CONNAUGHT JUNIOR CHAMPIONSHIP

[blast05]

Yes, 14 clubs R&GSniper. Whats your point ? mostly made up of failed seniors which is the easy selection. Why not go out there and see what talent is available. I've played with and against dozens of players outside senior football in Mayo who should have been given a few games - players who more often than not rightly weren't considered good enough at minor or U-21 level but went on in the following couple of years to be top class club footballers who would have killed for an opportunity to wear the county jersey.
If its a case that the county board won't pay travelling expenses or whatever for trials and challenge matches, then Billy Fitz should quit the job as it means he can't do it as it should be done  .... unless of course its nothing more than a nice little yearly hobby for him that guarantees him a few column inches every year thus keeping his name in the public domain and keeps him in his job at MWR FM.
Oh, and Seamus Parsons, ok a typo - you know what i mean though

[RedandGreenSniper]

I know there are a lot of players out there who haven't represented Mayo at minor or Under 21 and would love to play Junior. I just think most of them are senior club footballers.

If we look at the Mayo team that played the last day you do have a few guys who just haven't made it at senior level - Ruddy, Cafferkey, Costello, Hannick, Casey, Conroy but these still have a lot to offer at this level and it would be foolhardy not to select them imo.

Plus you've lads in like Seamie and Paddy Barrett from Belmullet, Paul Earley from Ballintubber, David Kilkenny and Cathal Carty from Aghamore,Donal Corrigan from Achill etc being rewarded for good performances last year at club level.

There's only so much room in the team. Perhaps trials would unearth a few more but you could be sure that you'd barely have
enough to make two teams, if even that. Stories of only six lads turning up to Mayo Junior training aren't uncommon like.
I'm not sure who else is out there that we don't know about. Maybe I could come up with a few if I sat down to think about it. You obviously have a few names in mind, who are they?

[StoneWall]

I've played with and against dozens of players outside senior football in Mayo who should have been given a few games - players who more often than not rightly weren't considered good enough at minor or U-21 level but went on in the following couple of years to be top class club footballers who would have killed for an opportunity to wear the county jersey.

blast05 can you please name these players that you are talking about? Sounds like you were jilted at junior level at some stage.

[blast05]

I'm not going through the process of listing out players from a pile of different clubs from the last 15 years. What value is there in giving the name of a guy who for example left a junior club in north Mayo (feeling he had spent all his good years with the club without ever been given the chance to wear the county jersey at any grade) to give senior club football in Dublin a shot for 1 or 2 years and made the Dublin blue stars team during his first season up there ... you won't recgonise the name anyway.
You either accept what i say based on years of posting rational reasoned comment (i think) on here re Mayo GAA debates or you don't. It doesn't bother me either way  ..... and i was never jilted (again, choose to believe that or not)

[the Deel Rover]

i see where blast is coming from . i could see it in our own club over the years lads who didn't play senior championship for the club but who were available to play junior and who were serioulsy good footballers, that never got a chance to play for or even go for trials for the mayo juniors. Did the juniors even hold trials or how is the selecting process?

[stephenite]

i see where blast is coming from . i could see it in our own club over the years lads who didn't play senior championship for the club but who were available to play junior and who were serioulsy good footballers, that never got a chance to play for or even go for trials for the mayo juniors. Did the juniors even hold trials or how is the selecting process?

Beat me too it Deel - exact same for our club over the years. Think Suitcase may have played in goals for a while but that was the height of it. A good many young lads that were capable of playing at that level were never looked at, and drifted away from the game - I think I can understand why they'd be giving the jersey to lads from Junior clubs over people from successful Senior clubs who get more than enough glory for themselves and their better players can be household names etc. But there were lots of players I played against from Ballycastle, Kilfian, Lacken etc. in the North Mayo Junior Winter leagus in the mid 90's that would have been good enough and they never got a look in or a trial at junior IC level

[the Deel Rover]

who is suitcase Stephenite ? i know al lot of the ballina lads but never heard this nickname

[the Deel Rover]

the North Mayo Junior Winter leagus

The North mayo winter leagues were great crack won one with keenagh back in 1992 i think, great day final down in moygownagh pouring f**king rain and f**king cold so cold i couldn't grip a pint right till nearly 3 hours after the match it was like winning the Ai few pints in Mitchells pub and then back to The Dolphin and god rest Michael Walsh to fill the cup and bejesus was that cup filled

[RedandGreenSniper]

I'm not going through the process of listing out players from a pile of different clubs from the last 15 years. What value is there in giving the name of a guy who for example left a junior club in north Mayo (feeling he had spent all his good years with the club without ever been given the chance to wear the county jersey at any grade) to give senior club football in Dublin a shot for 1 or 2 years and made the Dublin blue stars team during his first season up there ... you won't recgonise the name anyway.
You either accept what i say based on years of posting rational reasoned comment (i think) on here re Mayo GAA debates or you don't. It doesn't bother me either way  ..... and i was never jilted (again, choose to believe that or not)

I'm not doubting you, just asking you for names to feed my own curiousity. Speaking of which, who is the player in question?
I've no doubt there's a lot of decent junior club footballers in north Mayo but they tend to kinda get stuck in the abyss up there in that so few of them are successful. The North Mayo senior championship team from a few years ago was a strong side, I remember David Finnerty from Moygownagh and some O'Boyle fella from Kilfian were decent players.
Since then though those players have had to fade back into Junior obscurity.
Maybe trials should be run but I'd be sceptical as to the genuine level of interest

Beat me too it Deel - exact same for our club over the years. Think Suitcase may have played in goals for a while but that was the height of it. A good many young lads that were capable of playing at that level were never looked at, and drifted away from the game - I think I can understand why they'd be giving the jersey to lads from Junior clubs over people from successful Senior clubs who get more than enough glory for themselves and their better players can be household names etc. But there were lots of players I played against from Ballycastle, Kilfian, Lacken etc. in the North Mayo Junior Winter leagus in the mid 90's that would have been good enough and they never got a look in or a trial at junior IC level

Not sure what ye mean here lads? Are ye suggesting players that haven't played senior club for Ballina or Cross would be good enough to play county junior? In fairness anyone on the Mayo junior team at the minute would be capable of making any club team in the county.
Or are ye suggesting that lads like Stephen Hughes, Martin Wynne, Gabriel Walsh, Enda Lavelle etc should be considered? They can't though, because of the grading. If you played inter-county or club senior championship the year before, you are not eligible for the Mayo Juniors. In 'weaker' counties it is only playing for the county senior team that rules you out.
Mayo would have some team if they were able to pick from senior clubs as well

[muscles magoo]

Maybe trials should be run but I'd be sceptical as to the genuine level of interest

Take it from someone who has played all his club football at junior level - there would be a justifiable level of interest in such trials.
As one of the posters here put it, there are lads out there who would love nothing more than the opportunity of putting on a county jersey and they are deserving of every opportunity to fulfill that ambition imho.

[the Deel Rover]

Not sure what ye mean here lads? Are ye suggesting players that haven't played senior club for Ballina or Cross would be good enough to play county junior?

Absolutely Red and Green i have played football all my life with cross and and in fairness to the senior team it can be / was hard to break into the team. i know for a lot of years all of the starting 15 had played for mayo at minor under 21 or senior level, there were a lot of good footballers playing at junior level . look at the year we won the junior championship surely one or 2 of those lads playing were good enough for a place on the county junior squad after all we were county junior champions ?  I guarantee you that if they were called to junior trials they would definately turn up.

[StoneWall]

I remember David Finnerty from Moygownagh

David Finnerty from Moygownagh played for Mayo juniors.

I'm still waiting for this myriad of players over the years that have not been given a fair crack at junior. With any county team you will have players that feel they are being over looked.

It's one thing playing well at North Mayo Junior winter league level  another stepping up to intermediate club never mind county junior. Get a grip lads.

Looking at the Mayo team that lined out last weekend I challenge anyone to list another player in a given position that is better than the one selected.

[the Deel Rover]

i was talking about winter league 13 years ago stonewall ffs , however as  i said in my previous post we were county champions 2 years ago and no one was on the county junior panel

[StoneWall]

however as  i said in my previous post we were county champions 2 years ago and no one was on the county junior panel

Again the silence is deafening in regard to name of these wonderful players that should have been on the county junior side. What players did you have in mind?

[the Deel Rover]

however as  i said in my previous post we were county champions 2 years ago and no one was on the county junior panel

Again the silence is deafening in regard to name of these wonderful players that should have been on the county junior side. What players did you have in mind?

What difference is it me naming players do you know every player that has played fron Crossmolina in the juniors or any other club for that matter, If you that interested get a programme from the junior county football final 2 years ago and it will have a list of players who played then. yoou must be involved with the mayo junior set up because you definatley don't want a change to the current system .