All-Ireland Final, September 18th, 2016 - Dublin v Mayo

[Wildweasel74]

Time to nail my name to the Mayo mast for this weekend, Dublin are a better team, of that there is no doubt but there always a bad game in any team in a year, Mayo been lucky all year and sometimes luck can take you a long way. As Clint Eastwood said, "Deserve got nothing to do with it" but if Mayo play above themselves and the Dublin are below par, they can shade it.

Noted today the Sam has only went west twice in 50yrs. Mayo are probably the 2nd best team in the country so its wouldn't be a big a shock as many think. Donegal against Dublin in 92 and Armagh against Kerry in 02 were bigger underdogs. Anyway come on Mayo!!!

[sans pessimism]

Time to nail my name to the Mayo mast for this weekend, Dublin are a better team, of that there is no doubt but there always a bad game in any team in a year, Mayo been lucky all year and sometimes luck can take you a long way. As Clint Eastwood said, "Deserve got nothing to do with it" but if Mayo play above themselves and the Dublin are below par, they can shade it.

Noted today the Sam has only went west twice in 50yrs. Mayo are probably the 2nd best team in the country so its wouldn't be a big a shock as many think. Donegal against Dublin in 92 and Armagh against Kerry in 02 were bigger underdogs. Anyway come on Mayo!!!

Hup!

[Rossfan]

Sam has only GONE West.......

Dublin by 3 .....

[Mayo4sam16]

Byrne, Small, Cooper, McCarthy, Fenton, MDMA, McManamon, Kilkenny, Rock and Brogan are nothing out of the ordinary in comparison to their Mayo counterparts. Some may be better on their day etc but that's it. Some of the sh1te being talked by Dubs fans is quite the eye opener. You'd never hear Kerry men talking like this. Keep it coming.

[yellowcard]

Byrne, Small, Cooper, McCarthy, Fenton, MDMA, McManamon, Kilkenny, Rock and Brogan are nothing out of the ordinary in comparison to their Mayo counterparts. Some may be better on their day etc but that's it. Some of the sh1te being talked by Dubs fans is quite the eye opener. You'd never hear Kerry men talking like this. Keep it coming.

Sounds very much like your a Dub (certainly not from Mayo anyway) by the tone of your posts. Even going to the bother of setting up a new account to spout nonsense. The reality is that Mayo are going into this final as the biggest underdogs in at least a generation. No amount of drivel you post will change that. Yes they have a punchers chance but that is all.

[Farrandeelin]

Byrne, Small, Cooper, McCarthy, Fenton, MDMA, McManamon, Kilkenny, Rock and Brogan are nothing out of the ordinary in comparison to their Mayo counterparts. Some may be better on their day etc but that's it. Some of the sh1te being talked by Dubs fans is quite the eye opener. You'd never hear Kerry men talking like this. Keep it coming.

If you are a Mayo man, go back to hoganstand or the 'banter' pages on Facebook and take your opinions over there like a good ladeen.

[Wildweasel74]

In all fairness kilkenny, Brogan and McCarthy would be better than alot of what mayo would have in the same postions, Mayo though are stronger in Midfield, key match up the Dublin half forward line and the Mayo Half back line

[smelly fairy]

Guy Crouchback I could've written the exact same thing if I had that good a memory!! Brilliant!!

[moysider]

In all fairness kilkenny, Brogan and McCarthy would be better than alot of what mayo would have in the same postions, Mayo though are stronger in Midfield, key match up the Dublin half forward line and the Mayo Half back line

You're taking that poster seriously?

[seafoid]

Byrne, Small, Cooper, McCarthy, Fenton, MDMA, McManamon, Kilkenny, Rock and Brogan are nothing out of the ordinary in comparison to their Mayo counterparts. Some may be better on their day etc but that's it. Some of the sh1te being talked by Dubs fans is quite the eye opener. You'd never hear Kerry men talking like this. Keep it coming.

Sounds very much like your a Dub (certainly not from Mayo anyway) by the tone of your posts. Even going to the bother of setting up a new account to spout nonsense. The reality is that Mayo are going into this final as the biggest underdogs in at least a generation. No amount of drivel you post will change that. Yes they have a punchers chance but that is all.

Mayo have beaten this Dublin team twice. Hardly underdogs on the scale of Galway v Meath in 2001 or Offaly v Kerry in 1982

[yellowcard]

Byrne, Small, Cooper, McCarthy, Fenton, MDMA, McManamon, Kilkenny, Rock and Brogan are nothing out of the ordinary in comparison to their Mayo counterparts. Some may be better on their day etc but that's it. Some of the sh1te being talked by Dubs fans is quite the eye opener. You'd never hear Kerry men talking like this. Keep it coming.

Sounds very much like your a Dub (certainly not from Mayo anyway) by the tone of your posts. Even going to the bother of setting up a new account to spout nonsense. The reality is that Mayo are going into this final as the biggest underdogs in at least a generation. No amount of drivel you post will change that. Yes they have a punchers chance but that is all.

Mayo have beaten this Dublin team twice. Hardly underdogs on the scale of Galway v Meath in 2001 or Offaly v Kerry in 1982

That Galway side had been AI champions and were only beaten to the final the previous year by Kerry after a replay so they had every chance. The fact is that you may have to go back 34 years to find a similarly one sided final match up.

[seafoid]

Byrne, Small, Cooper, McCarthy, Fenton, MDMA, McManamon, Kilkenny, Rock and Brogan are nothing out of the ordinary in comparison to their Mayo counterparts. Some may be better on their day etc but that's it. Some of the sh1te being talked by Dubs fans is quite the eye opener. You'd never hear Kerry men talking like this. Keep it coming.

Sounds very much like your a Dub (certainly not from Mayo anyway) by the tone of your posts. Even going to the bother of setting up a new account to spout nonsense. The reality is that Mayo are going into this final as the biggest underdogs in at least a generation. No amount of drivel you post will change that. Yes they have a punchers chance but that is all.

Mayo have beaten this Dublin team twice. Hardly underdogs on the scale of Galway v Meath in 2001 or Offaly v Kerry in 1982

That Galway side had been AI champions and were only beaten to the final the previous year by Kerry after a replay so they had every chance. The fact is that you may have to go back 34 years to find a similarly one sided final match up.

They were playing MEATH.
Mayo would be grand if it was a semi. They have to overcome the psychology . The Dubs are the best team to do it against.

[Tubberman]

Byrne, Small, Cooper, McCarthy, Fenton, MDMA, McManamon, Kilkenny, Rock and Brogan are nothing out of the ordinary in comparison to their Mayo counterparts. Some may be better on their day etc but that's it. Some of the sh1te being talked by Dubs fans is quite the eye opener. You'd never hear Kerry men talking like this. Keep it coming.

Sounds very much like your a Dub (certainly not from Mayo anyway) by the tone of your posts. Even going to the bother of setting up a new account to spout nonsense. The reality is that Mayo are going into this final as the biggest underdogs in at least a generation. No amount of drivel you post will change that. Yes they have a punchers chance but that is all.

Mayo have beaten this Dublin team twice. Hardly underdogs on the scale of Galway v Meath in 2001 or Offaly v Kerry in 1982

That Galway side had been AI champions and were only beaten to the final the previous year by Kerry after a replay so they had every chance. The fact is that you may have to go back 34 years to find a similarly one sided final match up.

I shouldn't bite, but ffs we drew with Dublin in semi-final last year, lost to them by a point in the final 3 years ago and beat them by 4 in the semi-final the year before that. We've been in 6 semi-finals in a row, and this is our 3rd final in that time.
Dublin are rightly favourites, but we've a damn good team too.

[seafoid]

Byrne, Small, Cooper, McCarthy, Fenton, MDMA, McManamon, Kilkenny, Rock and Brogan are nothing out of the ordinary in comparison to their Mayo counterparts. Some may be better on their day etc but that's it. Some of the sh1te being talked by Dubs fans is quite the eye opener. You'd never hear Kerry men talking like this. Keep it coming.

Sounds very much like your a Dub (certainly not from Mayo anyway) by the tone of your posts. Even going to the bother of setting up a new account to spout nonsense. The reality is that Mayo are going into this final as the biggest underdogs in at least a generation. No amount of drivel you post will change that. Yes they have a punchers chance but that is all.

Mayo have beaten this Dublin team twice. Hardly underdogs on the scale of Galway v Meath in 2001 or Offaly v Kerry in 1982

That Galway side had been AI champions and were only beaten to the final the previous year by Kerry after a replay so they had every chance. The fact is that you may have to go back 34 years to find a similarly one sided final match up.

I shouldn't bite, but ffs we drew with Dublin in semi-final last year, lost to them by a point in the final 3 years ago and beat them by 4 in the semi-final the year before that. We've been in 6 semi-finals in a row, and this is our 3rd final in that time.
Dublin are rightly favourites, but we've a damn good team too.

Dublin favs on the basis that it is a final I would say. If Mayo turn up and focus for the 70 minutes they have every chance. Mayo have been so close recently , losing semis after replays etc

[stephenite]

this thread has gone a bit quite and maybe we don't have much left to say about the game its self so instead ill wax nostalgic ,this is a post i put up before last years semi

It's hard to describe the excitement I felt  on that first trip to Croke park, the 18Th of august 1985 (yes of course I had to look it up!). I was 8 years old and me and my dad were going off for the day to the big game. looking back now he was probably as excited as I was, he would have been 37 at the time, younger then I am now and in his lifetime mayo had given him very few days out in Dublin, I was the eldest so it was just me and him.  Up early for a bus to Dublin. I don't remember much about the bus journey up except that I was worried about my new flag. I was told I had to leave it in the overhead locker and I did not like being parted from it. it was the height of fashion that year, red and green horizontal bars as opposed to the more traditional  vertical. God I loved that flag I kept it for years, until it became so frayed at the edges it was little more than a collection of streamers.

I remember being out the back of the Hogan stand waiting to go in and being in awe of this huge structure. In my mind's eye it's a beautiful sunny day.  we went inside  and it was dark and forbidding the toilets were horrible and crowed and my earlier euphoria was beginning to fade. Then the magic happened, a spell was cast on me that remains to this day. We turned the corner to our section and walked towards the blinding light and there it was, Croker in all its glory, the field a brilliant striped green a field like non I'd ever seen, there was no HDTV in 1985 so I had literally never seen anything as perfect, and then there were that stands  and the people and the hill and all the blue and all the green and red. All the green and red, and my dad seemed to know everyone and every one was calling out and shouting and excited  we took our seats and I got my first lesson in how to strike up conversations with strangers at football matches. to me  the opposition were the big bad dubs so I was a bit surprised by the chatting with all the Dublin supporters, all the craic, I think I learned I was  culchie that day, ( I already knew they were only auld jackeens!) My dad had worked in Dublin years before and of course he knew some relation of the guy behind us, I was trying to get my game face on but he kept gasbagging with the enemy!!

Then the band and the parade and the anthem and mayo were doing well, Kevin mc stay tj kilgallon, willie joe padden, john finn and the rest. The excitement was too much, the game went by in flash, we drew!! I was delighted but I got the impression  the older ones new it was no good that we had lost our chance, still no harm we would be back and if not this year then next, I saw the future as being centred on my new favourite place in the world,  the naivety of youth.  Still as I said the spell was cast, the grass, the noise, the crowds the colour, the band, the players, the game, in later years the pubs, the friends, the nights out before and after, now its heading back to the day trips with kids again, the world turns. The kids, nothing sums up the GAA more than the kids that go to games big and small with their flags and headbands and hats and jerseys and a ferocious  belief in their team that is hard to maintain as the years pass buy.

So on sunday we meet again, about a third of the population of Mayo will actually leave the county and head to Dublin, we will  meet our best friends and people we haven't seen in years  as we amble down the north circular, outside gills we will meet some Dubs we know and the craic will flow, heroes of yesteryear will walk buy and dads will whisper their names to the little ones " look that's wille joe padden over there'', "See yer man son, that's Barney Rock", the kids will nod but don't really care they only have eyes for Aiden or Bernard.

Then inside and it happens all over again, the bright light from the tunnel, the incredible green, the noise the roar of the hill,  ''come on you boys in blue'', MAYO MAYO MAYO MAYO''  in response from around the ground growing louder and louder. Then a winner and a loser, Who shall it be? Doesn't really matter.

You weren't half as innocent nor eloquent by the time the 96 final came round, drunk out of your mind playing poker in a bed sit in Charlemont street if I recall?