Mayo get back on ladder of All-Ireland contenders
Galway minors pass Mayo exam at third attempt
ARMCHAIR VIEW
SPORT is simply great when it keeps on giving. The elixir of life at times for many of us. Winning must be a marvellous feeling for those who are so lucky to experience it but the flip side of the sporting coin is that somebody has to lose, and for two Mayo teams we had contrasting fortunes and emotions at the weekend.
The common thread which, in my view, links the defeat of the Mayo minor (Under 17) team in the All-Ireland final and the victory of the Mayo senior ladies in the All-Ireland quarterfinal was the heavy burden that comes with huge expectations. It can be a heavy weight to bear, and I do honestly think it contributed to the defeat of the Mayo minors (as did Galway’s performance, of course), while the freedom from that same pressure I felt unlocked the inhibitions of the Mayo senior ladies who defeated red-hot favourites Cork with an impressive brand of football.
It puts Michael Moyles’ side into an All-Ireland semi-final meeting with Kerry next Saturday and once again Mayo will be underdogs, but at a much shortened price I’d venture to suggest.
FRIDAY NIGHT FEVER
It was a case of Friday night fever in Dr. Hyde Park, Roscommon, where the meeting of two minor teams from the same province in an All-Ireland final was unique in its own right but for the same two teams to have met three times in the one competition is certainly one for the record books.
Given the atmosphere that was created by a crowd of over 12,000 at the Roscommon venue it was the correct decision not to bring the two neighbouring counties to Croke Park for the final.
Had the minor final been staged as the traditional curtain raiser to a championship game, it is unlikely that any great atmosphere would be created in a stadium which holds over 82,000. A crowd of even up to 20,000 would be lost in Croke Park.
Galway won fair and square. They had done their homework coming into a game where Mayo were raging hot favourites, and those of us who have been following Mayo football for the past 40 years know only too well that they tend to perform better as underdogs.
The big talking point ahead of this final was the fact that Galway had lost twice to Mayo in the championship, including an earlier round in the Connacht series and then in the provincial final itself. It should also be noted that despite losing three games (they were beaten by Leitrim), Galway still managed to reach the All-Ireland final. That’s one for checking in the archives.
But to my mind Mayo were always going to be under pressure on Friday night as the expectations from this fine Under 17 team were huge, and that weight of expectation was a burden they found too heavy to carry. It resulted in a lot of players failing to perform and leaving the outstanding form they had shown up to that final well behind them.
For me it was a case of watching TG4, who once again provide some excellent coverage of the game, while Midwest Radio, with Steven Grealis behind the wheel and Nigel Reape doing the navigating, brought us all the drama.
The former Knockmore player and manager gave us a great insight into the happenings on the pitch, the way both teams set themselves up and basically explained to listeners that Galway won this game because they had their homework done.
When you fail the exam twice there is always a good chance you will pass at the third attempt, and that is exactly how it panned out.
Alan Dillon, a man who had a great footballing brain while playing for Mayo, told us as bearla on TG4 that this was a well motivated and highly talented minor team with the skill set to go with it, and he was confident they would do themselves justice. Unfortunately that didn’t happen and the only thing worse than losing is not performing.
Galway man Frank Kearney, who is a regular contributor to Midwest Sport, reminded us – as if we needed reminding – that this was yet another All-Ireland final Mayo had failed to win. However, he felt it was a terrific boost for Connacht football that two teams from the province had reached the decider.
That was a point Nigel Reape picked up on, and he felt it didn’t matter if Mayo had won or lost in relation to developing players for the senior grade as Mayo have quality footballers in the minor grade.
Reape was more interested in the new Mayo senior management team developing more players between the ages of 17 and 20.
"It does not matter whether Mayo won or not in terms of making any difference to the quality of footballers Mayo have. If we get no senior footballer out of it, supporters may ask what good is it? I see these players being in a final as the catalyst for them to kick on. Mayo did not perform today and that was party due to Galway’s tactics and set-up," said the Knockmore man, who was certainly seeing the glass half-full rather than half-empty.
Applications are still open for that senior job, Nigel. Dempsey and Reape could make formidable partnership!
MESSI MOMENT
"Lionel Messi, eat your heart out." It will go down as one of the finer pearls of commentary from Midwest Radio’s colourful commentator, Michael D. McAndrew, who, with the excellent analysis of former All-Ireland winning Mayo captain Sinead Stagg, brought us the story of Mayo ladies' march to the All-Ireland semi-final from the oven that was Cusack Park in Ennis on Saturday afternoon.
Michael D.’s Messi moment came after Kilmovee’s finest (and I know from personal experience that some of the finest ladies in Mayo hail from Kilmovee), Lisa Cafferky, one of two sisters from Kilmovee on the Mayo team, finished to the net soccer style to score the goal which would ultimately get Mayo over the line against raging hot favourites Cork.
I don’t know if Sinead had a little punt on the Mayo ladies as she never doubted their ability to win this match and at 9/2 in a two-horse race it was certainly a great bet.
However, the drama didn’t end after the goal as Cork came back to within two points with the clock running down and Mayo can thank their goalkeeper Aisling Tarpey for keeping them in the championship, as well as a late insurance point from Knockmore’s finest, Sarah Mulvihill.
This win for Mayo is a huge step in their bid to get back up the ladder as one of contenders for the All-Ireland. It is going to be a hectic weekend ahead for the four teams left standing as Donegal play Meath and Kerry take on Mayo.
Stagg's knowledge of the Mayo team as a former player was very insightful and she pointed out that while the win was welcome, it was Mayo’s style of football which pleased her most.
"Mayo are now playing a different brand of football. It is open and fast and very positive. They are a phenomenal bunch of girls committed to Mayo and well done to them all."
Asked to name her player of the match, Sinead was clearly drawn to the performance of Sulli, AKA Kathryn Sullivan from Castlebar Mitchels, who is the team captain and whose leadership drove Mayo on in the first half in particular. "She is a brilliant captain with great leadership qualities," said Sinead.
She added: "Sulli stood out – her leadership throughout was so important and I think she is a brilliant captain, so we have a lot to build on considering where we were when Michael Moyles took over."
Mayo’s progress under Moyles has to be viewed against the backdrop of a number of Mayo’s top players heading to Australia, leaving the Crossmolina man with the task of building from the bottom, with a lot of young players mixed in with a few seasoned campaigners.
Moyles may not get the mix quite right this year but he is certainly putting a potent group together and beating a team like Cork can only add that vital ingredient called confidence, which Mayo are growing in. The quality of the performance and the self-belief that it will engender sets them up nicely for a crack at another big team from the south-west this Saturday back at Croker.
STEPPING IN
There was a twist of irony that Lee Keegan should find himself in the company of Pat Spillane doing the analysis of Saturday’s All-Ireland semi-final between Tyrone and Galway on the same weekend as the Kerry legend announced his retirement from the RTÉ panel.
The pity is that Spillane has been proven right – so far – about Mayo not winning an All-Ireland title, and as one of Mayo’s greatest critics there will be a lot of Mayo people delighted to see the back of him.
Pat was undoubtedly one of the greatest, if not the greatest, footballer of his era but in recent years he began to irritate a lot of people with his high dosage of statistics. It was hard for other contributors to get a word in when Pat took flight.
Anyway, Pat will be going at the end of the season and the good news for Mayo supporters is that Keegan is committed to Mayo for another year at least – and that will be welcome news for the new Mayo manager, whoever he (or she) may be.
I could see the Westport man finding a career in TV analysis following his contribution on Saturday as RTÉ seek to freshen things up. That would be a welcome move, as the programme badly needs a makeover.
I mean, who better to analyse a game than the lads that are playing it, or who have recently retired, rather than players who played back in the '70s and '80 and even the '90s, when it was a totally different game.