The key talking points so far in Mayo's club championship series
By Martin Carney, Mayo's foremost GAA columnist
PHASE one of the championship is now complete.
Some say that the absence of knockout games during this stage robs the competition of real championship flavour.
Yet anyone who saw Castlebar Mitchels B display the guts and character evident in beating Crossmolina or Charlestown pick-pocket a win over neighbours Ballaghdereen will attest to the competitiveness of these group games.
Okay, it was winner-take-all in both cases but in each, the games were replete with real championship flavour.
If success were measured by counting backwards, then two in Mayo above all others stand out – Castlebar Mitchels and Ballina Stephenites.
With a combined total of 67 senior titles – more than the sum of all the other competing teams – none of the attendant psychological pressures or mysteries relating to winning should bother them.
Still, I see both ensnared to a degree by these very same past histories and current expectations.
Without a county title since 2007, this glaring hiatus represents the second longest fallow period in the Stephenites' history. Incidentally, the longest gap without a senior title for the club stretched from 1966 to 1985.
For Mitchels, the gap since their last win, in 2017, is less pronounced but nonetheless, the desire for success here is no less intense.
There was little surprise, then, that both progressed to the quarterfinals on Saturday after wins over Ballyhaunis and Balla.
Yet the circumstances for each couldn’t have been more different.
In truth, the Stephenites cruised to their expected win on the back of a nine-point winning margin.
To date they haven’t had their credentials as prospective champions tested and really earned a handy win.
Perhaps the concession of two goals will require a bit of self-analysis; as against this, when one's attack manages 25 scores, there is much to feel good about.
Their defeated opponents on the day, Balla, have the difficult task of playing a relegation semi-final fixture.
Win and their senior credentials are secure; lose and the result of their final fixture will determine whether or not they play intermediate football next year.
The Mitchels, in contrast to the Stephenites, reach the last eight without rediscovering the form that deservedly saw them crowned league champions a few months back.
At half-time in their game with Ballyhaunis, leading by six points to one, I thought it was going to be a matter of not if but by how much they would win the tie.
To their credit, the east Mayo men found a new gear in the second half and pushed the Mitchels all the way to the close of play, by which time the Red and Yellows were glad to hear the final whistle.
The repeated observation that Castlebar find it hard to play against a team with a tightly packed defence may carry some truth but I still believe there is a big display dormant right now and one that we will see when then play Ballintubber in the quarterfinal.
Ballintubber reach this stage by virtue of their two-point win over Garrymore in a low scoring contest.
For both of the aristocrats of the game in the county, then, a big examination looms in two weeks’ time.
Ballina’s north Mayo derby with Belmullet and the afore-mentioned Castlebar Mitchels v Ballintubber tie carry interesting back stories and something that will get closer examination soon.
I took in the Breaffy v Mayo Gaels game and while I came away satisfied that Breaffy deserved their win, I couldn’t help thinking that were it not for Aidan O’Shea this result wouldn’t have happened.
Quite simply he was the difference.
His first-minute goal had the effect of settling his team when they faced the wind, while his clincher in the final moments put paid to any lingering winning ambitions Mayo Gaels may have harboured.
Breaffy’s defensive alignment, where wing-forwards Tommy Reilly and Rory Martin acted as very effective sweepers, managed to do enough to thwart the threats of Ethan Henry and John Gallagher.
The latter’s early scores off either foot from distance gave everyone a reminder of his gifts.
Unfortunately, from the Gaels' point of view, the supply to these inside players was infrequent and erratic.
Breaffy’s seven points win was merited but what might be of concern was the possibility that Mattie Ruane looked to have picked up an injury late in the game.
Without him, Conor O’Shea and big brother Aidan operating at full throttle, it is hard to see Breaffy progressing, in particular now that their quarterfinal opponents are Westport.
Last year's county champions have taken each hurdle to date with the swagger that one associates with champions.
Claremorris may have offered honesty and spirit while on the receiving end of an eight-point defeat to Westport on Saturday, and it’s hard to see Breaffy offering anything different than this the next day.
Hockeyed by Westport in their opening tie, earning a lifeline in their win over Claremorris in round two, I still held out little hope for Charlestown when they faced Ballaghdereen in round three.
To their eternal credit, they found that bit extra before doing enough to advance at the expense of their neighbours.
This is the story of the championship so far in my book; how a team beaten by 23 points in their first game were somehow able to follow this up with successive wins and reach the last eight.
Whether or not they are capable of finding that additional improvement again when they meet Knockmore in the next game remains to be seen, but there is little doubt that the spirit and courage evident to date should provide encouragement.
I cannot let the opportunity pass without congratulating the Castlebar Mitchels B team on the wonderful display that earned them a deserved result over Crossmolina in their intermediate winner-takes-all game.
Not unlike Charlestown, a bad beating at the hands of Moy Davitts was their lot after the opening game.
However, boasting a fine mix of youth and experienced, the team found the necessary improvement and showed the required levels of self-belief in advancing to the last eight.
That the Mitchels have teams in the quarterfinals of senior and intermediate is a tribute to the work being done at all grades.
It’s a shame, though, that a club with its resources and playing numbers hasn’t a coherent policy that would guarantee its competitiveness in both grades on an annual basis.
This latest achievement shouldn’t be a rarity; it ought to be the norm.
PHOTO: Ballina Stephenites’ Conor McStay has his effort blocked by Balla’s Gary McHale during their senior championship encounter in Foxford last Saturday. The Stephenites have a quarterfinal against Belmullet to look forward to. PHOTO: DAVID FARRELL