Mayo Club Football.

[saffronandblue]

Has anyone got a list of the full panel.  I heard at work today that all of his native Ballintubber men were retained on the panel.  I am sure it will be hard to swallow that these have performed well to date.  I saw a number of the league games and none of them impressed me apart for the obvious one in Dillon.  I find that it hard to believe that there is not a little bit of nepotism involved.

A few other who have made the panel would not be in my top 100 players in the county.  The young lad from Crossmolina springs to mind......how is he still involved.

We have 5 forwards from what I can see who are definite starters, Varley looks like no. 6 and I have very little confidence in him shooting the lights out on a big stage.  Our most important player on the team is now Freeman, what is plan B if he were to get injured.

God, I hope I am wrong and that I will be eating humble pie come the summer/autumn.

[Tubberman]

Has anyone got a list of the full panel.  I heard at work today that all of his native Ballintubber men were retained on the panel.  I am sure it will be hard to swallow that these have performed well to date.  I saw a number of the league games and none of them impressed me apart for the obvious one in Dillon.  I find that it hard to believe that there is not a little bit of nepotism involved.

A few other who have made the panel would not be in my top 100 players in the county.  The young lad from Crossmolina springs to mind......how is he still involved.

We have 5 forwards from what I can see who are definite starters, Varley looks like no. 6 and I have very little confidence in him shooting the lights out on a big stage.  Our most important player on the team is now Freeman, what is plan B if he were to get injured.

God, I hope I am wrong and that I will be eating humble pie come the summer/autumn.

Not all Ballintubber players are retained. He let one go after the FBD league.
Of those who are still there, we have:

Dillon - I don't think anyone questions his place

Cillian O'Connor - one of the best underage forwards in the country for the last couple of years. He hasn't seen a huge amount of game time and is still very new to senior, so it is probably best to ease him in at this level. The potential is massive though.

Ruadhrí O'Connor - Cillian's older brother. A contender for the No 7 shirt. A very good footballer, has done well any time he has played IMO - read the reports from the Monaghan match, he's the one substitute who seemed to impress.

Cathal Hallinan - Has played several games at no 2 or no 3. These are two positions that are still up for grabs and Cathal is a contender for both. Why would he be dropped in that case?

Jason Gibbons - The perfect cover for McGarrity if he is ever injured. Not sure if himself and McG would work as a combination as they might be too similar. Would you have dropped him in favour of Parsons??

And you say some of the players in the panel aren't in the top 100 in the county!? With all this hidden talent at club level, why aren't we winning the club all-ireland every year!!?

[RedandGreenSniper]

Has anyone got a list of the full panel.  I heard at work today that all of his native Ballintubber men were retained on the panel.  I am sure it will be hard to swallow that these have performed well to date.  I saw a number of the league games and none of them impressed me apart for the obvious one in Dillon.  I find that it hard to believe that there is not a little bit of nepotism involved.

A few other who have made the panel would not be in my top 100 players in the county.  The young lad from Crossmolina springs to mind......how is he still involved.

We have 5 forwards from what I can see who are definite starters, Varley looks like no. 6 and I have very little confidence in him shooting the lights out on a big stage.  Our most important player on the team is now Freeman, what is plan B if he were to get injured.

God, I hope I am wrong and that I will be eating humble pie come the summer/autumn.

I'm glad there's this type of reaction to Horan's decisions. If there wasn't, it would mean he would have just made the easy calls, got rid of the new lads in, tell them to stick at it etc. Instead he's had a look around and is asking if some of the longer-term panel players have really developed. On some of individuals in question we might disagree but I'm fully in support of his wider theory on things.

On the Ballintubber thing, they are the county champions! Christ, I have to go on cleanse myself after that last statement. But, all joking aside, Dillon, C O'Connor and Hallinan will go close to the team, Gibbons a very good option at midfield and, crucially, a coming player who should get better. Ruaidhri O'Connor could be under pressure but isn't far from the standard either.

[Farrandeelin]

Has anyone got a list of the full panel.  I heard at work today that all of his native Ballintubber men were retained on the panel.  I am sure it will be hard to swallow that these have performed well to date.  I saw a number of the league games and none of them impressed me apart for the obvious one in Dillon.  I find that it hard to believe that there is not a little bit of nepotism involved.

A few other who have made the panel would not be in my top 100 players in the county.  The young lad from Crossmolina springs to mind......how is he still involved.

We have 5 forwards from what I can see who are definite starters, Varley looks like no. 6 and I have very little confidence in him shooting the lights out on a big stage.  Our most important player on the team is now Freeman, what is plan B if he were to get injured.

God, I hope I am wrong and that I will be eating humble pie come the summer/autumn.

Or the old lad from Crossmolina...

[saffronandblue]

Anyone who has seen my posts before would know that I am one of C'O' Connors biggest fans.  Dillons place on the team goes without question.  As for the other 3 lads I don't think they are good enough but thats just my opinion.  Gibbons has potential but he is hardly been kept around for his work rate which is the one thing that I would question him on.

I am all for culling the lads if they are not pulling their weight, but it is the managers role to get the very best out of the players at his disposal.  What ever hope we have, we need to get the best 15 on the team and playing well.  I believe we have a competitive 15 at this stage, but the subs bench won't have too many lads looking over the shoulder.  Maybe Horan is right and he has picked the best 30, he certainly sees more of them than the rest of us.  A lot of people in Crossmolina will be surprised that Benson is gone but Carolan was kept? Most of the cross lads that I know would not rate him too highly.

As for my own club man , Killer, all I can say is that I hope Knockmore can benefit from him not been involved.  I have criticised him before because I believe he has a lot of ability but fails to use it at times.  He played very well in 2009.  His best trait is that he is not a choker in the big games......that said he can be totally out of it in some of the games which is never a great sign.

I know Barry Moran has been a bit of a disappointment, but if anyone of the starting forwards gets injured I don't see one forward on the subs bench that I would have too much faith in.  Maybe it is my wishful thinking that he could have been made into some sort of a target man so that we could have a plan B.

[AbbeySider]

Has anyone got a list of the full panel.  I heard at work today that all of his native Ballintubber men were retained on the panel.  I am sure it will be hard to swallow that these have performed well to date.  I saw a number of the league games and none of them impressed me apart for the obvious one in Dillon.  I find that it hard to believe that there is not a little bit of nepotism involved.

Thats total and utter bullshit. Ruaidhri O Connor was dropped last night so go have a pint for yourself and celebrate. Michael Nestor was dropped after the FBD campaign so if you knew anything about Mayo football you wouldnt have come up with a stupid statement like that. The only ones left from Ballintubber are Cillian O Connor has it in spades and is good enough for a place on the panel. Jason Gibbons - who is better than Parsons and has huge potential, and Cathal Hallinan who is one of the best corner backs in the county for the past 3 years and has the versatility to play full back or anywhere else in the defence, and Alan Dillon who needs no introduction.

A few other who have made the panel would not be in my top 100 players in the county. 

Exactly who are you talking about here?

The young lad from Crossmolina springs to mind......how is he still involved.

Again, exactly who are you talking about here?
Ronan Rochford is/was being given a chance but im not sure will he make it come championship. Benson got injured again, didnt really do that well in any games I saw and wasnt doing so well in there and was cut and Ian Rowland was not good enough; simple as that.

God, I hope I am wrong and that I will be eating humble pie come the summer/autumn.

Im waiting for your response, you could be eating humble pie before you think

[AbbeySider]

Gibbons has potential but he is hardly been kept around for his work rate which is the one thing that I would question him on.

You really have no idea do you? How many time have you seen him play, honestly?

I believe we have a competitive 15 at this stage, but the subs bench won't have too many lads looking over the shoulder.

There is no definite line anywhere in the team so they are all looking over their shoulder

A lot of people in Crossmolina will be surprised that Benson is gone but Carolan was kept?

Carolan When did he get called up to the Mayo squad? Is someone pulling your leg

[macdanger2]

According to the article on rte.ie T Mort was also dropped. While I wouldn't start him, it's somewhat of a surprise that he hasn't been retained on the panel for his experience if nothing else.

[AbbeySider]

According to the article on rte.ie T Mort was also dropped. While I wouldn't start him, it's somewhat of a surprise that he hasn't been retained on the panel for his experience if nothing else.

I stand to correction but I dont think he was ever involved in the current set-up.

Trevor Mortimor spent from last December to late March in India. He struggled in recent years and had a poor display in the couple of seasons. He didnt even stand out at club level last year IMO. Why keep him involved when you would only be keeping someone young and with potential off the panel?

We need to change our thinking.

Its amazing the swing in opinion from last years Longford game, where the consensus was to do a clear out, to when it does happen people are complaining that older players should be kept on for "experience". Experience of what?

[macdanger2]

True, I don't think he has been involved this year but would have thought he would have been good enough to at least be part of a training panel and maybe get some game time late in the league.

Yes, he has been poor in the last couple of seasons but he has also been a decent player for Mayo in the past and I would have thought Horan would at least give him a shot - if he has been away though, this may not have been possible though. Of the old hands, I would have thought he'd be more likely to make the team than say Gardiner.

[boosabum]

Trevor has been around for 10 years now, and i would say his only outstanding season was the 2004 campaign. If fermanagh had beaten us in the semi by a point, he would have got an allstar. A few eyebrows were raised when he was made captain a few seasons back, as his performances had him on shakey ground then. As mentioned, he had been away for a spell and it is difficult to expect him to come straight back in when he would not be regarded as an automatic choice. Time for the younger lads to carry the burden.

[saffronandblue]

I was only commenting on what I had heard at work if you read my post again....obviously that was wrong so my subsequent comment is null and void.

I happen to think that Gibbons does not work hard enough, thats only my opinion so no need to get all hot and bothered about it.  We all have our own opinions on who should be in and who should be out.  I don't see you arguning with my main point, in that we don't have subs panel that you could call on if need must.  For the forward in particular, if you take it that O'Shea will pay mid-field.  Thats nots Horans fault, I just dont think we have a great debth of talent in the forward department.

You can look back on my posts on C. O'Connor if you want to know how highly I rate him.  I reckon he will be our centre half forward for the next decade if he can deliver on his potential.

[Farrandeelin]

Gibbons... He has been good enough for me. We'll see when the real heat of the battle of inter-county championship before I make a judgement on him though. Glad he's been retained ahead of Parsons though. As for the clamour calling for Trevor Mortimer to be called back, well I don't know why. I think the manager has to go on form, and the last few years form, Trevor was not good enough imo.

[AbbeySider]

I was only commenting on what I had heard at work if you read my post again....obviously that was wrong so my subsequent comment is null and void.

I happen to think that Gibbons does not work hard enough, thats only my opinion so no need to get all hot and bothered about it.  We all have our own opinions on who should be in and who should be out.  I don't see you arguning with my main point, in that we don't have subs panel that you could call on if need must.  For the forward in particular, if you take it that O'Shea will pay mid-field.  Thats nots Horans fault, I just dont think we have a great debth of talent in the forward department.

You can look back on my posts on C. O'Connor if you want to know how highly I rate him.  I reckon he will be our centre half forward for the next decade if he can deliver on his potential.

Thats all fine saffronandblue, but I got disgruntled when you accused Horan of nepotism which you should retract.
We can do without that pub type loose talk and bullshit as it has no foundation whatsoever.

Regarding your subs comment, its an oxymoron to suggest that we dont have a settled 15 (due to the battle for places in every position) yet your insisting that Mayo dont have subs that can be called on? If im understanding you, thats a total contradiction in terms

[moysider]

As you would expect the bit of a cull is causing some friction. And if politics is local so too is football to an extent.
Myself I am not surprised by any of the omissions without going into specifics on all of them.

On the Trevor Mortimor issue I could go either way. He s had a rough couple of seasons. But he never had a chance being asked to do a job he just never had the skills to do.Playing him at 11 would be like askin Johnny O Connor to play 10 on a rugby team. Trevor is a water carrier and should have been left at that. Every team needs a couple. I ve heard it suggested that he could have been a 6. He started out as a defender and for the life of me I cannot see how it was not at least tried. Trevor was let down by a succession of managers who never really molded him into a role he suited or worked on his technical flaws. Maybe Horan feels it is too late for Trevor. I dont know Trevor but would he prepared to sit quietly on the bench? Or would he a disruptive presence? And how long before there would be another big interview in the Indo or somewhere?

I have sympathy for Ronaldson but again the decision does not surprise me. Whatever about his FBD returns it was obvious from the first couple of league games proper that Horan was moving on. For all his technical attributes he could not win primary possession against good corner backs. The work of Freeman and Doherty since shows where the bar must, at least, be for an inside forward if we are to compete later into the season. If Ronaldson could have added long range frees and 45s to his game then he may well have been kept.

There is no doubt that we have few enough inside forwards of real quality. Really only the two on form. Michael Conroy has the ability to be there but declined to get involved. If Conroy is in form in the next month he might explore how open-ended this panel is.
All in all I would go along with Horan s decisions. I would not put much weight on experience. What experience? Mayo have played very few championship matches since 2006. For those involved it was mostly bad experience anyway which, it could be argued, is worse than no experience at all. Experience works both ways.
Another feeling doing the rounds is that management have to get the best 15 on the pitch. Not necessarily so. The best 15 players will not give you the best team all the time. So often in the past we used to try and accommodate out and out midfielders in the forwards( strangely we seldom used them as backs, which I think says something) and include every galactico at the expense of tactic, shape and even effort and heart. If Horan can give us a team with shape and physically and mentally where they need to be, come championship that s the most important thing. His job is to select and set up a team properly, not please everybody - which is impossible to do anyway.