ireland Final.

    Minor Success Too
    In 2014 and 2015, he deliver two consecutive All-Ireland Minor titles (amazingly Kerry’s first in 20 years).

    2022- Seasons (Third coming)
    Already a National League and token Munster title in the bag and building with a winning formula.

    He is a serious operator with great record. Sure he had quiet spells but he won Sam with a team that were underdogs in 2009 and the most notable quiet patch coincided with rebuild needed after that.
    In 2022, they are on an upward trajectory so very dangerous under Jack.

    If O’Connor’s management skills are very good, less know outside of Kerry of the excellent tactical abilities on the side-line of his number two, Diarmuid Murphy. The four-time Munster and All-Ireland title winner, plus he has three National Leagues and three All-Star awards also on his cabinet. He sees the necessary switches before anyone and calls them.

    I agree with many posters who say this Kerry team is untested. However, they have some talented stars that need to be curtailed on the day, giving us a platform to poke holes at speed in their defence, which lines out in a good system. However, I’d safely say four of their starting backs wouldn’t make our starting 15.

    And, remember the staleness that Tyrone’s Covid delay antics imposed on teams they subsequently caught cold and beat. We have a big advantage with competitive recent games and if not cold, Kerry will be chilly with just A v B training games.

    Positive changes to the named starting line-up: O’Hora to 3, Mullin to 6, Flynn to 8, Carr to 10 ( but must track back when not attacking), and O’Donohue to 13, and go after them big time from the start. Hon Mayo!

87. Horan needs to try something different but I fear it won’t happen. If the teams line out as selected, we will 100% lose, if we’re to win this game it’ll be won tactically on the line

88. Feck it – massive set back for our aspirations for tomorrow afternoon. Completely devoid now of game changers on that subs bench.

89. Yep, we are screwed looking at that subs bench.
    I was actually growing very confident during the way, but that was dependent on a fit ROD, I thought he was almost ready at the monaghan game but clearly there has been another setback.

    Just dont see where the scores are going to come from. Will need leeroy to come up the pitch and score 1-07

    Need to turn it into a dog of a game now, clog up spaces, hang in, keep goals out and hope cillian nails all his frees

90. A lot of the earlier optimism on here is draining away . Even at full strength we would have to be at our best to compete with Kerry . Without Tommy , Ryan And now Darren McHale Where will our scores come from But it’s not just the forwards you’d be worried about. The defensive cover on the bench is very short as well. Really really difficult task for our lads tomorrow.

91. I find it funny that a lot of posters still refer to Horanball even though a former player in one of the podcasts spoke about the tactical changes he sees in the team.

    Jack the great manager didn’t do much with Kildare while he was there.

    I don’t buy into all the negativity either, Dublin last year for instance we were missing players and still managed to come through. The bookies have us at a very generous price.

    Our bench is a little weaker, why wouldn’t it be, there are obviously two starters in Rod and TC that must be replaced. McHale and Walsh another two started either the semi or final last year and suddenly it’s four you could say starters. You never hear any complaints about the injuries though from management or the team. What you do hear on here though is questions over Aido, questions over Horan, rumours of injuries and not so much about support and how we can win these matches.

    I’ll be roaring my head off like a lunatic. As Vaughan mentioned before, you hear about great defensive teams but if the defenders are so good why is there such a structure? Horan backs his players to beat their man. He backs the strength of our running game and thankfully he is there tomorrow backing the team he has named because from some comments in here we’d be as well not to turn up!

    I don’t remember Loftus getting derided when he stuck the ball on Andy’s chest against Kerry, or Carr after Galway, I could go on and on. Be great to get behind and support the team and leave the inquests until the season is actually over.

    Finally, remember Longford and where we were?

    Sorry WJ, I didn’t plan on it being so ranty!

92. No MayoMayo, this is what we need. If there is anything to salvage ahead of tomorrow, we need to find it, press on it, and support the team. We are down two important forwards but we have a potential other man – the Mayo supporters. I know I’m a bit as mad as a hatter saying it, but Mayo shouts can push the men on if momentum comes to them in the second half at a crucial time. I saw how Mayo shouts helped the players move forward in the recovery against Kildare. It’s a thing.
    Jordan Flynn is a plus in there behind the forwards. He can score. If Mattie clicks he can provide forward momentum and score.
    Darren McHale was in last week but remember we were down Kevin Mc. I hope he comes back firing.
    Eoghan Mc has been threatening in the last few games. Maybe he can hit the target this time.
    The climb got a bit tougher but we don’t want to fold.

93. Also, WJ I see another MayoMayo poster has popped up, I’ll switch to MayoMayo1 to avoid confusion.

94. Fair play to you MayoMayo a great post

95. Minors going well
    Commentators on tg4 are so one sided ?
    All Kerry

96. One down one to go

97. Keeper made a few great saves
    Galway for the third time!!

98. Well done the U17s. Made it a bit tougher than it probably should have been. Very slow to get into their stride and though they were the better team they were careless in front of the posts in the 2nd half and left a good few scores behind them. The thing with this group is they are full of character and fight. They never lie down. Congrats the Sean Deane and his team.

99. Well done to the minors, very efficient up front given that we probably lost most of the kickouts.

    Kerry seemed a bit physically bigger than our lads and unusually enough for them, seemed to be more focused on hammering into our fellas rather than playing football.

    Big performances from Silke, McMonagle, Duffy and Ronan Clarke.

    Now to take on the neighbours yet again, strange that they’re in the final, given that they’ve lost three games, but we just have to do it again.