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Is there a clip of this Galway U21 Brazil-type point?

Good to win.If AoS keeps taking the ball into tackles then we've learned little from last year- how many times yday did he get turned over.His skill is in winning ball ,where he has few equals, but giving
it away so cheaply has me pulling out the last few ribs left on me head

Strange comment. Did he lose the ball once going into the tackle? My view on it was how strong he was driving them out of the way. Powerful display.

Not a hurler, although he has played the game. From Mayo.

EDIT: so much for the clue!

It was a pleasure to watch him in action, even when he was taking Mayo down. I remember David Heaney and Tom Nallen doing better than most in marking Joyce but you never had him out of a game.

If we had him in Mayo ...

Last year Davitts, as Mayo Intermediate champs, beat Melvin Gaels in the Connacht semi-final and Padraig Pearses in the Connacht Final. Melvin Gaels win Leitrim senior championship and Pearses lose out, narrowly, to the all conquering Brigid's in Roscommon. Davitts, meanwhile, couldn't get out of their group in Mayo - Ballintubber and Claremorris did. Maybe, just maybe, the strength of Mayo club football isn't as bad as we think. There's no Crossmolinas or Ballinas who will win the All-Ireland but there's a lot of teams each capable of beating each other on any given day.

Maybe some of us are shocked/alarmed by this but I d have been surprised if it didn t come to this tbh. I don t think the quality is there - performances would suggest that I m right. But there are other issues. I ve said enough though and I ve probably left enough lines to read between as well. I get the impression that outsiders are looking in the wrong places for reasons.

Winning a county title wasn t even on the radar. Anybody that has seen the decline in standards are not surprised by this.

For a team with no fight we ve had our fair share of sending-offs! Joking.

I know what you mean. I know one Ballina man who has frequently said that winning that All-Ireland was the worst thing possible for a lot of those lads. I dunno. Momentum is a two way thing and when it is going against you, it is hard to check. But when a team like Ballina is and looks beaten by the three quarter mark, something is definitely badly wrong.

As for the sendings off, I remember an underage coach we had who was giving out to a fella who was sent off for striking. "Jesus buck, you have to stop this crack, It is not good enough. You have to learn to hit him when the referee isn't looking'!

Anthony McGarry was the manager this year.

I struggle with the notion that we don't have the quality of players to maintain senior status, sure we're not going to win County or Provincial honours every year but surely we have enough to be somewhat competitive?

One would expect that we should be a lot more competitive than we have been for the last few years but there are some issues. No doubt about that.

We ve been very difficult to watch the last few years. We have been depressingly inept tactically for one thing. There is a lack of smarts in the team when it comes to attack.

There are some good lads coming in alright like the Regans but the older players are just not giving them the support - or willing or able to give it? I hope the younger lads have not picked up bad habits because that can not have been a good environment to come into. Maybe a bit of a clearout is needed. I wouldn t be confident that another outside manager or somebody from the bootroom will do any better with some of these players.

Likes of Winnie, Hughesie, Melia and Enda have left huge holes. These were the fellas we needed now to bed in the younger lads.

Most depressing of all our discipline has been appalling. Simply not good enough. Not nice to have to say that about ones own club but its true.

I never saw ye winning the county title this year Moy but at the same time I didn't imagine ye'd be in this situation either. Nor us, I might add. The quality is there. Liam Brady is back on form, Regan has ability, so too Sean Regan. Five county players (albeit two injured). I dunno. How ye lost to Tourmakeady speaks a lot about how things have went this year. Ye were in the semis last year and had Tubber in a bit of bother. I don't know that ye will win the next time either. If I'm being honest, we should have won by ten points on Sunday. There was no fight to Ballina. Worrying.

At least ye're guaranteed Senior status 

Having seen the game in Ballyhaunis, ye are in trouble Stephenite. I think ye would have enough for Aghamore as they would probably fear ye too much but Kiltane would relish playing ye. The players are there though, but just aren't playing as a unit. Shows what can happen when things aren't done properly.

I saw RedandGreenSniper at the Breaffy game today. I'm sure he's wondering 'how the f**k did Knockmore get to the county semi finals!!' Because to be honest based on what I saw today, that's exactly my line of thinking.

I didn't spot you buck but, yeah, I was wondering a couple of things - how on earth are ye gonna beat Ballaghaderreen and why have we left it until almost October before producing a performance worthy of our ability.

Finals are for club mafiosa and their families - many who couldn t be arse going to earlier rounds.

And neutrals who want to be there and then complain when Mayo don t give them value for money

Whatever about the club mafiosa etc it is an interesting point about who deserves tickets. The Mayo fan who has been to most of their championship games but isn't involved with a club or the U-12 coach who has been out with the kids every Saturday morning for the summer at the local pitch but can't go to games because of a young family etc. All things being equal it is the club man who wins in my book. But it is ridiculous how many tickets go to other counties who are not competing.

What about the man, who played underage up to minors at club level, then went to every Championship game and club game for years, then got back playing club in Dublin but only made matches when the club not playing, then switched back to Mayo Championship and League matches and some Dublin and some Mayo club matches, then went to club games in Aus and went to the pub to watch Mayo, then every championship and league match and most FBD and some challenge game, then back playing club in England, then random flying home for some matches. Do I deserve a ticket, not sure, I have done everytype of GAA fan at this stage of course all the while going to random county club matches, interpros, etc. I don't think any person really deserves it more than the next. Its very hard under the systems in place to judge how much a man or woman deserves to go to the Final, does a GAA fan from Kilkenny, London, Melbourne or Waterford deserve a football ticket, or a Mayo, Armagh, European clubman, Cavan fan deserve a hurling ticket!

Yes, you martyr, you deserve a final ticket, obviously. Where some of the tickets go does frighten me.

Finals are for club mafiosa and their families - many who couldn t be arse going to earlier rounds.

And neutrals who want to be there and then complain when Mayo don t give them value for money

Whatever about the club mafiosa etc it is an interesting point about who deserves tickets. The Mayo fan who has been to most of their championship games but isn't involved with a club or the U-12 coach who has been out with the kids every Saturday morning for the summer at the local pitch but can't go to games because of a young family etc. All things being equal it is the club man who wins in my book. But it is ridiculous how many tickets go to other counties who are not competing.

There is something very different about this Mayo team. They tired physically but, crucially, not mentally. And they had to cope with huge losses. The Dubs give out about missing Alan Brogan - we had no Andy Moran and when McLoughlin was gone off, Mayo were outscored by seven points.

Like Iolar says, every chance to lose was presented to this team. They refused to die. Will they win the All-Ireland? Still hard to know but if they don't, they'll go damn close and won't be one bit afraid of their opponents or the occasion.

It's a great day to be from Mayo.

Wonderful tribute piece that by Liam Horan. Pity he didn't wait with the Independent, we'd have been spared Martin Breheny.

Great story Lar! I am a tad on the young side to have fully enjoyed Con at his peak but I bought a collection of his best pieces about five or six years ago but lost it. Class apart. I saw the Indo ran his piece after the 1978 All-Ireland football final today. Comparing Paddy Cullen rushing back as Mikey Sheehy lobbed him with the quick free to a woman dashing back who smells a cake burning.  Brilliant.

[I take Moysider's point about a left footed free taker but Varley isn't playing well and isn't that dependable a free taker to justify starting him.]

Apparently O'Connor played corner-forward in the A v B game at the weekend so it's a question of who he will play at 11 and 15. Horan appears very reluctant to move Dillon from the wing which is a pity because a lot of guys could then come into contention for a wing spot but most of them wouldn't be effective at 11. I'm thinking Richie Feeney, Seamie O'Shea, Micheal Forde etc.

Apparently they've been looking at Doherty at 11. Freeman would be another contender. That would leave Conroy and Varley battling for a corner-forward spot. I take Moysider's point about a left footed free taker but Varley isn't playing well and isn't that dependable a free taker to justify starting him. I reckon Conroy will start. Looks like Aidan O'Shea will start at midfield too. I hope he has a full seventy in him, people shouldn't expect too much though. He has missed a huge chunk of training.
game for some reason.

To clarify - I was not suggesting that Varley should start. I m still trying to figure out why he was selected for the Sligo game and the only thing that I thought maybe was going through managements head ( not mine) was that we have nobody to kick a handy free on the right. You are right in that he s patchy enough with them anyway. But they did select him for the Sligo
If they are looking at Freeman and even more so Doherty at 11 kinda goes to show that 11 is not a pivital position as things stand. Our 3 established forwards - Andy, Dillon and Kevin Mac - will be kept well away from chf and kept in the positions they ve had best form in. We ll end up with another runner/worker at 11 if Cillian goes to 15. I posted already that we re not basing our game on a traditional chf and got ate on here but we ve been going that way.  My pref for 11 at this stage would be Seamus O Sé if he s fit.

Down on the other hand have one of the best natural 11 around. Poland will be a major concern. He will bring our 6 on a tour and he has the craft to do damage. But we dont have a player that can do that at 11 so no use codding ourselves. I reckon we ll be taking a different approach - well we have been anyway.

Sorry, fair enough. I agree with you about Seamus O'Shea if he is fit but I'd prefer him on the wing. Vaughan on Poland would be a problem so I'd nip that in the bud straight away and put Boyle or, even better, Keegan on him.