Doire V Maigh-Eo

[blast05]

Finally, I would like to thank Nallen, McD, Brady and O'Neill for their contribution to Mayo football for a decade plus. Thanks lads!

One thing that is driving me nuts in the aftermath of this game is the rush to send a lot of the old boys out to grass .... surely we should quit this type of comment, let them make there decision and then talk about it. Peoples memories are short - it was only last February that Brady was the best player on the park in 2 or 3 league games in a row. Injury has plagued him since. As for MacD, the man hasn't a months training in him since the All-Ireland final last year. Who is to say he can't go away and get his operation now, take 6 months off for full recuperation and then see if he is physically able for it. Some people are even suggesting Heaney should call a day ... the man could do a job next year at No. 5 for any team in the country.

Now, not meaning to contradict myself in any way, but .........  in the best interests of Mayo football, it would probably be for the better if the likes of Brady, Nallen and O'Neill retired. These guys are the real leaders in the dressing room and while they may still have something to offer, the problem as i see it is if they were to remain then it will be difficult for the new up and coming guys to develop the leadership qualities needed, to take on that mantle. This i reckon is one of the reasons why Galway U-21's of the last few years haven't come on and taken the senior team back to the very top table, i.e.: because the likes of Joyce and Savage are still there and thus the U-21's that were leaders in the pack at that grade have found it impossible to replicate that at senior level. That is a path i don't want Mayo to go down. We need our young guys to become the leaders in the pack now. We need Howley, Higgins, Cunniffe, Moran, Hanley, Kilcoyne, etc. to become the leaders for next year, but if Brady, O'Neill, etc stay on then it will be much harder.

Anyway, 2007 - Mayo for Sam - burst ! No surprise obviously. I guess the only real disappointment was that we didn't get another game or two so that the young lads could get that bit more experience which would stand to them in the long term.
In Higgins, Howley, Cunniffe, Heaney and Trevor Mort we have enough top talent to fill No.s 2, 4, 5 & 6. Somebody somewhere is however going to have to step up to the mark and take ownership of the No's 3 & 6 jerseys.
At midfield, presuming all is well with McGarritty please God, then we need him back to full form for next year and then someone somewhere is going to have to step up to the mark for next year to play along side him. Two weeks ago Barry Moran would have been the obvious answer but it looks like he is at least started to pove himself elsewhere.
As for the foward line: Hanley looks the real deal but needs time (hopefully burnout won't be an issue), i would be confident there is more improvement in Aidan Campbell (again, needs protecting against burnout), Kilcoyne needs to take it up another gear, Mort needs to go away and find the missing ingredient that results in him failing against the really top tough corner backs, Dillon - well i don't know what to think or suggest here actually - goes from man of the match against Cavan to being subbed off at half time, hard to figure. Barry Moran - hopefully they weren't 2 one off games !, Andy Moran - hard to be critical when coming up against possibly the best corner back of the last decade but nonetheless needs to take it on another gear again for next year.

[AbbeySider]

Reflecting on the game there is one point that I cant run away from.

O Mahoney didnt even try to sort out our problems in the full back line. We all knew and discussed what Derry would do before the game. Our biggest weakness was our full back line. We knew they would rain in long or high balls and play direct football.

The dog on the street knows that Liam O Malley isnt the answer at full back. His own club wont even play him there, yet nothing was done to sort out this problem.

Surely the answer was to drop Heaney to full back and bring Cunniffe to wing back and move O Malley to the corner.

Did the Mayo management not see this? Were they that blind?

Or is it the case that they did see this and simply decided not to act, perhaps knowing in their hearts that the current players were not good enough to win an All-Ireland. And perhaps losing to Derry, blooding young players and waving good bye to the older stock is somehow the lesser of the two evils, than going further in a competition and getting roasted in the later stages in the championship in Croke Park...

I dont know.

[Barney]

I'm not calling for a change of management but serious questions have to be asked. The control of the team this year has been incompetent and negligent in the extreme.


Can you expand on this Barney?

Realisitcally we were not going to be winning an All ireland this year after the drubbing of last September. It would have taken an exceptional team to do this. Our lads exceeded expectations in getting to the final. However the manner in which Mayo football was controlled since then is disappointing.

Firstly, the former management team, that disappointed in their performance on All Ireland day, but who gave huge commitment throughout the year were sent packing as part of a County Board/Fine Gael pact that would secure JOM  as manager, and the hoped for 3 seats. It is not the first time our Board was politically active - remember the Padraig Nally sentencing - it is an abuse of position period.

The group stages of the league showed up good results. However it was hard to get really excited about what was happening in front of us. We were being seriously tested in key positions and it seemed that a residue of fitness was pulling us through. The training regieme must be questioned - why have we been starting matches badly - is it a physical or a mental thing?

The first recognition of problems was the substitution of James Kilcullen in the League Final. He had the best cut at the job all year, but did not play again.

Salthill and the eye was definitely off the ball. This was the team that JOM and his management had prepared to lead us into the big championship match in the week before the general election. We were thrashed and shown up badly. The problems ignored during the league came home to roost.

And then the game-plan was torn up completely. Numbers 3, 6, 11, and 14 were all replaced for the qualifiers. 3 players that were not on the panel were deemed good enough to start. The season end acting as an effective set of trial games. What should have been done in January was happening before our eyes in the heat of championship action.

There was a failure to deal with problems during the match on Saturday -

- Liam O'Malley reminded me of Pat Holmes the day Maurice Fitz took him to the cleaners.
- David Brady was left on when clearly not up to the pace of the game.
- no effort to make a change at corner-forward. The ball was going in at the start of the second-half and if we had someone on form it could have changed the course of the game.
- Kilcoyne did not have any involvement in any other matches. Yet was deemed good enough to come on, and Ger Brady and Nallen who played every game this year were not good enough to be one of SIX subs.
- the fact that the selected captain and vice-captain were not even on the team.

Blast, that was a great post, alot in what you say. I think Heaney definitely has a lot to offer. He is only 29/30. McDonald also, if he has the hunger. Brady looks like he cannot do it anymore. The game on Saturday passed him by and injuries seem to be too much of a problem. Nallen has been the greatest Mayo player of a generation. A gentleman and a legend. Sadly I think his time has come to say goodbye.

Now for the positive. JOM has had the young lads on training programmes which were monitored all winter. The changes he made did look positive and it was the young lads that grabbed their chances. A rest is what many of our fellas now need. Serious gym work come Septmeber/October. A defensive coach and here is the first stab at a 2008 model Mayo:

O'Malley

Howley
Cafferkey
Higgins

Mortimer
Cunniffe
Heaney

Harte
McGarrity

Kilcoyne
Hanley
Dillon

mort
Moran
Moran

[stephenite]

I'll agree with everything that Barney has said, particularly echoing his sentiments re the County Board.

Everything, bar the Goalkeeping position on next seasons team, obviously Clarke gets my vote here

[AbbeySider]

O'Malley

Howley
Cafferkey
Higgins

Mortimer
Cunniffe
Heaney

Harte
McGarrity

Kilcoyne
Hanley
Dillon

mort
Moran
Moran

What about James and David Kilcullen?

[mylestheslasher]

...

So abbeysider, what was it you were going to remind me off???

Im waaaaaaaaaaaaaaay too busy reading and cooking to entertain you with a reply mylestheslasher !



     

Nice one!

[Loup Bandit]

Well done Derry and to the management! A great second half, perhaps the scoreline didnt really reflect the game in general but we really opened up near the end. Even had time for a bit of "champagne football!"  Not often we are in that position!!

Fair play to the mayo support for bringin such big numbers. Really added to the occasion!
Big mayo full-forward Moran could be a big player next season in every sense, caused McCloy a few problems but it was a great tussle.

[WJP11]

More thoughts on our championship exit at http://www.mayogaablog.blogspot.com/.  Good luck to Derry in the next round - you should be well capable of taking care of Laois and can reasonably expect to make it to the semis.  Anything can happen from there!

[Bomber2312]

Barney, Awful light around wing forward.

1.Clarke -- needs to regain form, bad against cavan
2. Higgins
3. P Navin (i just dont know about this position most troublesome for some time)
4. Howley
5. D Kilcullen
6. L O'Malley
7. T Mort
8. McGarrity
9. J Kilcullen
10. Harte
11. Dillon
12. B Moran
13. CMcD
14. Hanley
15. A Moran

Cuniffe is there so is Heany, should be a form thing
i've gone for size in th hope of dominating possession, doing two thing, allowing us more scoring chances and the opposition less.
Also C Mort just hasnt done it for me, too much of the posing, not enough of the playing well

[Bogball XV]

Are there people still voting on the poll here?

[Fishead_Sam]

Are there people still voting on the poll here?

Just locked the Poll Bogball

[Barney]

6. L O'Malley

Have to see he doesn't convince me. I know he's not a full-back, but he's a poor corner-back, and at underage I was never overly impressed with him in the half-back line. He has had a very poor championship. At fault for a serious amount of scores.

[An Gaeilgoir]

6. L O'Malley

Have to see he doesn't convince me. I know he's not a full-back, but he's a poor corner-back, and at underage I was never overly impressed with him in the half-back line. He has had a very poor championship. At fault for a serious amount of scores.

Next Feburary is a long time away, but I agree with you Barney about Liam O Malley,his size is really against him. Although in Derry i thought he had improved no end from the Cavan game.These lads are really young and getting used to the helter skelter of championship. we reallly need to sort out 3 and 6. Unfortunately we will need to look outside the current squad i think for these men.The sticky plaster approach in these positions has gone on too long.

[StoneWall]

I see the juniors were beaten as well.

Wexford 2-14 Mayo 1-12

Mayo's bid to qualify for the All Ireland Junior football final ended in disappointment and defeat Sunday afternoon when they were beaten by Wexford despite leading by three points with fifteen minutes to go. Mayo's cause was also not helped by the sending off of Ronan McNamara, Pat Casey and Alan Costello in the second half.

[Bomber2312]

I wouldnt be adverse to puttin Kilcullen at 6 again and Cunniffe at 5. Can any one give a list of senior players playing at 3 and 6 in county? seems to me that we are not too far away but definitely need just to find one or two more defenders