Messages

was at the game yesterday, would agree with a lot of the ratings, but think you are off the mark with a few. In general Mayo were putrid in the second half...brushed aside when Laois had posession and headless when we had posession. I saw the game as O'Mahony giving the fringe players an opportunity - hiowever none of the othere need worry too much!

Agree A Higgins is currently head of the list for one of the corners. But lads, Nallen? Look, he kind of ticked things over yesterday as he does well but was not really in it when 50/50 man to man action was required and just did a shadowing thing once his man got the ball really. All due respect to a great servent, but dont think he should be in the squad and could have been accommodiated in the set-up elsewhere.

Conroy did grand without ever been dominent.

Agree Heaney was one of the best yesterday, but unfortunately for him, being tried again in a different position. Think its his best position though. Thought Kelly was a bit off the pase and was second to his man a lot of the time. Boyle is tigerish and committed and thought he did well yesterday, but maybe a bit lacking in height and seems to be grounded a lot!

McGarrity was ok for the half he was on. Thought O'Shea did well for the first half and looks fitter than I ever seen him. But agree Parsons is ahead of him although not as physically strong. Parsons cought one lovely ball when he came on.

T Mortimer - gave everything in fairness and battled throughout as if it was championship. But distribution / holding on too long / getting blocked, etc. lets him down too so often. Was placed with a lovely pass by his brother for a point and then balooned it.

Thought Harte was dissapointing after strting well. Campbell played well in spurts. Tends to get blocked a lot and sometimes takes too much out of the ball. Would like to see him shoot a bit more.
Conor did well withought being brilliant. Was taking it a bit handy I think, but was our only real threat in the forwards in the first half. Not only is he our best scorer, sometimes he appears to be our best forward at winning his own ball, and that says something!
Kilcoyne mixed the sublime with the ridicilous. 2 very scorable frees put wide - a couple of lovely scores from play - bad miss at the end when we needed it badly. Will be used a lot in the championship though cos we are very short in the forward dept
Ronaldson - tried really hard, but not up to it at this level. Same for Mullins

We seem to have seen the game much the same - except for the Nallen issue where we ll just have to differ. I would prefer to see him at four rather than fellas who played there earlier. Young Tierney is a fine player and I believe he would have caused others more problems to others. Yesterday most ball Tierney  won he came deep for and he generally played off the other 2 forwards anyway and I thought Nallen handled that well.I had Tierney down as one point from play but I could have missed something. Other than Heaney back I dont think we have a viable alternative this year to Nallen. And that would be more messing about with Heaney. Whether Nallen features or not depends on whether Johnno sees it my way or your way. I think he may see it your way and persist with Cunniffe in the corner. That would be more consistant with his way of doing things. I think that would be a mistake but its only my opinion.

Anyone got the Laois lineout - was working at something else yesterday so couldn't go - presume there was a big crowd at it? - fair play to all in Ballyhaunis GAA - sounds like an impressive development

Mediocre cwowd on a lovely day.

Nolan
Healy
O Leary
Higgins
Kelly
Rooney
McMahon
Quigley
O Loughlin
Sheehan
McCormack
Munnelly
Tierney
Kelly
Parkinson.

Subs.

The Stradbally Colm Kelly came on for Ross Munnelly at ht.
Thought I saw clancy on the field too towards the end but too be honest I was paying more attention to our own lot and I c ould nt hear any public addresses where I was - if there was any.

I'd agree with him about Moynihan. Very good player, but didn't merit the orgasmic adulation of various commentators who elevated the simplest of his handpasses to the level of genius. If you were picking a half back line from the last 10 years would he be in it?

Ybsolutely. Yes. First name on it.

Good reports Moysider - would agree (from the limited bits I've seen this year) that Trev Mort could be a revelation if deployed at half back - as usual we seem to be spoilt for choices in one line and struggle to match up with the best in others - which if is the case might be better to keep Trev in the half forwards, if he can string some consistent performances together and stay injury free he could be a big player for us during the summer

Agree. Trevor is a gem [and Conor as well looks to becoming a more rounded mature player] . Trevor  leads by example as well and seriously hard. But of course where to play him? I m favouring half back now but a half back line of Higgins Heaney and Howley hard to argue with - then there s  Kelly, Boyle and Barrett and Cuniffe as options there too. Our half Forward line maybe needs his presence but sometimes his wildness there ruins great opportunities sometimes when opposition is opened up and he just skewes possession away. Hard to see him settle for the simple option at this stage. But I d always find a place for him.

"There is no wriggle room left, Ciaran; I want a yes or no and I want it now."
IS THERE ANY OTHER ANSWER TO THAT QUESTION OTHER THAN f**k YUOU

You are not getting my drift with that one, ros.
O'Mahony had the option to do this but he didn't. Why not?
Because it would have gotten him a straight answer, that's why! Ciaran might have spelt out the reasons why he was unhappy and that might have caused embarrassment in some quarters.
The way O'Mahony chose to was a classic case of mishandling the situation. The manager, any manager has ultimate authority but with that comes ultimate responsibility. He knows damn well it was his job to ascertain the player's intentions before going public and saying Mac had decided not to re-join the squad.
It could very well be that Mac has had enough but O'Mahony should not have assumed this. It was his job to check certain that Ciaran was leaving of his own free will before stating this in public. Mac felt his good name was being called into question and went public on this. Rightly or wrongly, he felt he had been shafted and said this.
What was O'Mahony's reaction??
Did he deny directly any thing McDonald said? I can't see any evidence of this in his reply. No, Ciaran wasn't being shafted at all; he could still find his way back into O'Mahony's plans if his club form warranted this and after all, the entire panel wasn't really closed firmly in any player's face.
There is no point in O'Mahony spouting bullshit about the difficulties he had in contacting the player either. He was the boss and he should have checked out the player's intentions, with a straight yes or no question if necessary, but he flunked that.
Note again that O'Mahony hasn't contradicted anything that Ciaran said; instead he went on to speak of possibilities  that just weren't there when he implied that Mac had turned his back on his fans in Mayo.

Think you re right Lar. fact the only judgement I would question of your recent posts on this topic is your infatuation with the glamerous daughter of the well known landscape artist Pádraig Fada. I happened to attend todays challenge with Laois. Only a challenge but a couple of things were apparent.

James Nallen still a class act - only the hair line has receded, he still has pace and if i was Johnno i would have been thrilled with him. He is on todays display a better option for Full back line than likes of Cuniffe, O malley or Boyle.

Aiden higgins also a lot to offer in full back line. Comfortable. Composeded. A leader. Enough pace and does nt look like he s shitting himself all the time. Again better option than those younger fellas listed above.
Anyway as far as I can see the best of the young lads for the corner are not in panel - likes of McLoughlin and Cafferkey. Nallen and Higgins best in panel.

Brings me to Mac. There appears to be a public opinion in the county and particularly outside that we re doing fine without him - he was slowing down the game blah blah blah. Dont agree with that but of course there is merit in it on paper. I prefer things to be more controlled than helter skelter. With Mac things were deliberate. Yesterday with Dillon and Andy Moran rested/injured we were a mess in the forwards once hard ball had to be won and used in the half forward line. Dillon is struggling with injury a bit it seems and in last years match in Celtic park he was ineffective due to injury. With Hanley gone who the hell is this dynamic chf that we dont need McDonald. If Dillon is injured as well we re up the creek. Parsons has the ability to do job there but its a big ask to start in championship. A lot of people think McDonald if he was available should be played closer to the goals. Fair enough, I d be delighted to have him anywhere but our cause for a no.11 is as urgent as our quest for a full back has been.  

Paul Galvin a mediocre to good player?    Is this guy having a laugh,

Galvin isnt one of the greatest ever(yet anyway)and may never be

But hes one of the best half forwards in the game at this time.

Of this great Kerry Team,and it really is a great one

for me Colm Cooper, Darragh O Se and Tomas O Se are 3 of the best of all time.

Mark O Se and possibely Kieran Donaghy could join them in that category with a few more stellar years.

anyway ya Kerry c**ts, Remember 1947 

Agree with your choice of the quality ones. I would add Declan O Sullivan, he has what it takes to be a great as well. A Rolls Royce of a player. A thoroughbred. And while on the subject of horses did nt Hayes have a cut at the Pony last year saying that he was nt that special after all. We all had imagined it. Or was it somebody else? Hardly. There s nobody else in journalism that spaced.

go on fill us in with the scorers. i wouldn't woory too much about the performance. challange matches are odd things. were there any odd patterns to mayos play? often times they use these games  for experimentation. how was o'shea?

Take your point about it being a challenge match but we were seriously outmuscled in the second half. Here s how I thought they performed.

Clarke. Excellent. Made at least 3 excellent saves. Great distance on Kick outs and threw in a few very good short ones in the second half when we could nt buy possession out the field. Had no chance with the goal. Distribution from hand first rate. Only one ropey moment. Communicating well and showing leadership. Mom. 9/10

A. Higgins. Very accomplished and composed. Looks much happier in the corner than others that were tried there and better than when he played there first 9 years ago. Kept Parkinson quiet. Moved the ball smartly. 7.5

Conroy. Strong and good pace. Was nt shown up and did a lot of things well. Seems to be growing into the roll. 6.5

Nallen. Thought he did very well and was the third man in probably the mast composed fullback line all year. Looks as good as ever. Any talk of him being gone slow is bulls**t. Coped well with young Tierney who is a tricky customer. On this performance he could well be the man to solve a troublesome corner back spot. Tidied up and moved things along well.7.5

Kelly. Played well. Marking Billy Sheehan and did well and got forward too. Taken off at ht for K Higgins. Good man to have around. 7

Heaney. Best outfield player for Mayo. Had a good tussle which he edged with Brian McCormack. Got on the ball a lot besides. One of our few leaders. Looks like putting Howley under pressure for cb. 8

Boyle. Had a busy afternoon. Full of energy. Had some good moments. Was marking Laois best forward in Ross Munnelly. Had the pace for him but Munnelly still scored 3 points from play. But he usually will anyway in most games. Then later in the game he had yo pick up Parkinson who looks more at home on the wing. So does Boyle. 6

McGarrity. Solid first half against a powerful Quigley. At least while he was on the field we were competitive in the area. When he was replaced at ht we crumbled. Coincidence? 7

O Shea. Hard to believe it but his opponent John O Loughlin was bigger and stronger, O Shea came off second best I thought.. Replaced early in second half. Struggled with the pace I thought. May need more time and his fitness may need work as well. 5

Campbell[ 0-2 1/45] Great work rate and injected pace and urgency into the game. A bit wild a couple of times kicking into blocks. Could have picked up more breaks second half. Still looks like a probable ch. starter. 7. Kicked a lovely 45 which is a nice option to have. 7

Harte. Hardly a no. 11 and not playing as well as 06 but signs he might in 6 weeks time. Moved to midfield when O Shea went off and did reasonably. May be needed in team to help out in midfield. 6

T Mortimor. [0-1]Got on a sight of ball in first half around the middle and his distribution was good picking out the corner men time and again. However when Laois had the ball Tom Kelly ran riot. Kelly scored a point as well. Worked hard to get Mayo back into it near the end. Wild at times and his distribution went west in the second half. Launched a customary garryowen and kicked into an obvious block as well. Overall good to see him fit and well. Maybe a half-back berth again would suit best. 7

C. Mortimor.[ 1p- 3 /2f] Always looked a threat. Scored a lovely first point and won a few frees winning most ball that went his way.  Nailed his penalty expertly and looks in good form. Gave Healy a torrid time.  8.

Kilcoyne. [1-2]A curate s egg of a display. Took his goal well and nailed 2 nice points playing in a withdrawn full forward role similar to Austin;'s in league. His dead ball kicking was a disaster however, missing 2 simple frees and driving a 45 wide as well. Marked by Joe Higgins who s no slouch. This role suits his game better than the wing and maybe he can do the job as well as Austin does? Time will tell. 6.5

Ronaldson.[1-0] Ok first half and took his goal well. Seemed to be trying too hard and forcing things. Took wrong options a few times. A couple of wild shots into blocks. Andy s place not in threat. 5

Subs.

Parsons. Introduced into Midfield in the second half. Very impressive on the ball and made  one great catch. However our midfield were beaten as a whole. Still Parsons worked hard and carried ball well and was one of those instrumental in rallying in last 10 mins. Ahead of O Shea in race to partner McGarrity. 8.

K Higgins. Introduced at half time and I never saw him quieter - God Knows how many games he played the weekend. 5.

Mullins.0-1] Looks like he needs more time to settle in at this level. Kicked away the first 2 balls he got at a time when Mayo possession was at a premium. Recovered well to kick equaliser and almost nailed the winner. 5.

The most alarming thing from our point of view was when Laois upped the intensity in the second half we were brushed aside on the breaks and they ran through our midfield and half-back line. The way we re set up it looks essential that we win midfield well in matches to keep opposition score down to manageable levels. Individually our forwards had their moments but in the second half they were a rabble with little shape and less leadership. The distribution and shooting was as bad as any I ve seen from us in a long time.

Clarke
A. Higgins.
Conroy
Nallen
Kelly
Heaney
Boyle
McGarrity
O Shea.
Campbell
Harte
Trevor
Conor
Kilcoyne
Ronaldson

Subs, Parsons. K. Higgins. Mullins.

Just back from 'haunis.  Draw. Laois 1-15  Mayo 3-9 . Half-time  it was 2-5 to 7 points and Mayo had the breeze in the second half. Alarming Mayo collapse for most of the second half though, even if it was only a challenge. Laois on the other hand look in rude good health and their poor league form looks irrelevant at this stage. They looked more of a championship team than we did today. They re big and pacey with a few classy forwards and I thought the 7-1 I got just now on Paddy power good value for Leinster. On the other hand the awful performance of the Mayo forwards in the second half will not convince some of us that the Mayo team is better without CMcD. I can go into detail of individual performances, scoring etc for both teams if anybody is interested. 

Janey! Some of ye seem to have stronger views about Long Paddy's daughter that ye have about Johnno or Ciaran.

Not really Lar but its a bit early in the afternoon for beer goggles and midnight madonnas. Sure you have nt been layin into the buckfast all morning?

[Why would he? McDonald is 33 isn't he? Either way he's not going to be around a great deal longer so why would you build a team around him now?]

The situation is a little more worrying in the long view though. McDonald is the sort of fella around whom teams are built. Johnno clearly - clearly - has no plans to build a team around McDonald, and that leaves us then with the question of just around whom exactly does he plan to build a team?

Why would he? McDonald is 33 isn't he? Either way he's not going to be around a great deal longer so why would you build a team around him now? Mayo will have to move on at some stage without him. Maybe this is what O'Mahony wants to do which is fair enough IMO although it makes the recall of James Nallen rather puzzling.

Why would he indeed??? Cant speak for Iolar but I suspect he means build a team for this year - the year that means most now is this year. Its alright talking about building for a few years time when the awfully big bad wolf that is Kerry has got fed up and goes away and we might be the best of the rest which is wishful thinking anyway. Is that the best way forward then??  There are one or two here who probably remember Mayo in the 70 s, when there was always decent players coming through from minor and u21 but they never did came through, and there was always next year but it was always worse! If we F**k up in Conn. this year we will have to go to placves like Salthill next year to win. But that ll be no problem to the re-builders - right? How much rebuilding can be done in a Summer if we re poleaxed mid- july and dont play again for six months. McDonald is our best go-to player this year - at least - and if we get a few wins it is progress and other lads will get valuable championship wins - and good experience -under their belts ,and be better next year. Its alright talking about rebuidung and experience but there are two kinds of experience and last year young  mayo lads had two bad experiences in Champ. My adversaries would contend it was nt as bad as losing to Kerry in Sept. I dont buy that and it should be noted a couple of those lads from last summer are not around anymore [and I dont mean Hanley ]. The best experience that our young players could get this year is a Connacht title - which always gets a great response no matter how often we ve won it.  Our best chance of doing that is if mac is in the team and the sooner the better.

Ah Shorty ffs how can you lay any blame on Dolan? At least ye have nt gone backwards at a rate of knots, not like some. Before you diss on the man have a bit of sympathy for his plight. He knows he has a good team at his disposal but every injury seriously undermines the teams prospects. Have you ever managed a team with a small player base[ and in a county context Leitrim have a small player base]? I can assure you that no pep talk or confidence boost spiel will make up the difference between a class player being injured and an average lad taking his place. And its the same whether your managing a small club or a county of small population. I would put Dolans moanings down to disappointment and frustration  rather than just whinging .Two years ago Leitrim could well have beaten Mayo and Maxwell only on the pitch for 20 minutes due to injury. With more ball he could have done as much damage to Heaney as Donaghy did later on . I m sure Dolan would have loved to have started him because he s a match winner rather than just a good honest lad, which he is as well no doubt. Big teams struggle when they lose their best players but at least they have bigger reserves to replace from.

Yes I have and I currently do manage a team with a small player base, so i do know what i'm talking about.  If I was to keep moaning that I'm missing such and such - what affect is that having on the fringe players???  Instead I challenge these fringe players to take on the challenge of pushing these established players for their place - and i don't just talk about it - i have brought in these fringe players and the confidence they have gained is astonishing... but if your like Dolan and just keep whinging as you phrased and yet leave ten or twelve more lads on the line to make up the training games then where are you going.  So don't lecture me player management - because if Dolan took off the blinkers and encouraged fringe players to stake a place in his team by giving them a chance - then you'll find we'll get somewhere worth shouting about.

Wow. Reckon I ve touched a nerve here but my intention was not to lecture you in any way. You re obviously familiar with Dolans ways and I too would be appalled with any coach/ manager that would moan to players and call lads watery whatevers as a later poster pointed out. That s abuse.

I ve been impressed with Leitrim in Dolan s time. As honest a team as is around and technically good too. You obviously feel there was more in them with a more positive manager though. Thats fair enough. Best of luck in the Championship.

[[There's no question of forcing anybody out the panel.]]

I have found O'Mahony's interview with Colm Keyes very enlightening. Stripping away the political double-speak, the following extracts might be a pointer to his future plans:
How about this:
[There's no question of forcing anybody out the panel.]
Or this:
[That applies to all players....]
The messiah expounded further:
[As far as I'm concerned, it all about what's good for Mayo football. That's my only interest and only priority.]
Even for a politician, this is fairly straightforward:
[The reality is that for the last 18 months he wasn't in a position to play. Maybe that will change in the future.]
Is there an olive branch being extended here?

The whole F***ing olive tree is being extended if you ask me! Like most politicians Johnno s priority is himself and saving his own skin the priority since the shit hit the fan when the Indo arrived in Mayo yesterday. Its bacon slicer time for Johnno s arse unless he can sort this out and fast. He s a realistic man. Mac will be back. Johnno s probably been on discussion sites to see how public opinion is going and will act accordingly. Not having Mac back does nt make sense from either a football or political perspective.

I wouldn't just underestimate New York just yet.  Word from across the pond is that they have widened their player net beyond New York city - maybe someone stateside could shed some light on this.  You have to remember NY took us to extra time the last with the help of six minutes injury time, fair enough that was 5/6 years ago and we'll have learned from it - but if anything NY will be very confident of pulling off a major shock.  Having said that I can't see us getting a result beyond Galway/Roscommon, I've read alot of post calling Dessie Dolan a cute manager - but I can tell you he hasn't brought this team on as far as you might think since he took over from Declan Rowley - we were on the brink five years ago and here we are still on the brink.  He has failed to instill confidence in players by always moaning about injury, population etc. Its this lack of confidence that has us where we are and by all probability thats where will finish the summer with. 

Ah Shorty ffs how can you lay any blame on Dolan? At least ye have nt gone backwards at a rate of knots, not like some. Before you diss on the man have a bit of sympathy for his plight. He knows he has a good team at his disposal but every injury seriously undermines the teams prospects. Have you ever managed a team with a small player base[ and in a county context Leitrim have a small player base]? I can assure you that no pep talk or confidence boost spiel will make up the difference between a class player being injured and an average lad taking his place. And its the same whether your managing a small club or a county of small population. I would put Dolans moanings down to disappointment and frustration  rather than just whinging .Two years ago Leitrim could well have beaten Mayo and Maxwell only on the pitch for 20 minutes due to injury. With more ball he could have done as much damage to Heaney as Donaghy did later on . I m sure Dolan would have loved to have started him because he s a match winner rather than just a good honest lad, which he is as well no doubt. Big teams struggle when they lose their best players but at least they have bigger reserves to replace from.

Important thing now is sort this out as quickly as possible. Get him back in the team, if as it seems he wants to, and get prepared to play Sligo in Castlebar on June 22. Even though Sligo are now a Div. 4 team they re bullish and cocky about turning us over as can be seen on the Connacht Champ. thread on this board. They smell blood and most within the province and a lot within our own county dont rate us at all this year. There is only one answer to that. We need a positive response to this crisis from management and hopefully from Mac as well. We at least need to lay down a marker this year in the championship. show a good deal of progression from last year anyway. Any rebuilding will be up in smoke again if we lose to Sligo in June.