Mayo Football and Hurling - Discussion pages

[Tubberman]

Cian O'Neill really does seem like a great addition. Great to see JH has the ambition and confidence to go out and get the best there is.
And O'Neill obviously rates JH and the Mayo setup highly if he has agreed to join.

High praise from Lar Corbett:

http://hoganstand.com/ArticleForm.aspx?ID=155819

Lar Corbett admits Cian O'Neill's decision to step down as Tipperary hurling trainer is a big blow to the Premier County.

The Kildare native spent four years in the role, during which Tipp won three Munster championships, a National League and an All-Ireland in 2010, and he is now poised to link up with the Mayo footballers.

"Cian O'Neill is a serious physical trainer, he did a super job," Corbett said yesterday.

"He got us in the condition that we are in today and you don't need me to say that. The facts are there to prove that, Tipperary have come a long way since Cian O'Neill got involved.

"I know that he's going to Mayo and probably doing a different role with Mayo, but he was super to the Tipp set-up. I'd like to wish him the best of luck but Tipperary will be sad to see him go.

"I would have had an awful lot problems with my hamstrings. People in Tipperary back five years ago would have said a lot of it is in his head but wherever it was it got sorted in the last four years. I definitely put a lot of that down to Cian O'Neill and John Casey (physio). I owe a lot to them."

[mortified]

Cian was round UL sports department when I was there, always seemed very arrogant, but looks to be a good appointment now..

[Farrandeelin]

O'Neill prepared for the long haul with Mayo
By Fintan O'Toole
Thursday, October 06, 2011
NEW Mayo senior football trainer Cian O'Neill insisted there was no acrimony when he informed Tipperary boss Declan Ryan of his decision to quit last month.
O'Neill was ratified last Monday night as the latest addition to James Horan's management setup. He believed it was important to stay with Tipperary this season to offer continuity in the wake of the departure of Liam Sheedy last winter.
"After Liam Sheedy decided to step down, I thought it was important to stay on for a year and maintain some continuity," he said.

"It wasn't the type of thing then where I wanted to get away from Tipperary. I just wanted to get back into coaching in either football or basketball, as they were my two areas of expertise. I sat down on September 22 with Declan Ryan for my annual review where I gave him a written report.

"By that stage I'd been in contact with James Horan. We wouldn't have known each other personally but would have a mutual friend. Since I had Mayo on my mind, I was up front with Declan. We wished each other well and I'm going to keep a very close eye on Tipperary's fortunes. The last four years were a brilliant experience and I made some lifelong friends there."

O'Neill admitted the travel involved was a major consideration before he agreed to come on board with Mayo. The Kildare native is the course director for the BSc Physical Education programme at the University of Limerick, with the third-level institution over 180km from Mayo's training base in Castlebar.

"It is definitely a trek from Limerick. When I was asked, I took a few days trying to decide was this the right move for myself and the right move for Mayo football.

"The prospect of going back football coaching and working with a progressive manager like James made it hugely attractive. But the travel was a serious consideration. You're going to encounter traffic in places like Tuam and Claregalway on the way up and I'm going to have to work with the UL management with my own scheduling for work.

"But I planned it out and decided to go for it. It'll involve leaving Limerick at around half three every Tuesday and Friday afternoon to head to Mayo and then you're arriving back before one o'clock in the morning."

O'Neill, who will be primed with the football aspect of Mayo's training while Dr Ed Coughlan continues to oversee physical preparations, believes his role will be made easier by working with players like Enda Varley and Seamus O'Shea in UL.

"That was definitely a big factor. I would have formed a close bond with those players and they raved about James Horan as a manager.

"Going into a squad now knowing five or six players will ease the transition process for me. I'll be handling the football coaching and Dr Ed Coughlan will do the physical work. I'm really looking forward to working with him.


Read more: http://www.examiner.ie/sport/gaa/oneill-....l#ixzz1ZyLlGN2H

[SLIGONIAN]

Thats hilarious, cian o neill has a 360km round trip for mayo senior training yet mayo county board are up to their eyes in debt, is he doing it for free ...

With all yer debt i dont feel sorry for ye, ye tryed to mask the centre in ballyhaunis as a connacht one to gain more funding even though mayo will only use it.

Ours is coming along nicely thoiugh and with a manageable debt associated we should not have any bother fundraising it..

[maigheo]

Sligionian , it is always very refreshing to  have your views on the Mayo football scene.Keep up the good work

[Farrandeelin]

I agree. It is hilarious. Almost as hilarious as Sligo most of the time.

[sans pessimism]

Thats hilarious, cian o neill has a 360km round trip for mayo senior training yet mayo county board are up to their eyes in debt, is he doing it for free ...

With all yer debt i dont feel sorry for ye, ye tryed to mask the centre in ballyhaunis as a connacht one to gain more funding even though mayo will only use it.

Ours is coming along nicely thoiugh and with a manageable debt associated we should not have any bother fundraising it..

haaalllllooooo-nobody on this site cares sado

[Farrandeelin]

What do ye all make of Noel Howley as the new go-between between msnagement & county board?

[Tubberman]

What do ye all make of Noel Howley as the new go-between between msnagement & county board?

I thought that was shot down?

[sans pessimism]

What do ye all make of Noel Howley as the new go-between between msnagement & county board?

I thought that was shot down?

it was

[Farrandeelin]

What do ye all make of Noel Howley as the new go-between between msnagement & county board?

I thought that was shot down?

it was

Whoops, just scanned the WP very quickly this evening. So who is going to be the new man so? Someone in the County board itself? To be honest, I disagree strongly with a 'go-between' in the first place. The county board and management, in an ideal situation should sort out whatever needs to be sorted out together and not need a man to act as a 'go between'.

[Farrandeelin]

From Hoganstand:

Please note that there will be East Mayo U-21 Football Trials on Saturday 5th November at 11.00a.m. in Swinford. All clubs are requested to organise players for these trials.

This too.

Mayo manager James Horan and his selectors are to hold trials over the coming weeks.

Horan revealed that they did the same last year and unearthed some quality players and the Mayo manager has opted to go down the same route this year.

"We had trials last year when we started this job and we'll be doing the same again this year. A number of guys have shown up well over recent weeks, but the demands of inter county are different and we'll be hoping that they perform well again when we have the trials," Horan revealed to the Western People.

There have been no dates confirmed for the trails yet as there are a number of club competitions still to complete before the end of the year.

[Farrandeelin]

I heard on MWR that the official name for our county ground isElverys McHale Park.

[ludermor]

Club Stars shortlist revealed


Mike Finnerty

THE 30 nominations for a place on the Mayo News/O'Neills Club Stars 'Team of the Year' have been decided, with no fewer than eleven Ballintubber players in the running for the coveted awards.
A total of nine clubs are represented among those in contention. Eight players from beaten senior finalists Castlebar Mitchels have also been nominated for a Club Star award, which honours those players who have performed with distinction during the 2011 Mayo club championship.
The 15 players and five replacements will be revealed at the seventh annual Club Stars banquet – in association with AIB – which will be held on Saturday, December 10 at the Knockranny House Hotel in Westport.
Semi-finalists Knockmore (two nominees) and Ballina Stephenites (one) are also represented, while Ballaghaderreen, Breaffy and Garrymore have one player each in contention too.
Five players from this year's Mayo Intermediate Championship have also been nominated as 'wild cards'. County champions Davitts have three players shortlisted, and two nominees are from beaten finalists Burrishoole.
All proceeds from this year's event will go to Western Care services in Mayo.
The 30 players were selected by former Charlestown and Mayo footballer, John Casey, ex-Knockmore manager Eamon Clarke, and Mayo News GAA writers Seán Rice and Austin Garvin.
The judging panel will now be charged with further whittling down that list and picking the 15 players and five replacements for the 2011 team. This selection will not be revealed until the night of the banquet.
With just nine of last year's nominees back in the hunt, the final selection looks set to include plenty of new faces.
Three of those who were nominated last year are from Castlebar Mitchels – Richie Feeney, Eoin O'Reilly and Ciaran Naughton – while Ballintubber's Gary Loftus, Jason Gibbons, Alan Dillon and Alan Plunkett were also part of the 2010 team.
The 'Tubber quartet will have plenty of company on the night, as Brendan Walsh, Cathal Hallinan (a replacement last year), Tom Earley, Danny Geraghty, Gary Dillon, Michael Hoban and Cillian O'Connor have also been nominated from the county champions.
The returning Mitchels trio will be joined by team-mates Tom Cunniffe, Sean Ryder, Barry Moran, Danny Kirby and Kevin Filan. Knockmore's Declan Sweeney and Aidan Kilcoyne, Ballina's Evan Regan, Breaffy's Kevin Scahill, Ballaghaderreen's Andy Moran, and Garrymore's Jimmy Killeen are also nominated.
Davitts' Colm Boyle, Ronan McNamara and Michael Conroy, along with Burrishoole's Micheál Moran and Jason Doherty complete the line-up.
Tickets for the event in Knockranny House Hotel cost €60 and are available on 098 25311.

Get your tickets
TO book your ticket for the Club Stars Banquet or make a donation, call The Mayo News office on 098 25311. All proceeds go to Western Care services in Mayo.


This year's Club Stars nominees
Goalkeepers
Ciaran Naughton (Castlebar Mitchels)

Brendan Walsh (Ballintubber)



Defenders
Gary Loftus (Ballintubber)
Cathal Hallinan (Ballintubber)

Tom Earley (Ballintubber)

Danny Geraghty (Ballintubber)
Gary Dillon (Ballintubber)

Eoin O'Reilly (Castlebar Mitchels)

Richie Feeney (Castlebar Mitchels)
Tom Cunniffe (Castlebar Mitchels)

Sean Ryder (Castlebar Mitchels)
Kevin Scahill (Breaffy)

Declan Sweeney (Knockmore)

Colm Boyle (Davitts)



Midfielders
Jason Gibbons (Ballintubber)

Michael Hoban (Ballintubber)
Barry Moran (Castlebar)

Ronan McNamara (Davitts)




Forwards
Alan Dillon (Ballintubber)

Alan Plunkett (Ballintubber)

Cillian O'Connor (Ballintubber)
Kevin Filan (Castlebar Mitchels)

Danny Kirby (Castlebar Mitchels)

Aidan Kilcoyne (Knockmore)
Evan Regan (Ballina)
Jimmy Killeen (Garrymore)

Andy Moran (Ballaghaderreen)

Jason Doherty (Burrishoole)
Micheál Moran (Burrishoole)
Michael Conroy (Davitts)



Im not close to the club scene so wouldnt know the merits of players included (or excluded!) but 19 players from teh 2 finalists (out of a total of 25 senior players)  seems a very narrow selection. Were Ballintubber and Castlebar that far ahead of the rest??

[ludermor]

Mayo in crisis over €11.6m debt on McHale Park redevelopment
By Colm Keys


Wednesday November 16 2011

THE MAYO County Board has two weeks to come up with fresh ideas to help alleviate the massive debt incurred by the redevelopment of McHale Park in Castlebar.

This follows the publication of financial details relating to the redevelopment of the stadium at Monday night's meeting of the county board.

In recent weeks, the main lending institute involved has been in contact directly with the GAA hierarchy, who also provided substantial loans to help finance the redevelopment.

The GAA top brass have in turn been in touch with Mayo officials, who have been encouraged to put in place a more urgent action plan to fund-raise.

Spokesman Aidan McLoughlin was adamant yesterday that an €11.6m debt is still manageable, despite the growing pressure to start reducing it.

Up to now, the Mayo County Board has been repaying mostly interest on three loans totalling €6m with the lending institution in question. But there is now a requirement to start repaying more principle and that will squeeze already hard-pressed clubs in the county even more.

To date, they have repaid €534,062 in principle and €784,000 in interest.

A further loan of €4.5m from the GAA is also outstanding. The GAA had already given Mayo a grant of €5m for the redevelopment which has turned McHale Park into one of the most modern grounds in the country.

So far, Mayo has spent €16.637m on the redevelopment, according to figures released at the board meeting.

And, worryingly, there is another €1.6m of bills still outstanding.

Just over €1m of this is owed to the main contractor, with the rest due for legal and architectural fees. That brings the total cost for redeveloping the stadium to over €18m.

Some of this relates to the proposed development of a media tower on the opposite side to the main stand which has run into planning difficulties. There were also difficulties with the floodlighting of the stadium, which have since been resolved.

Mayo officials took the decision to lay out the situation to their clubs in an effort to generate more momentum with fundraising.

"None of the figures that have been put into the public domain were known before," said McLoughlin.

"Those who've loaned the money to us have been more than fair to us with terms and conditions. But we have to make people aware that we need to show more urgency with our fundraising efforts, and we will be coming up with a new plan in the next two weeks."

Croke Park officials are known to be concerned at the situation facing the Mayo County Board.

It is estimated that servicing the debt on McHale Park is to rise from about €400,000 to almost €1m per annum once capital repayments on the 15-year loan are taken into account.

According to the figures, Mayo have put some €1.137m of their own money into the redevelopment. Efforts to fund-raise have focused on selling seats in the stand, season tickets and a draw which involves clubs selling between 50 and 70 tickets at €100 each.

They have been helped by the recent inking of a deal for the naming rights to the stadium by sportswear retail chain Elverys, who are based in Mayo.

- Colm Keys

Irish Independent