Mayo Football and Hurling - Discussion pages

[Farrandeelin]

A lot of bar stool pundits will say though that Sweeney is too small. As for Bunker's first point, fans react to what they see on the pitch. We were over ran in the third quarter and despite being 2 down, there was an sensing of inevitability about the whole thing.

PS mayoman dan. Learn how to quote properly!

[From the Bunker]

1. Mayo support died a death in the AI final. I've never seen a collapse of support for a team in such a tight game. We were 2 points down with 7 minutes to go! A pure disgrace. Would we be the same in a Connacht final in the same circumstances?

2. We have a bigger hill to climb than in 2010.

3. We are about 3 good players short of having a comfortable chance of winning Sam.  One corner back, One centre Forward and One full forward?

Why do you think the support collapsed Bunker? In fairness a few people about me kept it going. But a lot were dumbstruck for second half.

Not sure what you mean by point 2.

As for point 3. Yeah it would be nice to get 3 more quality players but remember Donegal and Dublin won without being perfect in every position. If it takes a 9/10 player in every position to win an AI we may as well forget about it.

Injuries all cleared up I d be hoping for something like this next year.

Hennelly ( his spot while he s injury and form holds up)

Cunniffe, Caff, Barrett,
Keegan, Boyle, Higgins, ( doesn t have to be in that order either)

SOS B Moran

McLoughlin AOS ??
O Connor, Freeman, A Moran,

I d like to see Kirby get games in spring. Maybe Parsons needs another look too. I d like to see a bigger mobile rangy player at 10 or 12 like Dublin use Flynn.

What i mean from point two is that we for the first time since 2010 we will be going into the Championship a little bit confused as to where we are. Are we on the way up or the way down? Have we hit our peak with this group? Last year we lost an AI Final and thought to ourselves we can come back from this stronger (maybe). And in fairness we did come back stronger. It will the a huge effort to motivate this group to push on. Everything is against them now. Journalists and Media will harp on with the usual stereotypical quotes. The Mayo fans don't really believe in them. We are happy with the 'Well we were still in the game with 20 minutes gone' mindset. Our ruthlessness in games built up this season came crumbling down in the final. We were back to being a scared team and this mostly came from the sideline and filtered into the stands. COC effort at the end of the Final epitomised our mindset.

Anyway rant over. Hopefully we get a better run with injuries this year. Feck last year was a disaster! We still have a great squad and we should make an AI semi at least. Give Mickie Sweeney from Kiltane a run. Try Keegan again as a half forward. I hate to say this, but (Really) try and win the National League. Connacht is only middelin, so it may be worth taking the League serious.

[muppet]

1. Manage the players seasons such that they peak in September. The O'Sheas played a hell of a lot of football this year, Aidan in particular with Sigerson etc. A fresh Barry Moran looked a level above them in the County Final.

2. Don't play injured players and certainly no more than 1 in any game. It must be galling for players who consistently do well as subs to watch obviously injured players start ahead of them over and over again. Particularly when they aren't taken off and men who are going well enough are taken off.

3. With the above in mind, the likes of the O'Sheas, the 6 backs that started the final (maybe Cunniffe & Barrett accepted) & Kevin McLaughlin should be rested for the FBD and played lightly in the League. They have played a lot of football and probably would benefit from a break. Caff should be begged to stay around for the year. Hennelly should start the year as number 1. O'Connor needs to be left alone to make a full recovery for his own sake as much as anything else. Dillon needs to get fully fit before returning. Moran was improving by the Final and should be played in the FBD. Freeman should start at 14. New players should be given an extended run. I saw Mikey Sweeney play for Mayo before and wasn't impressed, but then look at the impact Boyle made on his second coming. I would like to see Patrick Durcan, Danny Kirby and Aidan Walsh of Mitchels and Liam Irwin of Breaffy given FBD games. Lots of them.

[moysider]

Well listening to the lads on Madwest yesterday they think we might have found a forward in Mikey Sweeney.Lets hope there right.Personally i think if we get the lads we have fit it wont be as much of an issue as some seem to think.

Any idea who were they exactly?

[moysider]

Hard to beat the old 20/20 hindsight - if Horan hadn't moved Higgins back and Keane had been roasted, the same 'experts' would be on here wondering why Horan lost us another all Ireland by leaving our all star corner back in the forwards.....

Sure that s the thing! It was a very understandable call. But why are you getting so defensive about James Horan? The last thing Mayo needs is another sacred cow.

Higgins was called back to batten the hatches and did a good job. But we lost his influence, athleticism and enthusiasm around the middle 1/3 where we were destroyed in second half and lost the game there.
All star corner back award stuff is irrelevant  - Karl Lacey won at least one all-star in corner but he was not playing in the corner when he was beating us in 2012. Higgins is one of the best footballers we ve ever had - not just one of the best corner backs we ve ever had. Playing him back in the corner does the opposition a big favour. This managment has had time to get cover for 2 or 4.

Look, it was Horan's job to select teams for AI finals and decide tactics, subs, switches, etc. And he also choose to get rid of players from panel earlier. That s a manager's call and I think he got a lot right. But he has to be appraised. Like every top county manager is. Mickey Harte won 3 from 3 AIs ( arguably against better teams than we lost to). James Horan has lost 2 finals to teams that were beatable. Mickey Harte won finals against a Kerry team we could not survive with. This Mayo team has lost 2 AI finals that could have been won. Not should have been won, but could have been won. I understand why Higgins was put back, but we still lost.

[mayoman dan]

Well listening to the lads on Madwest yesterday they think we might have found a forward in Mikey Sweeney.Lets hope there right.Personally i think if we get the lads we have fit it wont be as much of an issue as some seem to think.

Any idea who were they exactly?

Billy Fitzpatrick was one of them the other fellas name escapes me he does be commentating on tv3 aswell i think

[mayoman dan]

This managment has had time to get cover for 2 or 4.


This is why moving Higgins back was so infuriating.We had 3 lads on the bench who could have done a job in the corner but were not given sufficent game time prior to the final and in turn were not trusted on the big day.Horans decisions in the final were a disaster.None of our subs had a positive influence on the game but at the same time we left a proven game changer on the bench and we left our best ball player fighting fires at the back.These decisions cost us and they cost us dear

[Farrandeelin]

Well listening to the lads on Madwest yesterday they think we might have found a forward in Mikey Sweeney.Lets hope there right.Personally i think if we get the lads we have fit it wont be as much of an issue as some seem to think.

Any idea who were they exactly?

Billy Fitzpatrick was one of them the other fellas name escapes me he does be commentating on tv3 aswell i think

Mike 'can you hear the roar of the crowd' Finnerty.

[moysider]

I m sure Mikey Sweeney will get another look if his club form is that impressive.

I don t think he can be mentioned in the same company as Boyle or Conroy but that just an opinion.

I hope Parsons gets to fulfill his potential and I hope Kirby takes the step up. Regan seems to be getting up to speed again. A good U21 campaign and hopefully he ll push on next Summer. He ll have to be in the squad though.

[From the Bunker]

I m sure Mikey Sweeney will get another look if his club form is that impressive.

I don t think he can be mentioned in the same company as Boyle or Conroy but that just an opinion.

I hope Parsons gets to fulfill his potential and I hope Kirby takes the step up. Regan seems to be getting up to speed again. A good U21 campaign and hopefully he ll push on next Summer. He ll have to be in the squad though.

Will be interesting to see if anybody new throws their lot in with Horan. Many new and former players I'm sure who are discreetly approached each year and can not or don't want to give the commitment.

At the end of the day if a players heart is not 100% into it he will be found out sooner or later.

[moysider]

I m sure Mikey Sweeney will get another look if his club form is that impressive.

I don t think he can be mentioned in the same company as Boyle or Conroy but that just an opinion.

I hope Parsons gets to fulfill his potential and I hope Kirby takes the step up. Regan seems to be getting up to speed again. A good U21 campaign and hopefully he ll push on next Summer. He ll have to be in the squad though.

Will be interesting to see if anybody new throws their lot in with Horan. Many new and former players I'm sure who are discreetly approached each year and can not or don't want to give the commitment.

At the end of the day if a players heart is not 100% into it he will be found out sooner or later.

Don t think it s that simple Brunker. In fairness I dont think it s that simple.

[intoDwest]

As a Kiltane man I would be as proud as hell to see a Mayo man line out in the corner for Mayo on an All Ireland Sunday but unforunatly I do not think that Mickey Sweeney would be the answer to start, super club footballer who with the right ball will roast most club corner backs but it is a big jump in standard to be a starting inter county corner forward at the level we hope mayo to be at.

That being said he would in my opinion be a far better option then Enda Varley, he is more inclined to head for goal then the corner flag and that if there is a goal chance then he will take it on.

You cant have a squad with too many the size of Varley/Sweeney/Reegan in it but if it was up to me I'd cut Varley loose as we know what he is and what he is capable off and give the other two a run in the FBD/League to see who is more up to the task.

[moysider]

The word locally is that Cafferkey and Clarke are going to stick around for next year. Most people - apart from the obvious exceptions - would welcome this I expect.

Hopefully Keegan will be available as well.

[mayoman dan]

The word locally is that Cafferkey and Clarke are going to stick around for next year. Most people - apart from the obvious exceptions - would welcome this I expect.

Hopefully Keegan will be available as well.

This is great news.I was told by the person who told me this that Keegan has commited to another year and this is  Horans last year.

[Syferus]

The word locally is that Cafferkey and Clarke are going to stick around for next year. Most people - apart from the obvious exceptions - would welcome this I expect.

Hopefully Keegan will be available as well.

Why exactly would there even be question about any of the three not returning?

Clarke might be a little shook after Hennelly's displays at county and club this year but he never struck me as a man for quitting. The other two are in the prime of their careers.