Messages

congratulations to tyrone, no team deserved to lose but at the same time someone had too! I was actually very suprised to see the level of off the ball stuff the tyrone lads were at, i have never seen a minor team engage in such a level of off the ball pullin and dragging, verbals and digs! Well done to the mayo lads, very proud of the way ye played out there

You obviously weren't looking at the Mayo full back line who were constantly fouling off the ball - you had the referee on your side for the whole match and he never picked up on it ( I don't think he wanted to ). So give us a bit of credit !

The referee was poor but to say he was for mayo for the whole match is ridiculous, u musnt have been watching the game.

And i have to disagree, the mayo full back line were being fouled if anything, everytime coney and mcneice made a run, they would pull the defender, push or whatever(punch trip on occassion).....modern day tactics if u will, half the time the mayo lads didnt have a clue what was going on, coney and the corner back got booked at one stage for a tussle, which coney clearly started and kept going by grabbing the mayo corner back. Tyrone as i said deserved it, i am just suprised by some of their actions.

congratulations to tyrone, no team deserved to lose but at the same time someone had too! I was actually very suprised to see the level of off the ball stuff the tyrone lads were at, i have never seen a minor team engage in such a level of off the ball pullin and dragging, verbals and digs! Well done to the mayo lads, very proud of the way ye played out there

I dont think he saw austin, conroy or boyle as part of his strongest team, for a start, everyone would be giving out if he didnt give these lads a chance so he had to do it! fact of the matter is Austin is deputy to Barry Moran, moran had no year with injuries so when austin had a decent league there was no alternative but to stick with him, after the defeat to galway, in an effort to remain in the championship O'Mahony had to go with alternatives. about boyle and conroy, both had average league campaigns, but the fact of the matter, they are square pegs for round holes with neither being naturals for the positions, however what are the alternatives? Namin a mayo back six is not an easy task!

I think in fariness to JOM, he tried his best to have a settled team for the league however, through injuries and poor play the team had to change....

during the league, he had a consistant 4 of six defenders(heaney, Howley, higgins,Cuniffe) and four of six forwards(dillon, moran, o'malley, mortimer)....parsons and Mac at midfield and clarke in goal the prob was that injury robbed us of a couple of key players....whilst some of the players who did well in the league (AOM,Conroy and Boyle) got roasted versus galway.
I think JOM knows his strongest team...i dont think he has had the opertunity to field this team once in his two years in charge!

So a lad sent off cant train with his club team? This is absolutely ridiculous situation.....next they'll be stoppin him looking at a football

I think Johnno found himself in a tough spot...we can comment all we want but we dont see what goes on in training and we dont know the roles that players are asked to perform.

Everyone knows mayos problem positions, o mahoney has tried to plus these holes but unfortunately it has not worked out for one reason or another.

Full forward, many people called for his inclusion....he got his chance and he yet again didnt take it, but lets not forget he is not the first choice for this postion, Barry Moran had the makings of a good target man, we await his return to see if it really works out! O Mahoney cannot be blamed for the injury so O'Mahoney was forced to go with Austie who earned his position with good performances in the league.

Centre Back, Well Howley is the man that hopefully can take the reigns or maybe tom cunniffe......it remains to be seen, howleys injury and cunniffes youth can not be blamed on the manager, combine this with Kilcullen opting out!

Midfield MacGarrity and Parsons are looking like they could be a decent partnership....Mac still hasnt regained form after illness and parsons is still young...Seamus o Shea and Pat harte wait in the wings

Full back -- u cant turn water into wine and we have no natural full back, many have been tried but no one has impressed, the manager is doomed if he does, doomed if he doesnt...if he left kilcullen in for last years championship after being roasted in the league final, it would have got it in the neck for not readin the warning signs, now he's gettin it for not including him when in reality kilcullen took the hump after the withdrawal.  Billy Joe injured...conroy got roasted....is the mangaer to hastey to discard or is he just seeing the lad cant cut it at that position so doesnt consider him?

Through injuries to key players and giving lads the chance to succeed we have taken a few losses....reallity is he is trying to build a new team but when the young players are roasted who else does he turn too, the old reliables, why cos he wants to win as much as the next mayo man.

I have optimism for the future,

Clarke is a premier keeper

the full back line is the line which needs most attention, it would take uncovering one player to make things a lot easier. K Higgins, A higgins, J Nallen......perhaps Cafferley, maybe young mcloughlin from knock more...any others worth a shout?

Half back line is gonna be heaney howley and cunniffe....this was the line throughout the league unfortunately robbed from us through injury

Midfield Mac Garrity and Parsons

Half forwards, Dillion Harte and Mortimer, established as a strong unit (a fit T mort means as much to us as P Galvin)

Ful Forward, Conor is the only certainty, we are missing one more scoring forward, if only for young pearse hanly

we also have good utility footballers such as billy joe, gardiner, a moran.

We are not as far off as some people are thinkin.

I'll keep the faith

Mayo team?

Do ye not think that Mayo trying to match defenders with Galway forwards was the main of the problem in the first place? Paying them too much respect in the first place and its so easy take defenders out of position, leave them in no-mans-land and create space. Same thing happened last year. Conroy was totally out of position v N Joyce on a number of occassions. Conroy was chosen as a classic full back, so thats where he should be played. If we were to follow men all round then Conroy should not have been picked. IMO defenders should be picked in their best positions and stay there irrespective of who lines up against them.

Good point....i do also think that Mayos Midfield not doing aswel as expected contributed to the beating the defense took

Thinking about the first half of the match, were Johnno's match ups wrong? Depoying Conroy on Nicky joyce doesnt seem to make sense, joyce being a pacy forward......perhaps if keith higgins had marked joyce with Conroy on Meehan it would have allowed conroy mark the type of player full backs traditionally mark.

Just who is the most effective counciller in Mayo?

Have a good feeling about the 'ree this year for the Mayo junior championship. I hear they are flying at the moment with Bleep and Noddy particularly impressing in training. If they win this surely they would have a shot at the All-Ireland junior championship. Rumour has it Brian O Malley might be coming back for the rest of this season. Anyone think they can be beaten this year? Could they do it?

Which GAA players do ye think have the nicest legs? Some fine specimens running around the fields. Some of the camogie players have great legs while Ronan McGarritty's pins are wasted on a fella. I remember Maurice Fitz always used to have a set of beautifully turned out legs as well.

Just wondering lads who do ye reckon are the greatest chokers of recent times? Some memorable bridesmaids since 1990 most notaly the dubs losing finals in the early 90's although they possibly redeemed themselves in 1995. We have fairly collapsed ourselves (Mayo) in a few finals while what about Corks capitulation last year? Any thoughts?

How do you leave MacGarrity out of the team?
Serious lack of defending defenders in Gardiner, BJP and K Higgins of a half back line,
And a serious lack of pace in the full back line.

Ronan MacGarrity is Mayo's most important player! Impossible to leave him out!

Picking them on form Harte and parsons were far better than Mcgarrity against sligo , also if galway go at mayo and throw the rule book out the window as they have been doing recently i think parsons and harte would cope better. and as with harte it should be midfield or nowhere for him. not having a CHF could easily had done for mayo .
the half back line is an attacking one because that how mayo should play the game and is there strongest asset and where sucess will come from if it is to come.
your full back line is a myth . try running alonsg side nallen or heaney and then tell me they are slow and they are real  top class footballers and we dont have many of those since Mac and Brady left, Dillion probably being the only other at the minute

You pick parsons who has played one championship game versus a division 4 team(no offence to sligo but they havent performed all year) over the captain of the team and who has been nominated for multiple all stars? You have omitted the most experienced mid fielder at this level. Hartes performance which you said was very impressive was from CHF so what is your rationale for suggesting that this form would continue against superior opposition in a different position?

Your half back line is just not feasable, none of these has played championship footbal in the half back line this year!(so does the form argument go out the window here?) Billy Joe is only back from injury, gardiner is now classed as a forward.

What relevence would me running beside any of these fellas have? for all you no i could be Maurice Green? And besides.....its not a myth, liam o malley has been proven to be too loose as a corner back(he's a far better half back), Nallen doesnt have the legs for a task so close to goal. He definitely has something to offer but not in that position, the galway full forward line is on fire at the minute!

How do you leave MacGarrity out of the team?
Serious lack of defending defenders in Gardiner, BJP and K Higgins of a half back line,
And a serious lack of pace in the full back line.

Ronan MacGarrity is Mayo's most important player! Impossible to leave him out!