Mayo v Galway, 18/06/16, McHale Park

[An Fhairche Abu]

Fantastic win and fantastic scenes at the end. There wasn't many of us there but you could see what it meant to the hardcore, I can't remember the last time a Galway win released so much emotion in supporters at the finish.
Mayo have long been the benchmark and the top dogs, they were going to get caught in Connacht at some stage but I, like everyone else outside the Galway panel, did not see it happening last Saturday. I was drinking in Castlebar for the night after the match and the Mayo fans were, to a man, very fair in their assessment of the match and of Galway getting the best of it.

The most pleasing aspect was that Galway had a clear plan that all the players were focused on. Even at H/T when most people would have felt that Mayo would probably kick on, I was happy that there was a decent defensive setup from Galway and the players looked like they knew exactly what their roles were in it regardless of the full time result. From what I saw in the league this setup was certainly not functioning with the level of effectiveness seen last Saturday.
Flynn and especially Conroy gave great performances at midfield and any forward that bags 0-3 from play as Brannagan did, has had a fine day out.
A lot of doubt about Declan Kyne prematch on here and elsewhere, he did himself, his family and his club proud with a great display to walk away with the Galway Bay fm MOTM award, not many Clonbur men get the Galway jersey so fair play to him. The rest of his colleagues in the FB line were tenacious as well in defence.

Mayo still have the best squad of players in Connacht, they played poorly on Saturday bar a couple of ten minute spells. When the question was asked of them after the goal, they had the look of a team that had to go unexpectedly to the well and found nothing there. There is no doubt whatsoever that they took the Galway challenge lightly, looked like a team that thought they didn't have to be at 100% to win and they paid the price for this.
They have some top class players such as Diarmuid O'Connor to come back in and I doubt that they will look as lethargic again. No one will back against them playing football at the start of August and they are a team that everyone will want to avoid in the qualifiers. Some of the players are a long time on the road however, their reaction to this defeat is key.

That said, Galway didn't even really play superbly throughout the game either on Saturday, especially up front, there's a lot of stuff to be worked on. There were numerous bad shots taken during the initial period when Galway started well and they should have really put more on the board at that stage. Comer and Walsh were well held by the Mayo team over the course of the match also. For application, heart and effort however, they left everything out there and that's all you can ask of a team really. The boost this result will give the players mentally in terms of belief should be massive as well.

We'll know a lot more about Galway after the Connacht final, I'd have it as a straight 50/50 toss up as to who will win, neither team will fear the other really.
I'm sure the Rossies are delighted that they don't have to face Mayo and they have a nice set of forwards that can do damage, likewise no one in Galway will be thinking that Roscommon can't be beaten, you could make a case for either side at the moment.

[Rossfan]

We will give the dans an awful pastin sat night.

[larryin89]

We will give the dans an awful pastin sat night.

That was my prediction , what is your point young man . I got it wrong ? That's an obvious observation tbh.

Oh and I still believe we are capable of giving Galway a right hiding .

[Farrandeelin]

Fair play An Fhairche, indeed you were the first person I thought of when the ft whistle went and seeing the Galway fans erupt. Hardcore people who are there throuhh thick and thin deserve success. And that includes Roscommon men too. If I wasn't from Mayo I pronbably would be happy, yet it's pride of place that makes the GAA so appealing.

The more the week goes on, I realise that it might give Mayo the kick up the resr end that was needed. But the attitude has to be right.

[Rossfan]

Would be some craic if the Herrins win this
Hard to see anything other than a Rhubarb win by about 5 points.

This make you feel better Larryin

[Blowitupref]

We will give the dans an awful pastin sat night.

That was my prediction , what is your point young man . I got it wrong ? That's an obvious observation tbh.

Oh and I still believe we are capable of giving Galway a right hiding .

Right hidings normally happen when the opposition are a shambles in midfield and defence. The way Galway were set up on Saturday night they wouldn't have got a hiding off any team.

Plenty have the opinion that Mayo played poorly but for me Kevin Walsh had his homework done,  Mayo were unsettled and not allowed to play well.

[highorlow]

There is some hope for us when my Kerry buddies laughed at me today when I said we were finished.

I think there is still one more kick in this bunch yet, you never know but it could be the best thing to happen this team.

We only played for 10 mins and still only lost by 3 and that gap was due to stupidity. If we play the qualifiers for even a half per game we will be in the quarters.

[moysider]

There is some hope for us when my Kerry buddies laughed at me today when I said we were finished.

I think there is still one more kick in this bunch yet, you never know but it could be the best thing to happen this team.

We only played for 10 mins and still only lost by 3 and that gap was due to stupidity. If we play the qualifiers for even a half per game we will be in the quarters.

'If they're men they'll be back'' - Babs Keating.

These Mayo lads owe nobody else anything, but they owe it to themselves to respond to this and I expect they will.

[Beffs]

Don't know about a rumour, but AOS could do with a spell on the bench unless he improves.

Agreed. What sets the management of Dublin and Kerry apart from Mayo's, is that Jim Gavin and Eamonn Fitzmaurice have no problem, with not starting their biggest names, or taking them off if they under perform. Aidan O'Shea seems to be untouchable, no matter how badly he plays.

[moysider]

Don't know about a rumour, but AOS could do with a spell on the bench unless he improves.

Agreed. What sets the management of Dublin and Kerry apart from Mayo's, is that Jim Gavin and Eamonn Fitzmaurice have no problem, with not starting their biggest names, or taking them off if they under perform. Aidan O'Shea seems to be untouchable, no matter how badly he plays.

Disagree. I think it is unfair to single out a player when the whole team is dysfunctional. Aidan won ball early in the game the last day and as usual had no support and was left isolated. That would not happen in a Kerry or Dublin team. There would be lay-offs and points and goals resulting. Regan was left isolated as well. Won most balls that came his way and mostly isolated against 2/3 defenders. When support was there he deftly put Boyle in for a nice point. Says a lot when the only decent supporting runs came from Boyle. In fact you could hear Boyle in first half getting after his team because he knew we were in trouble. Says something else when you can hear players in a championship match with over 20,000 people present.
But mostly there was no runner to pop off too. Disappointingly Cillian had the opportunity to lay it off a few times but went for optimistic long range shots. This is a tactical/coaching thing and pretty basic tbh. It's not rocket science and should have been sorted long ago. A return of McLoughlin and Diarmuid O Connor to hf line should help for a start. But there is no use lumping in Aidan O Shea in various roles and expecting him to make big plays all the time. It's a team game.

[Beffs]

I think it is fair to single him out. He has the highest profile in the media, of all the Mayo players.  He puts him self out there, so much, as the figurehead of the Mayo team, it is fair to hold him to a higher standard.

There can be a variety of reasons why it doesn't happen for a forward on any given day. He may be too tightly marked by his man, or he may be triple teamed, or his eye just isn't in, or he may be carrying a knock, or he may not getting a supply of good ball, or he may be just having one of those days.  The reason can be sorted out later. During the game itself, mgt should be thinking about taking off an ineffective player and bringing on someone else, who can offer up something different.

That doesn't seem to ever happen with him. When the chips are down, the lad himself doesn't seem to have the personality, the will or the leadership to make something happen, the way that you see with a Kieran Donaghy or a Michael Daragh McAuley, or even a Lee Keegan. There is no dynamism with him. His size and strength means he can run through a brick wall,  especially against the weaker teams. But if that doesn't work, there doesn't ever seem to be an Plan B with him, the head drops and the game passes him by, more and more. Given his huge media presence, I'd be expecting more leadership from him, when things are going pear shaped, in the really big games. That didn't happen on Sunday. Again.

Some time on the bench may make him start thinking about what else he can offer, other than his size. He's not the first player to find himself on the receiving end of some special attention and he won't be the last. The truly great players are able to impact the game, despite it.

[moysider]

I think it is fair to single him out. He has the highest profile in the media, of all the Mayo players.  He puts him self out there, so much, as the figurehead of the Mayo team, it is fair to hold him to a higher standard.

There can be a variety of reasons why it doesn't happen for a forward on any given day. He may be too tightly marked by his man, or he may be triple teamed, or his eye just isn't in, or he may be carrying a knock, or he may not getting a supply of good ball, or he may be just having one of those days.  The reason can be sorted out later. During the game itself, mgt should be thinking about taking off an ineffective player and bringing on someone else, who can offer up something different.

That doesn't seem to ever happen with him. When the chips are down, the lad himself doesn't seem to have the personality, the will or the leadership to make something happen, the way that you see with a Kieran Donaghy or a Michael Daragh McAuley, or even a Lee Keegan. There is no dynamism with him. His size and strength means he can run through a brick wall,  especially against the weaker teams. But if that doesn't work, there doesn't ever seem to be an Plan B with him, the head drops and the game passes him by, more and more. Given his huge media presence, I'd be expecting more leadership from him, when things are going pear shaped, in the really big games. That didn't happen on Sunday. Again.

Some time on the bench may make him start thinking about what else he can offer, other than his size. He's not the first player to find himself on the receiving end of some special attention and he won't be the last. The truly great players are able to impact the game, despite it.

It's more complicated than that I think. Maybe he has not matured as well as we would like but ....
Take Michael Murphy. When he plays inside he is focal point and has a role in a finely tuned system. When he is isolated on his own he kills teams himself or pops in a runner. When he is swamped they do not waste him inside. When he plays around the middle he wins ball and has runners to bring into the game.
With Aidan, going to a game, you never can tell where he will play and it seems the rest of his team don t know either. He won early ball inside the last day but isolated against at least 2 dogged defenders without any support in the same timezone. Daft stuff.
My problem with the criticism of O Shea is that he was playing in a team that were totally at odds with their game. It's alright talking about leadership but if the basic structure is cat all you get is individuals raging against the tide like Boyle did. Other leaders like McLoughlin and Higgins were neutered by being asked to do roles they never did before at this level. Too clever, too complicated, too ambitious and poorly executed.
In Donegal, Gallagher has not gone far away from the McGuiness template. No Surprises, usual shape. Murphy does his usual stuff and everybody knows what he does. He's been doing it for years. Mean while O Shea has been with Mayo seniors since '09 but is still playing off-the-cuff to an extent from game to game.
It doesn't help that we have no stability. We were the only team being considered a contender that has not got an established management. 3 different managers in 3 years!!
And before anybody blames the players for that - not their doing. The County Board in 2014 had the future of probably the best group of players this county has ever had in their hands and messed it all up. Stone Age stuff but nobody will be muttering about them after last Saturday night. 

[seafoid]

There is some hope for us when my Kerry buddies laughed at me today when I said we were finished.

I think there is still one more kick in this bunch yet, you never know but it could be the best thing to happen this team.

We only played for 10 mins and still only lost by 3 and that gap was due to stupidity. If we play the qualifiers for even a half per game we will be in the quarters.

'If they're men they'll be back'' - Babs Keating.

These Mayo lads owe nobody else anything, but they owe it to themselves to respond to this and I expect they will.

of course they will. They underestimated Galway but they are still a very good team.
the next 5 years are going to be very interesting

[macdanger2]

That doesn't seem to ever happen with him. When the chips are down, the lad himself doesn't seem to have the personality, the will or the leadership to make something happen, the way that you see with a Kieran Donaghy or a Michael Daragh McAuley, or even a Lee Keegan. There is no dynamism with him. His size and strength means he can run through a brick wall,  especially against the weaker teams. But if that doesn't work, there doesn't ever seem to be an Plan B with him, the head drops and the game passes him by, more and more. Given his huge media presence, I'd be expecting more leadership from him, when things are going pear shaped, in the really big games. That didn't happen on Sunday. Again

That's a bit unfair Beffs - Have a look back at the drawn AISF v kerry, when Keegan went off, AOS was the one behind us getting back into that match. He was driving us on all over the pitch.

I agree however that star players in a team should be held to higher standards than others, that's what makes them star players. In that regard, we had none on Saturday.

Agree 100% moy about players being isolated - our forwards played like individuals rather than as a unit. Part of that is down to coaching but ffs when players see the ball going in to AOS in the FF, they should have enough savvy to play off him. When we did support the man in possession, we got easy scores - Boyle and Keegan for example.

If you look at the very first play of the game which almost ended in a goal for Galway, it was Keith Higgins' man who played the ball in and you can see on the replay that Keith just let him go. That's something you'd never see from him normally; in the first minute, it's hardly physical tiredness so it can only be explained by complacency. Again, management must take some of the blame but a senior player of that quality shouldn't need anyone to tell him what's required. That malaise seemed to affect the entire team for most of the game.

As regards McLoughlin as a sweeper, I actually don't think it's a bad idea - he's one of our best ball players so if you can maximise the time he spends on the ball by playing as sweeper then it's a huge benefit. Trying it for the first time against Galway was a sh*te idea though. As a sweeper, he needs to know when to attack and when to drop deep - studying how lacey and cian o's play would benefit him greatly.

Higgins in the forwards isn't necessarily a bad idea so long as he plays the role McLoughlin normally plays - coming deep to collect ball and driving on into the forwards. I think this was trialled once in the league but then he got injured so it's understandable that this wasn't 100% 

Attitude is the big change needed for the next match and i'm hopeful that Saturday was the kick up the hole we needed.

[ZeitChrist]

On O'Shea, I see he's back in the papers today, talking about the match. I think this is a time for going to ground, regrouping, spending time with teammates and management, and focusing the minds on the job ahead, not standing in the glare of the camera and getting into a discussion with the media about what went wrong. That's a discussion for their own dressing room. Why isn't management insisting on this?