Mayo Football League fixes date for a return to action
The Mayo Football League is set to resume – or, perhaps more accurately, commence – on the weekend of July 18/19 and continue right up until November 30.
Action was supposed to get under way at the beginning of March but inclement weather meant the start date was put back by a few weeks. By the point it was set to commence around the middle of March, Covid-19 had struck and put an end to all sport for a period of time.
Now, with the country reopening following restrictions put in place to control the pandemic, a pathway for the resumption of action has been agreed by the Mayo Football League's management committee.
There will be a league programme in all four divisions (Super League, Premier League, League One and League Two), and the Calor Gas Super Cup and Calor Gas Premier Cup competitions will be run off as well.
However, the divisional cups (Westaro Cup, Tuohy Cup, Tonra Cup and McDonnell Cups) will not be held this year. A decision on the Under 21 league, a new competition due to be introduced this year, will be made at a later date.
Announcing their decision, the chairman of the Mayo Football League, Gerry Sweeney, commented: “I would like to thank all our clubs for their excellent cooperation in following all the protocols they have had to endure during the Covid-19 pandemic.
“The priority of our league is for the safety of all our stakeholders, i.e. management and players, administrators, spectators and match officials. Our sport has been in lockdown since March and now, hopefully, we can see some light at the end of the tunnel.”
There will be a reduction in affiliation fees, Mr. Sweeney said, while he added that there should be some protocols coming from the FAI in the coming days which will have to be adhered to in the interest of a safe return to playing.
Mr. Sweeney concluded: “I would like to pay tribute to all frontline workers who have made massive sacrifices to enable us to return to enjoying the game we all love and enjoy at this juncture.”
New format
There will be a new format for the Super League and Premier Leagues this year. Both are 10-team divisions and normally there are 18 rounds, with teams playing each other on a home and away basis.
This year, each team will play one round of matches and then, following those nine matches, the top five teams will play each other once for the title and the bottom five will do likewise to avoid the drop. This will involve all teams playing 13 matches (14 rounds). As it's a new format, there will be a revised draw.
Fixtures in League One and League Two, which are smaller divisions, will remain the same as notified in March.
Clubs are asked to note that full contact training and in-house friendly matches can take place from June 29, friendly matches can be arranged from July 11, and competitive action gets underway with round one of the Calor Gas Super Cup and Calor Gas Premier Cup on July 18/19.
All of these plans have been made on the assumption that all 33 teams are entering the league. “We are requesting all clubs to discuss their participation in the league over the next few days,” said Mayo Football League secretary John Durkan. “It is vitally important that they go through this process.”
Clubs that decide not to participate must let the Mayo Football League know by 6 p.m. on Tuesday, June 23. Failure by a club to inform the league of its intentions before that deadline will be taken as confirmation that the club's team/teams will be involved.
Meanwhile, the Connaught Cup and Connaught Shield competitions will resume on July 26, with a number of Mayo clubs still involved.
In the former, reigning Mayo Super League champions Castlebar Celtic are away to Athenry FC, Ballyglass host Ballinasloe Town, Conn Rangers go to Castlerea Celtic, Manulla travel to Carbury FC, and Westport United have home advantage against Tuam Celtic.
The fixtures for Mayo clubs in the Shield are: Manulla B v Glenhest Rovers, Colemanstown United v Kiltimagh Knock United B, Kiltimagh Knock United v Moyne Villa, and Claremorris B v Corofin United.