2013 All Ireland Final: Mayo v Dublin

[moysider]

watever about crosmaglen, but ballymun came frum nowhere to win dublin chmpionship, never mind leinster and get ot an all ireland final. beating thrm is hardly a massive achievemnt

Course it was. Dublin champions are not expected to lose to teams from Connacht. And a team does not win a Dublin championship from nowhere. Ballymun got a very good run going and are a fine team.

[From the Bunker]

Personally Mayo not winning Sam since 1951 or Dublin not beating Mayo in Championship football since 1985 will have zero influence on Sunday's senior A.I. final.

Don't know about that, all those boys on the Mayo team have been brought up with that long wait for Sam and will know very well what it means to the county. Doesn't have to be a negative though, it can also be a motivation if it's used properly. Wishful thinking though I'd suggest to say it will have "zero influence". The Dublin side of things I don't see as being a factor, Dublin not beating Mayo in the championship since 1985 is hardly comparable to Mayo's long wait for Sam.

I know the Mayo people on here are sick and tired of this kind of talk but I would have doubts still about the mental toughness of this team. They had Dublin well beaten last year and stopped playing and were lucky to win. I know some Mayo posters here say there were injuries taking their toll there but the fact was that Mayo lost the head in the closing stages of that game. They then made a very poor start to the Final and never really looked like they were going to turn it around, even when they got closer to Donegal later in the game.

Hasn't been an issue this year until the semi when Tyrone started well and Mayo promptly lost the head, kicking possession away, making poor decisions and missing easy frees. It wasn't just a case of Mayo being outplayed for a spell - they were very obviously having a wobble there on probably the first occasion this summer that any real questions were asked of them. Now you can argue that they dug their way back from that to win well, but the fact was that Tyrone had them on the ropes but didn't have the firepower to really pull away (losing key men down the spine of the team didn't help either). Dublin have significantly better forwards than Tyrone and should they get Mayo into that kind of position they will put up a much better score than the 0-7 Tyrone managed in that first half. Any Mayo wobble will be properly punished.

As such I reckon there are still major questions to be answered by this Mayo team when they are put under pressure - questions they can only answer really by winning the AI. Have my doubts, but I wish them all the best.

Boyle was out before the game due to illness.

Lee Keegan off the field dislocated finger.

Kevin McLoughlin took an accidental knee to the head from Macauley.

Aidan O'Se had to go off with 10 minutes to go as he was not match fit.

That's four of the middle eight that did not play the full game. Now any way you look at it, that is disruption! We did that year what Kerry failed to do the year before. We closed the game out!

[moysider]

Personally Mayo not winning Sam since 1951 or Dublin not beating Mayo in Championship football since 1985 will have zero influence on Sunday's senior A.I. final.

Don't know about that, all those boys on the Mayo team have been brought up with that long wait for Sam and will know very well what it means to the county. Doesn't have to be a negative though, it can also be a motivation if it's used properly. Wishful thinking though I'd suggest to say it will have "zero influence". The Dublin side of things I don't see as being a factor, Dublin not beating Mayo in the championship since 1985 is hardly comparable to Mayo's long wait for Sam.

I know the Mayo people on here are sick and tired of this kind of talk but I would have doubts still about the mental toughness of this team. They had Dublin well beaten last year and stopped playing and were lucky to win. I know some Mayo posters here say there were injuries taking their toll there but the fact was that Mayo lost the head in the closing stages of that game. They then made a very poor start to the Final and never really looked like they were going to turn it around, even when they got closer to Donegal later in the game.

Hasn't been an issue this year until the semi when Tyrone started well and Mayo promptly lost the head, kicking possession away, making poor decisions and missing easy frees. It wasn't just a case of Mayo being outplayed for a spell - they were very obviously having a wobble there on probably the first occasion this summer that any real questions were asked of them. Now you can argue that they dug their way back from that to win well, but the fact was that Tyrone had them on the ropes but didn't have the firepower to really pull away (losing key men down the spine of the team didn't help either). Dublin have significantly better forwards than Tyrone and should they get Mayo into that kind of position they will put up a much better score than the 0-7 Tyrone managed in that first half. Any Mayo wobble will be properly punished.As such I reckon there are still major questions to be answered by this Mayo team when they are put under pressure - questions they can only answer really by winning the AI. Have my doubts, but I wish them all the best.

Fair play.

As a Mayo man maybe I should be more upbeat but nothing I have heard or seen resonates with me more than that.
Maybe it explains my beligerence in a recent post.

[Sam2011]

Personally Mayo not winning Sam since 1951 or Dublin not beating Mayo in Championship football since 1985 will have zero influence on Sunday's senior A.I. final.

Don't know about that, all those boys on the Mayo team have been brought up with that long wait for Sam and will know very well what it means to the county. Doesn't have to be a negative though, it can also be a motivation if it's used properly. Wishful thinking though I'd suggest to say it will have "zero influence". The Dublin side of things I don't see as being a factor, Dublin not beating Mayo in the championship since 1985 is hardly comparable to Mayo's long wait for Sam.

I know the Mayo people on here are sick and tired of this kind of talk but I would have doubts still about the mental toughness of this team. They had Dublin well beaten last year and stopped playing and were lucky to win. I know some Mayo posters here say there were injuries taking their toll there but the fact was that Mayo lost the head in the closing stages of that game. They then made a very poor start to the Final and never really looked like they were going to turn it around, even when they got closer to Donegal later in the game.

Hasn't been an issue this year until the semi when Tyrone started well and Mayo promptly lost the head, kicking possession away, making poor decisions and missing easy frees. It wasn't just a case of Mayo being outplayed for a spell - they were very obviously having a wobble there on probably the first occasion this summer that any real questions were asked of them. Now you can argue that they dug their way back from that to win well, but the fact was that Tyrone had them on the ropes but didn't have the firepower to really pull away (losing key men down the spine of the team didn't help either). Dublin have significantly better forwards than Tyrone and should they get Mayo into that kind of position they will put up a much better score than the 0-7 Tyrone managed in that first half. Any Mayo wobble will be properly punished.

As such I reckon there are still major questions to be answered by this Mayo team when they are put under pressure - questions they can only answer really by winning the AI. Have my doubts, but I wish them all the best.

Bit of a selective memory?
No mention of the man who scored two hatricks in one and a half games *que cliche line ''sure that was only against London and a hungover Donegal" *
You continue to ignore the fact that our two tails men up front are both injured and off form. If your going to mention the Tyrone ones its only fair you mention Mayos ones also.
In addition you fail to mention that we have a better defense than Dublin, so much so that even some 'experts' say we have the best half back line in the country.
We have come back in many games under James Horan after being four points down at half time. This mentality label on Mayo teams is really beginning to bore now.

[moysider]

Personally Mayo not winning Sam since 1951 or Dublin not beating Mayo in Championship football since 1985 will have zero influence on Sunday's senior A.I. final.

Don't know about that, all those boys on the Mayo team have been brought up with that long wait for Sam and will know very well what it means to the county. Doesn't have to be a negative though, it can also be a motivation if it's used properly. Wishful thinking though I'd suggest to say it will have "zero influence". The Dublin side of things I don't see as being a factor, Dublin not beating Mayo in the championship since 1985 is hardly comparable to Mayo's long wait for Sam.

I know the Mayo people on here are sick and tired of this kind of talk but I would have doubts still about the mental toughness of this team. They had Dublin well beaten last year and stopped playing and were lucky to win. I know some Mayo posters here say there were injuries taking their toll there but the fact was that Mayo lost the head in the closing stages of that game. They then made a very poor start to the Final and never really looked like they were going to turn it around, even when they got closer to Donegal later in the game.

Hasn't been an issue this year until the semi when Tyrone started well and Mayo promptly lost the head, kicking possession away, making poor decisions and missing easy frees. It wasn't just a case of Mayo being outplayed for a spell - they were very obviously having a wobble there on probably the first occasion this summer that any real questions were asked of them. Now you can argue that they dug their way back from that to win well, but the fact was that Tyrone had them on the ropes but didn't have the firepower to really pull away (losing key men down the spine of the team didn't help either). Dublin have significantly better forwards than Tyrone and should they get Mayo into that kind of position they will put up a much better score than the 0-7 Tyrone managed in that first half. Any Mayo wobble will be properly punished.

As such I reckon there are still major questions to be answered by this Mayo team when they are put under pressure - questions they can only answer really by winning the AI. Have my doubts, but I wish them all the best.

Bit of a selective memory?
No mention of the man who scored two hatricks in one and a half games *que cliche line ''sure that was only against London and a hungover Donegal" *
You continue to ignore the fact that our two tails men up front are both injured and off form. If your going to mention the Tyrone ones its only fair you mention Mayos ones also.
In addition you fail to mention that we have a better defense than Dublin, so much so that even some 'experts' say we have the best half back line in the country.
We have come back in many games under James Horan after being four points down at half time. This mentality label on Mayo teams is really beginning to bore now.

Don t shoot the messenger Sam. It s a fine judgement call as far as I m concerned.

This is the best Mayo team/management that I ve witnessed. No harm being aware of an achilles heel or others pointng it out. Waste of time trying to spin out of it. There are no excuses any more.

[emmetryan]

Hi guys,

Second part of our preview up now. Here's a tactical profile of Dublin with video
http://action81.com/blog/?p=7651

Thanks,
Emmet

[Tubberman]

Personally Mayo not winning Sam since 1951 or Dublin not beating Mayo in Championship football since 1985 will have zero influence on Sunday's senior A.I. final.

Don't know about that, all those boys on the Mayo team have been brought up with that long wait for Sam and will know very well what it means to the county. Doesn't have to be a negative though, it can also be a motivation if it's used properly. Wishful thinking though I'd suggest to say it will have "zero influence". The Dublin side of things I don't see as being a factor, Dublin not beating Mayo in the championship since 1985 is hardly comparable to Mayo's long wait for Sam.

I know the Mayo people on here are sick and tired of this kind of talk but I would have doubts still about the mental toughness of this team. They had Dublin well beaten last year and stopped playing and were lucky to win. I know some Mayo posters here say there were injuries taking their toll there but the fact was that Mayo lost the head in the closing stages of that game. They then made a very poor start to the Final and never really looked like they were going to turn it around, even when they got closer to Donegal later in the game.

Hasn't been an issue this year until the semi when Tyrone started well and Mayo promptly lost the head, kicking possession away, making poor decisions and missing easy frees. It wasn't just a case of Mayo being outplayed for a spell - they were very obviously having a wobble there on probably the first occasion this summer that any real questions were asked of them. Now you can argue that they dug their way back from that to win well, but the fact was that Tyrone had them on the ropes but didn't have the firepower to really pull away (losing key men down the spine of the team didn't help either). Dublin have significantly better forwards than Tyrone and should they get Mayo into that kind of position they will put up a much better score than the 0-7 Tyrone managed in that first half. Any Mayo wobble will be properly punished.

As such I reckon there are still major questions to be answered by this Mayo team when they are put under pressure - questions they can only answer really by winning the AI. Have my doubts, but I wish them all the best.

Bit of a selective memory?
No mention of the man who scored two hatricks in one and a half games *que cliche line ''sure that was only against London and a hungover Donegal" *
You continue to ignore the fact that our two tails men up front are both injured and off form. If your going to mention the Tyrone ones its only fair you mention Mayos ones also.
In addition you fail to mention that we have a better defense than Dublin, so much so that even some 'experts' say we have the best half back line in the country.
We have come back in many games under James Horan after being four points down at half time. This mentality label on Mayo teams is really beginning to bore now.

Don t shoot the messenger Sam. It s a fine judgement call as far as I m concerned.

This is the best Mayo team/management that I ve witnessed. No harm being aware of an achilles heel or others pointng it out. Waste of time trying to spin out of it. There are no excuses any more.

Have to agree. The only argument against it with any substance will have to be on the pitch on Sunday

[Hound]

Hasn't been an issue this year until the semi when Tyrone started well and Mayo promptly lost the head, kicking possession away, making poor decisions and missing easy frees. It wasn't just a case of Mayo being outplayed for a spell - they were very obviously having a wobble there on probably the first occasion this summer that any real questions were asked of them. Now you can argue that they dug their way back from that to win well, but the fact was that Tyrone had them on the ropes but didn't have the firepower to really pull away (losing key men down the spine of the team didn't help either). Dublin have significantly better forwards than Tyrone and should they get Mayo into that kind of position they will put up a much better score than the 0-7 Tyrone managed in that first half. Any Mayo wobble will be properly punished.

The Dubs had a very similar experience against Tyrone in the league final. Completely ran out of ideas and were playing really stupid football, but again Tyrone had nobody to kick the ball over the bar and put Dublin away. Eventually a corner back kicked a long range point for us and we copped ourselves on and kicked on to win, but Tyrone should have had us beat out the gate by then.

[Lamh Dhearg Alba]

Bit of a selective memory?
No mention of the man who scored two hatricks in one and a half games *que cliche line ''sure that was only against London and a hungover Donegal" *
You continue to ignore the fact that our two tails men up front are both injured and off form. If your going to mention the Tyrone ones its only fair you mention Mayos ones also.
In addition you fail to mention that we have a better defense than Dublin, so much so that even some 'experts' say we have the best half back line in the country.
We have come back in many games under James Horan after being four points down at half time. This mentality label on Mayo teams is really beginning to bore now.

Indeed, I did qualify my post at the start by saying that Mayo people would be sick and tired of the point I was going to make! But that doesn't mean it's not a valid point. And to be fair I am not talking about Mayo teamS here, I am talking about the current team.

To pick up the points you have made I had no need to talk about how good your attack or defence is because I wasn't questioning the quality of your players. Mayo are an excellent team, that's not in dispute. The injuries aren't really relevant either because I don't think they were to blame for the clear collective panic that spread through the Mayo team for a spell against Tyrone. Now as I said your team regrouped and won well and perhaps that in itself will have done them the power of good. I hope so because Mayo are a fine team and the county has waited long enough for an AI. I hope you do it but I think the points I have raised are fair and it would some Mayo posters at least agree! Good luck and may your team silence me in style at the weekend.

[AMayoFan]

Forecast for weekend is looking promising!

[An Gaeilgoir]

Just a point in all of this and i would be interested in getting views on, that is on how physical and strong are Mayo generally, as well as in the tackle and breaking through tackles, Aidan o Sheas point against Tyrone where he broke through the two man tackle at about 66 minutes, that is serious strength and fitness..............have the dubs met any team yet that are a physical as Mayo?

[bluenosebandit]

Just a point in all of this and i would be interested in getting views on, that is how physical and strong Mayo generally as well as in the tackle and breaking through tackles, Aidan o Sheas point against Tyrone where he broke through the two man tackle at about 66 minutes, that is serious strength and fitness..............have the dubs met any team yet that are a physical as Mayo?

I think Cork are just as physical, in terms of stature, but as the Mayo players are a lot faster they hit with much more force when tackling and breaking through. But i would also argue that Mayo havent met a team that are anywhere near as physical as Dublin are.
It promises to be an absorbing contest, and as mayo havent been sternly tested in the final 15 minutes of a game, against tyrone included,  I can see the dubs winning it in the final quarter. I can see mayo tying up in the last 15 minutes, shit scared of making mistakes, and the dubs pushing on to win it.

[AMayoFan]

Just a point in all of this and i would be interested in getting views on, that is how physical and strong Mayo generally as well as in the tackle and breaking through tackles, Aidan o Sheas point against Tyrone where he broke through the two man tackle at about 66 minutes, that is serious strength and fitness..............have the dubs met any team yet that are a physical as Mayo?

I think Cork are just as physical, in terms of stature, but as the Mayo players are a lot faster they hit with much more force when tackling and breaking through. But i would also argue that Mayo havent met a team that are anywhere near as physical as Dublin are.
It promises to be an absorbing contest, and as mayo havent been sternly tested in the final 15 minutes of a game, against tyrone included,  I can see the dubs winning it in the final quarter. I can see mayo tying up in the last 15 minutes, shit scared of making mistakes, and the dubs pushing on to win it.

You're assuming that Dublin will still be in touch in the final 15 mins  Joking aside, I really can't see Mayo wilting away in the final 15 mins.  What was it that Shannon quoted as saying 'Prepare to die in your boots' .. or something to that effect.  So come what may on Sunday, Mayo will fight to the very end.

[Chimley]

Personally Mayo not winning Sam since 1951 or Dublin not beating Mayo in Championship football since 1985 will have zero influence on Sunday's senior A.I. final.

Don't know about that, all those boys on the Mayo team have been brought up with that long wait for Sam and will know very well what it means to the county. Doesn't have to be a negative though, it can also be a motivation if it's used properly. Wishful thinking though I'd suggest to say it will have "zero influence". The Dublin side of things I don't see as being a factor, Dublin not beating Mayo in the championship since 1985 is hardly comparable to Mayo's long wait for Sam.

I know the Mayo people on here are sick and tired of this kind of talk but I would have doubts still about the mental toughness of this team. They had Dublin well beaten last year and stopped playing and were lucky to win. I know some Mayo posters here say there were injuries taking their toll there but the fact was that Mayo lost the head in the closing stages of that game. They then made a very poor start to the Final and never really looked like they were going to turn it around, even when they got closer to Donegal later in the game.

Hasn't been an issue this year until the semi when Tyrone started well and Mayo promptly lost the head, kicking possession away, making poor decisions and missing easy frees. It wasn't just a case of Mayo being outplayed for a spell - they were very obviously having a wobble there on probably the first occasion this summer that any real questions were asked of them. Now you can argue that they dug their way back from that to win well, but the fact was that Tyrone had them on the ropes but didn't have the firepower to really pull away (losing key men down the spine of the team didn't help either). Dublin have significantly better forwards than Tyrone and should they get Mayo into that kind of position they will put up a much better score than the 0-7 Tyrone managed in that first half. Any Mayo wobble will be properly punished.

As such I reckon there are still major questions to be answered by this Mayo team when they are put under pressure - questions they can only answer really by winning the AI. Have my doubts, but I wish them all the best.

Bit of a selective memory?
No mention of the man who scored two hatricks in one and a half games *que cliche line ''sure that was only against London and a hungover Donegal" *
You continue to ignore the fact that our two tails men up front are both injured and off form. If your going to mention the Tyrone ones its only fair you mention Mayos ones also.
In addition you fail to mention that we have a better defense than Dublin, so much so that even some 'experts' say we have the best half back line in the country.
We have come back in many games under James Horan after being four points down at half time. This mentality label on Mayo teams is really beginning to bore now.

Don t shoot the messenger Sam. It s a fine judgement call as far as I m concerned.

This is the best Mayo team/management that I ve witnessed. No harm being aware of an achilles heel or others pointng it out. Waste of time trying to spin out of it. There are no excuses any more.

Moysider, I agree 100% with you on this. I remember JOC saying after the 2006 final that Kerrys one year famine made them hungrier than Mayos fifty year wait. It was a slur on Mayo and he was wrong. I think that a one year famine is a small enough cross to carry into a final but our history weighed heavy on our shoulders that day and plenty others. Hopefully Jame Horan will have the team fully focused on the now and not the weight of history that could be overwhelming if it's let.
I've always maintained that mayo would have to be patently a better team and might have to fall over the line to win our first title after all these losses. Once the dam is broken, the floodgates could open.

[Jinxy]

In a close game, against a team that are equally fit, I have my doubts about Mayos ability to convert enough chances to push on and win it in the last 10 minutes
They needed their corner back and wing backs to keep them in touch with Tyrone in the first half when Tyrone were able to play at a high-intensity.
How many Mayo forwards would get on the Dublin team?
Maybe two, max.