Two talented teams can produce a senior final of real quality

John Melvin

Two staggering and indeed significant statistics jumped from the pages as I perused the scoring stats ahead of tomorrow's Connacht Gold Mayo SFC final at Hastings Insurance MacHale Park, Castlebar.

The first is the inordinate number of goals scored by Ballina – 14 from their five games.

The second, however, does put the first into perspective, as Westport have conceded just one goal from their five games, and that was from the penalty spot in injury time in their semi-final clash with Castlebar Mitchels.

Even without a degree in mathematics or logic, it would be reasonable to draw the conclusion that Westport will not be as accommodating as some of the opposition Ballina faced on route to Sunday’s final but, that said, they will still provide a formidable scoring threat, with midfielder Frank Irwin making it at number six in the scoring charts with a healthy contribution of 2-23.

But it would be misleading to suggest that Westport are a defensive team. Far from it. Pat Lambert has scored 0-19 of their championship tally, a healthy 6-71, which might see supporters be entertained with a more attacking game from both sides rather than the negative tactics which have left supporters bemoaning the fact that Gaelic football is becoming more and more unattractive at both club and county level due to the negative tactics from some teams.

Anyway, that’s a discussion for another day. The arrival of both Ballina and Westport in the final is purely on merit and throws up a novel pairing which hasn’t been seen these sides meet since 1929 (Ballina 1-2, Westport 0-1). They also met in 1927 (Ballina 3-2, Westport 0-1).

Those were the days when up to 18 players were playing on a team and everyone seemed to be chasing the ball.

In more recent times, Westport lost to Hollymount in the 1991 final and, further back, were defeated by Castlebar Mitchels in the 1942 final.

ALL-IRELAND WINNERS

Westport may not have won a senior county title but they have an All-Ireland intermediate title to their credit, beating Meath and Leinster champions St. Colmcille’s back in 2017, when Lee Keegan was celebrating his GAA Player of the Year award for his exploits with Mayo.

It is that team which has formed the bedrock for the quest for a Mayo senior title and after near misses in the last two years in particular, there is a strong feeling within the camp that this is the year they are about to deliver.

A look at the team which won that All-Ireland would suggest they have every reason to be optimistic. Goalkeeper Pat O’Malley, Niall McManamon, Brian McDermott, Brian O’Malley, goal-scoring semi-final hero Shane Scott, county players Fionn McDonagh, Oisin McLoughlin and Colm Moran bring huge experience to the team, and throw in the Lambert brothers, Paul and Pat, who are playing some of their best football for the club, and you have a formidable outfit.

They were shortlisted for the title even before they fired 3-23 past The Neale in their opening game and going on to win their group, which included victories over Ballintuber and Mayo Gaels. They followed that up by beating Garrymore in the quarterfinal and, of course, Castlebar Mitchels in the semi with that dramatic late goal from Shane Scott.

They have a leader operating the engine room in Lee Keegan, who played a key role in navigating them through those choppy waters against Castlebar and Garrymore.

In essence, they are a well coached, well organised and highly ambitious group of players.

But a similar argument can be put forward for Ballina Stephanites, who have been waiting 15 years for a county title – and that is a long time for a club that has won the most county senior titles, 36 in all.

Similar to Westport, they have come up short in the last few years in particular, but from once they took out the reigning champions Knockmore, shrewd punters were getting stuck into Ballina at odds of 6/1 – and they may be on to a winner.

But in any two-horse race, so much can happen on a given day, be it conditions, injuries, or the pressure of a final, which can also be a factor that can affect players and tactically there is pressure on both managers to get things right.

What can be said of Ballina is that they are a well balanced side, a team that works hard for each other, and there is no doubt that this is a talented bunch which has emerged over the years from the club's excellent underage structure.

The experienced David Clarke has no doubt provided a lot of inspiration for many of these lads who grew up admiring the Mayo goalkeeper, and he is still very much on top of his game.

Current county player Padraig O’Hora, who carries the famous name of the legendary 'Swanee' O’Hora, has been nothing short of inspiring, a player you’d like to have your back if someone tried to mug you in a dark alley in New York.

LEADER OF MEN

O'Hora is a leader of men, and his leadership was never needed more than in that semi-final against Ballintubber when, just for a brief period, Ballina began to wobble. He soon steadied the ship, literally grabbing the game by the throat and telling his team-mates they must not waver. And they didn’t.

Up front they have an ace in pack in the shape of the back-to-form Evan Regan, but the work of Conor McStay and Jack Irwin and the goals provided by Dylan Thornton have been crucial.

Sam Callinan and the superb Frank Irwin will face their biggest challenge trying to get a foothold against Westport at midfield, where Lee Keegan and Brian O’Malley will be hard to dominate – and this area could be the key to this final.

The Stephenites have built a strong defensive unit in front of Clarke, where Rory, Keith and David Tighe, James Doherty and, of course, the pillar, O’Hora, have stood tall.

Ballina, no more than Westport, have a strong bench, and that proved important against Ballintubber. I expect Mikey Murray and Luke Doherty will be appearing on the scene at some stage given the impression they made when introduced in the semi-final, Murray a remarkable player who has come back from two bad shoulder injuries.

So who will be bringing home the Moclair Cup? It would be easy to say whoever wants it the most but that won’t cut it this time as both these teams are hungry for a title. I do believe we have one of the best county final pairings given the talent that is in both these teams.

I expect it to be a close battle capable of going either way but if I had a free bet I would be backing Ballina.