One change for Mayo as Cavan come to town
Mayo senior football manager Kevin McStay and his selectors have named the team to face Cavan in round one of the All-Ireland Senior Football Championsihp series this weekend.
There is one change to the starting 15 that played Galway in the Connacht final as Sam Callinan replaces Diarmuid O'Connor.
Sunday's game in Hastings Insurance MacHale Park will be a significant one for Ryan O'Donoghue, with the Belmullet man set to make his 70th appearance for Mayo between league and championship.
O'Donoghue made his debut against Donegal in the Allianz National Football League in Ballybofey on January 25, 2020, and since has amassed 11-273 in his 69 appearances to date, leaving him in fourth place on the all-time Mayo scorers list behind Cillian O'Connor, Conor Mortimer and Joe Corcoran.
Mayo and Cavan have met on just six previous occasions in the championship, with Mayo winning four and Cavan two. Their first championship meeting was in the 1932 All-Ireland semi-final, when Mayo triumphed, but the next two meetings – the 1937 All-Ireland semi-final and the 1948 All-Ireland final – saw victory go to the Breffni men.
The three most recent meetings have been in the qualifier era, with Mayo winning all of them. Those games were played in 2005 in Dr. Hyde Park, Roscommon, and in 2007 and 2024 in Hastings Insurance MacHale Park, Castlebar. Last year's meeting was, like this year, in the first round of the All-Ireland series, with Mayo winning on a 0-20 to 1-8 scoreline.
The game on Sunday (May 18) will throw in at 2.30 p.m. Stephen Coen will captain the Mayo team, while Paul Faloon from Co. Down has been confirmed as the official in charge. There will be live coverage on Midwest Radio with commentary from Michael D. McAndrew and Martin Carney. Tickets can be purchased on Ticketmaster.
The Mayo team in full is as follows: Colm Reape; Jack Coyne, Donnacha McHugh, Rory Brickenden; Sam Callinan, David McBrien, Enda Hession; Stephen Coen, Matthew Ruane; Davitt Neary, Jack Carney, Jordan Flynn; Aidan O'Shea, Darren McHale, Ryan O'Donoghue.
The subs are: Adrian Phillips, Bob Tuohy, Conal Dawson, Conor Reid, Dylan Thornton, Fenton Kelly, Fergal Boland, Frank Irwin, Kevin Quinn, Paddy Durcan, Paul Towey.