Mayo maintain hopes of Nickey Rackard Cup success

Mayo still have hopes of capturing the Nickey Rackard Cup this year thanks to a battling 2-22 to 1-21 victory over Sligo at Hastings Insurance MacHale Park, Castlebar, writes Brian Gillespie.

There was never much between the teams and Mayo had to work very hard to come out with the four-point win as Sligo never gave up.

Coming into the game, both sides knew a win would go a long way towards ensuring qualification for a semi-final at least. Tyrone may have been tearing it up at the top of the table but second place was very much up for grabs, and Mayo are in the driving seat now to secure that spot. Should they defeat Louth in the final round robin game next weekend, then second place is theirs. Even a draw would be good enough to ensure second and a semi-final against New York.

Mayo would have been happy with a half-time deficit of just three points (1-6 to 0-12), a goal after a quarter of an hour really helping the cause.

It was awarded only after referee Ciarán Regan consulted with his umpires as there had to be a question of square ball about it, Ryan Duffy bundling the ball over the line at the far post after Eoin Delaney had centred the ball from outside the parallelogram on the left-hand side.

The goal stood and it brought Mayo to within a point of the visitors (1-2 to 0-6), and that was while playing into a very stiff breeze coming from the bacon factory end of MacHale Park.

Another key factor of the first half was Mayo's steeliness in defence, the Sligo forwards getting barely a sniff of goal.

The hosts maintained that doggedness in the second half and, aided by the breeze, they soon turned the deficit into a lead, a goal from the penalty spot by Cormac Phillips on 42 minutes making it 2-10 to 0-13.

But Sligo, with full-forward Andrew Kilcullen in inspirational form in the scoring department, were never out of it and when they finally breached the Mayo rearguard – that man Kilcullen with the finish from an acute angle on the left – it brought them to within a point of their hosts (2-18 to 1-20) with five minutes plus injury time left to play.

Great credit must go to Mayo for the way they refused to buckle under the pressure. In those final five minutes of regulation time and four of injury time, they outscored the visitors by four points to one to get over the line by 2-22 to 1-21 in the end.

Mayo: B. Douglas (0-4f); O. Ivers, O. Greally, C. Murray; C. Hession, D. Kenny, S. O'Brien; D. Huane, C. Scahill (0-3); C. Phillips (1-3, 1-0p, 1f), E. Delaney (0-3), A. Phillips; S. Kenny, S. Boland (0-6, 4f), R. Duffy (1-1).

Subs used: F. Delaney (0-1), P. Murphy, J. Heraty, D. Delaney.

Sligo: A. Rolston; F. Connolly (0-1), J. Weir, K. O'Kennedy; P. O'Brien (0-1), R. McHugh (0-1), M. Harkin; R. Molloy, N. Kilcullen; C. Hanniffy (0-2), F. Cawley (0-1), R. O'Kelly-Lynch; G. O'Kelly-Lynch (0-2), A. Kilcullen (1-11, 6f), T. Cawley (0-2).

Subs used: D. Keaveny, D. Rolston, E. O'Donoghue, L. O'Kelly-Lynch.

Referee: C. Regan (Cork).