2014

[moysider]

Oh gawd, not even sure if you're serious or not tbh but just to clarify  for anyone who would take such a daft post even remotely serious, Mayo will win Connacht at a canter .four in a row , ere we go.

and Sam is on it's way to Castlebar this year, just like the All-Ireland Club Title. Real question if U-21 and minors are on their way to tge home of football that is McHale Park.

T'would be nice 'godhelpus, t'would be nice.

However I ll stick to my prediction from Sept. 12, that we will lose 3 finals in a row. It ll be one hell of an achievement if we do and finally the team might get a bit of respect.

Has anyone ever lost three AI football finals in a row? I know Clann did the four-peat at club senior but has anyone achieved that level of damned infamy at county?

Galway 1940 - 1942.

Yep but there is still a difference when you consider, Galway won it in 38 and then in 56 and throw in the three in row in 60s.

Even though the 3 in a row were over twenty years later it can still be factored in when you bring it into the context of this Mayo era of 25 years plus since 89 . I really don't think there is any county that has gone though such a period without winning an All Ireland.


We have contested eight all Ireland finals ( inc reply) and won the provincial crown a dozen times in this period.

All joking aside hand on heart, I believe there is something fundementally wrong with our mindset come the final day. All the experts and analysts can tell me till the cows come home about being a forward short or nit being good enough , I don't believe them, it's nonsense it's actually nearer the mark to roll out the aul bar stool rhetoric of , " they haven't the bottle".

We won Connacht in 96,97 and 99 , Galway win it in 98 and go out and win the Sam Maguire. We hammer Kerry in 96 semi final and the lose the final in 97 to virtually the same team. We beat Dublin in 12 semi and lose the 13 final . We fookin hammer Donegal in 13 q/f after getting pushed aside by them in first ten min of final in 12.

Everyone that cares about Mayo football needs to have a look at where it's going wrong on all Ireland final day, everyone has a role to play and supporters can start by stfu with the ridiculous amount of songs and banter, already last night at the darts in the UK there's a "Mayo for Sam" bs doin the rounds.

I d agree with most of that I think apart from the supporters thing. Last couple of finals the mood had been subdued enough around - even during the final this year the support was dead. If anything the pendulum has swung from the wild optimism of the 90/00s to pessisism - even fear. Contrast that with Donegal last year when the county was wild with expectation and song. Nobody even contemplated losing, especially when they were playing us. If any county was setting itself up for a fall it was Donegal. But did it get to the team?  Did it f**k.

The reason we have lost so many is twofold imo.

Twice 04/06, the opposition were much better than us but we still handed the game on a plate.

All the other finals were winnable but we were never proficient enough on the sideline to get the job done. An O Dwyer, Heffo, Boylan or Harte would have made all the difference. In every final I have seen us play in the opposition have done a job on us tactically, especially attacking our strengths and doing a good job. In this year's final Cluxton s kick out strategy took our big strong midfield out of the game. It didn t help either that our management choose to take Keith Higgins out of the game and not involve Richie Feeney at all but sin scéal eile. On the other hand the oppositions big players have always been allowed to run riot against us even though management have had a month to come up with a plan for them. Thompkins, Fitzgerald, Gooch, O Sullivan, Donaghy, Murphy and Brogan were all given a blank canvas in Croke Park to produce any picture they wanted. Contrast that with the way Tyrone dealth with the Kerry threat any time they met. Next year if we get back to a final I can t see us do anything different with the last 3/4 weeks to be honest.

[From the Bunker]

Have a soft spot for Cavan. But they are still a bit (and i mean a fair bit) off of being a credible Championship side. They reached the AI Quarter finals by default this year. From seeing them in the flesh against Kerry last year they looked like an under 21 side, physically and to be honest they mentally played the same way. They are still in the building process and will be looking to beat the teams just below the top six.

[Blowitupref]

Cavan are coming side, last season extended run will be a good experience for their young players. They should get promoted to div two this spring which should bring them on further.

Mayo seem to play all their best football before All Ireland finals can they find a way to reach a final without peaking before it?

With retirements and others leaving it hard to see Cork making any impact in 2014 i think Kerry have one final push in them and Donegal are sure to better than 2013.

[Lar Naparka]

Oh gawd, not even sure if you're serious or not tbh but just to clarify  for anyone who would take such a daft post even remotely serious, Mayo will win Connacht at a canter .four in a row , ere we go.

and Sam is on it's way to Castlebar this year, just like the All-Ireland Club Title. Real question if U-21 and minors are on their way to tge home of football that is McHale Park.

T'would be nice 'godhelpus, t'would be nice.

However I ll stick to my prediction from Sept. 12, that we will lose 3 finals in a row. It ll be one hell of an achievement if we do and finally the team might get a bit of respect.

Has anyone ever lost three AI football finals in a row? I know Clann did the four-peat at club senior but has anyone achieved that level of damned infamy at county?

Galway 1940 - 1942.

Yep but there is still a difference when you consider, Galway won it in 38 and then in 56 and throw in the three in row in 60s.

Even though the 3 in a row were over twenty years later it can still be factored in when you bring it into the context of this Mayo era of 25 years plus since 89 . I really don't think there is any county that has gone though such a period without winning an All Ireland.


We have contested eight all Ireland finals ( inc reply) and won the provincial crown a dozen times in this period.

All joking aside hand on heart, I believe there is something fundementally wrong with our mindset come the final day. All the experts and analysts can tell me till the cows come home about being a forward short or nit being good enough , I don't believe them, it's nonsense it's actually nearer the mark to roll out the aul bar stool rhetoric of , " they haven't the bottle".

We won Connacht in 96,97 and 99 , Galway win it in 98 and go out and win the Sam Maguire. We hammer Kerry in 96 semi final and the lose the final in 97 to virtually the same team. We beat Dublin in 12 semi and lose the 13 final . We fookin hammer Donegal in 13 q/f after getting pushed aside by them in first ten min of final in 12.

Everyone that cares about Mayo football needs to have a look at where it's going wrong on all Ireland final day, everyone has a role to play and supporters can start by stfu with the ridiculous amount of songs and banter, already last night at the darts in the UK there's a "Mayo for Sam" bs doin the rounds.

I d agree with most of that I think apart from the supporters thing. Last couple of finals the mood had been subdued enough around - even during the final this year the support was dead. If anything the pendulum has swung from the wild optimism of the 90/00s to pessisism - even fear. Contrast that with Donegal last year when the county was wild with expectation and song. Nobody even contemplated losing, especially when they were playing us. If any county was setting itself up for a fall it was Donegal. But did it get to the team?  Did it f**k.

The reason we have lost so many is twofold imo.

Twice 04/06, the opposition were much better than us but we still handed the game on a plate.

All the other finals were winnable but we were never proficient enough on the sideline to get the job done. An O Dwyer, Heffo, Boylan or Harte would have made all the difference. In every final I have seen us play in the opposition have done a job on us tactically, especially attacking our strengths and doing a good job. In this year's final Cluxton s kick out strategy took our big strong midfield out of the game. It didn t help either that our management choose to take Keith Higgins out of the game and not involve Richie Feeney at all but sin scéal eile. On the other hand the oppositions big players have always been allowed to run riot against us even though management have had a month to come up with a plan for them. Thompkins, Fitzgerald, Gooch, O Sullivan, Donaghy, Murphy and Brogan were all given a blank canvas in Croke Park to produce any picture they wanted. Contrast that with the way Tyrone dealth with the Kerry threat any time they met. Next year if we get back to a final I can t see us do anything different with the last 3/4 weeks to be honest.

I'm afraid I have to agree totally with you on all counts. I'm not a happy bunny as I await 2014 all it may bring..
If James Horan can't land an AI for us, there's nobody on the horizon who would be capable of doing any better. We just don't have the likes of the marquee forwards you mention but that's only part of the story; a general malaise descend on the team on AIF day and it extends to the sideline as well.
I agree with what you say about O'Dwyer, Heffo, Boylan or Harte with one proviso; I'm not sure any or all of them could have taken the team to a final in the first place, thinking of the '96 final in particular, but management mistakes cost us dearly in every final you talk of.
John Maughan almost made it in '96 but he lost his cool as the pressure came on in the last 20 minutes or so. I've upset enough people already by what I had to say about O'Dwyer handling things differently but I was referring only to the frenetic closing stages.
The same could be said about any of the managers you've mentioned.
I couldn't see any of them taking Mayo from where Maughan found them at the start of the season to the final itself. But if they had, none of them would be the first to show signs of panic when Meath threw the kitchen sink at them.
Ah, frig it, that's all history now. The recent past is what concerns me.
Horan has been damn near faultless since taking over but his coolness and sure touch deserted him when it mattered most;' in both AIFs he was out-manoeuvred by his opponent. I can see Mayo getting to the final this year but I can also see the same mistakes on the sideline being perpetrated.
Maybe if both Andy and Cillian had been 100% fit, things might well have been different but they weren't and nothing and there was no sign of a Plan B when things started to go wrong.
  But you can't la all the blame on the management either; up front there is trouble ahead and this has been the case as far back as I can remember. This year too many forwards failed to fire on the day and not for the first time either but Horan seemed gripped by paralysis, disbelief or whatever as he filed to take remedial action.
FFS all he did was to make things worse.
Anyway, that's no the way to welcome the New Year.
My wish for the coming year is that Roscommon stop moaning; Sligo stop bitching; Galway start finding form again and that Mayo beat the f**k out of any of them we come across.

[Syferus]

Cavan are coming side, last season extended run will be a good experience for their young players. They should get promoted to div two this spring which should bring them on further.

Mayo seem to play all their best football before All Ireland finals can they find a way to reach a final without peaking before it?

With retirements and others leaving it hard to see Cork making any impact in 2014 i think Kerry have one final push in them and Donegal are sure to better than 2013.

How many 'final pushes' does a team get?

With TOS gone, Brosan gone from the bench, Star up in the clouds and players like Galvin and O'Mahony likely to be pushed towards being impact subs if they continue we can definitely say this Kerry team will have plenty of pushes in them because the ones whose form will be deciding if Kerry are contenders will be the next generation, not the golden oldies.

Kerry are very lucky the Cork panel have apparently decided to take a knee for 2014 but it's difficult to see how they'll beat the teams they've failed to beat the last few years next year when those teams have less rebuilding to do. The league will be very important for this Kerry team if they're to make progress in the summer.

[Rossfan]

[How many 'final pushes' does a team get?

With TOS gone, Brosan gone from the bench, Star up in the clouds and players like Galvin and O'Mahony likely to be pushed towards being impact subs if they continue we can definitely say this Kerry team will have plenty of pushes in them because the ones whose form will be deciding if Kerry are contenders will be the next generation, not the golden oldies.

Kerry are very lucky the Cork panel have apparently decided to take a knee for 2014 but it's difficult to see how they'll beat the teams they've failed to beat the last few years next year when those teams have less rebuilding to do. The league will be very important for this Kerry team if they're to make progress in the summer.
[/quote
A Shyfín,
Please make a New Year Resolution to post in either English or Gaeilge in 2014 and stop throwing random words together in a line.
Good Gasúinín.

[From the Bunker]

Cavan are coming side, last season extended run will be a good experience for their young players. They should get promoted to div two this spring which should bring them on further.

Mayo seem to play all their best football before All Ireland finals can they find a way to reach a final without peaking before it?

With retirements and others leaving it hard to see Cork making any impact in 2014 i think Kerry have one final push in them and Donegal are sure to better than 2013.

How many 'final pushes' does a team get?

With TOS gone, Brosan gone from the bench, Star up in the clouds and players like Galvin and O'Mahony likely to be pushed towards being impact subs if they continue we can definitely say this Kerry team will have plenty of pushes in them because the ones whose form will be deciding if Kerry are contenders will be the next generation, not the golden oldies.

Kerry are very lucky the Cork panel have apparently decided to take a knee for 2014 but it's difficult to see how they'll beat the teams they've failed to beat the last few years next year when those teams have less rebuilding to do. The league will be very important for this Kerry team if they're to make progress in the summer.

Well said! Kerry's next big push will be a new push with new players if they can find them.

[Captain Obvious]

In fairness the last two years Kerry were beaten by the eventual All Ireland champions. It could be argued if they were on the other side of the draw they may have reached the last two finals and possibly would have won both.

[Syferus]

How many 'final pushes' does a team get?

With TOS gone, Brosan gone from the bench, Star up in the clouds and players like Galvin and O'Mahony likely to be pushed towards being impact subs if they continue we can definitely say this Kerry team will have plenty of pushes in them because the ones whose form will be deciding if Kerry are contenders will be the next generation, not the golden oldies.

Kerry are very lucky the Cork panel have apparently decided to take a knee for 2014 but it's difficult to see how they'll beat the teams they've failed to beat the last few years next year when those teams have less rebuilding to do. The league will be very important for this Kerry team if they're to make progress in the summer.

A Shyfín,
Please make a New Year Resolution to post in either English or Gaeilge in 2014 and stop throwing random words together in a line.
Good Gasúinín.

1. Taking a Knee

Phrase borrowed from American football terminology to indicate a player or team running out the final seconds of a football game (the act itself consists of literally touching one's knee to the floor to facilitate the running of the game clock), "taking a knee" is the act of putting oneself in cruise control, usually in a work setting or some other undesirable situation. The individual is physically present, but his mind is not on his task, and there may even be some goofing off associated with "taking a knee." Mostly used by sports savvy men.

Chin up, you'll learn even if I have to teach you the English language one syllable at a time.

[Rossfan]

A Shyfín,
Please make a New Year Resolution to post in either English or Gaeilge in 2014 and stop throwing random words together in a line.
Good Gasúinín.

1. Taking a Knee

Phrase borrowed from American Chin up, you'll learn even if I have to teach you the English language one syllable at a time.

Once the word American comes into it you know it's not English.
So I'll rephrase
Please post in Hiberno/Queens English or as Gaeilge.
Stop spreading Americanised dung.
Happy New Year Syfín - no doubt you're frothing at the mouth in anticipation of the FBD League. I am anyway.

[Syferus]

A Shyfín,
Please make a New Year Resolution to post in either English or Gaeilge in 2014 and stop throwing random words together in a line.
Good Gasúinín.

1. Taking a Knee

Phrase borrowed from American Chin up, you'll learn even if I have to teach you the English language one syllable at a time.

Once the word American comes into it you know it's not English.
So I'll rephrase
Please post in Hiberno/Queens English or as Gaeilge.
Stop spreading Americanised dung.
Happy New Year Syfín - no doubt you're frothing at the mouth in anticipation of the FBD League. I am anyway.

Up the Ros, boss.

Hoping to see Mark/Ryan McHugh lining up against Roscommon yet again in Elphin on Sunday. Can't let any Sligo team beat us on out own patch.

[moysider]

In fairness the last two years Kerry were beaten by the eventual All Ireland champions. It could be argued if they were on the other side of the draw they may have reached the last two finals and possibly would have won both.

Agree. Spot on.

[mylestheslasher]

In fairness the last two years Kerry were beaten by the eventual All Ireland champions. It could be argued if they were on the other side of the draw they may have reached the last two finals and possibly would have won both.

Agree. Spot on.

May have reached the final yes, won both I dont think so. The best team tends to win these things no matter what way the draw lines up.

[moysider]

In fairness the last two years Kerry were beaten by the eventual All Ireland champions. It could be argued if they were on the other side of the draw they may have reached the last two finals and possibly would have won both.

Agree. Spot on.

May have reached the final yes, won both I dont think so. The best team tends to win these things no matter what way the draw lines up.

Are you seriously saying that Kerry would not have beaten Mayo in the last 2 finals? 

[larryin89]

In fairness the last two years Kerry were beaten by the eventual All Ireland champions. It could be argued if they were on the other side of the draw they may have reached the last two finals and possibly would have won both.

Agree. Spot on.

May have reached the final yes, won both I dont think so. The best team tends to win these things no matter what way the draw lines up.

Are you seriously saying that Kerry would not have beaten Mayo in the last 2 finals? 

What's being said is Kerry would of beaten Mayo in semi final, I think, if on other side of draw.