Another cracking Mayo versus Dublin contest in prospect

SECOND OPINION: By Aiden Henry

GREEN and red supporters like nothing better than going to a Mayo versus Dublin clash. There is just something different that makes games between these two top sides extra special for the Mayo supporters. We can expect to see them travel in their thousands to the capital next Saturday for what should be another very interesting contest between these two box office teams.

Let there be no doubt about it, there will be plenty of sparks flying for this next episode of Mayo versus Dublin – and, of course, there is the added bonus to this game in that, for once, it is Dublin who badly need to get some league points and most of all want to get revenge for their All-Ireland semi-final defeat last year. Simply put, what it all adds up to is another cracking encounter between these two great rivals.

The massive plus for Mayo going into this third round National Football League fixture is that when you look at the points table, Horan’s charges are on three points after a draw and a win in their opening two games against Donegal and Monaghan. Before these two opening rounds took place, I think we would have been well pleased to have taken two points from them, so three points is a real bonus.

It leaves Mayo in a great position to at least keep their Division 1 status for next year. With such a strong competitive element to Division 1 this year (points are going to be hard come by for every team), one would have to think that if Mayo were to secure two more points in their five remaining games, it should be enough to keep them in the top flight for 2023.

DIFFICULT

When one considers that Dublin are without any points after the first two rounds, it goes to show how difficult it is going to stay in the division.

Indeed, such are the results in the league so far, the Dubs will need to get points on board soon, and that will certainly have them on red alert for the game against Mayo. They will not want to go into the final four rounds rooted to the bottom of the league table.

When one adds in the revenge mission Dublin will be on next Saturday night, it makes this next chapter in the saga intriguing, to say the least.

However, if we are honest, although the league table might suggest differently, Mayo have not entirely started their 2022 competitive season in flying form. Yes, it is brilliant to have three points from the two games so far, but Mayo’s performances have not matched the results. In fact, they got out of jail against Donegal and were again lucky to come away from Clones with the two points against Monaghan last time out. Indeed, it took two almighty second-half team displays to get both results.

While the Mayo supporters were delighted by the great resolve the team showed in both games, they were nevertheless well aware that the problems with performances that were there last year still exist and could come back again in 2022 to haunt them unless they can be ironed out.

The biggest problem – one that's recurring for the past year – is that they are only performing for one half of a game. Let’s take the game against Galway in the Connaught final in Croke Park last summer as an example. Mayo weren’t anywhere to be seen in the first half. The same happened against Dublin in the semi-final, while against Tyrone they didn’t really show up for either half.

If you look at the two recent league games against Donegal and Monaghan, the same problem continued. There was no first-half show from Mayo.

Playing a good second half is not always going to get Mayo a result when up against the big guns, especially when it comes to championship.

No doubt James Horan and his management team are well aware of this. It will be very interesting to see how Mayo settle into the game against Dublin next Saturday night and if there will be any improvement on their first-half performances so far.

Another problem for Mayo is trying to fill three very important positions on the team: full-back, centre-back and midfield. We can expect to see All-Star midfielder Matthew Ruane return for this clash, but he needs a good partner as well and there is no standout candidate at present. Maybe Horan and his selectors could do worse than pairing Oisin Mullin along with Ruane in this vital area of the field and see how it works out. I know that taking Mullin out of defence is like robbing Peter to pay Paul, but the county is not blessed with good midfielders at present, and this could turn out to be the solution. There would be no harm in trying out this pairing.

It is difficult to predict who will come out on top next Saturday night. Those who might think Dublin are on the slide should think again. They might be without any points in the league now, but I don’t expect that to remain the case for very long. They were not as bad against Kerry as the scoreline suggested, and I feel we will see a much better Dublin team in action next Saturday.

This will be a very good test for Mayo in that it will show where they are at in terms of beating the top guns. I would expect that if they only show up for one half on Saturday night, Dublin will not let them off the hook like they did in the All-Ireland semi-final. It promises to be an interesting game, to say the least.