From the Margins

A COMPREHENSIVE SERIES OF ARTICLES ON THIS TOPIC

GAA clubs bear brunt of rural depopulation

GAA clubs bear brunt of rural depopulation

Fri, 27 Feb, 2026

Sixty years ago this year, Mayo football legend Paddy Moclair was worried about the future for Mayo football. Mayo had just won the All-Ireland minor title, 30 years after Moclair had been one of the stars of Mayo’s first senior title.
Parents must lead way on social media ban

Parents must lead way on social media ban

Fri, 20 Feb, 2026

Listening to Kerry football legend Tomás Ó Sé at the recent Western People Mayo Sports Stars Awards, one memory he shared about childhood really struck home with me and many of those present.
Belmullet case should be a tipping point

Belmullet case should be a tipping point

Sat, 14 Feb, 2026

The fate that befell Belmullet man Stephen Lavelle last month is the type of thing that ought to be a tipping point in discussions around reform of emergency care in Ireland.
Sligo silence on rail corridor is perplexing

Sligo silence on rail corridor is perplexing

Thu, 15 Jan, 2026

With the announcement in November that the long-anticipated extension of the Western Rail Corridor from Athenry to Tuam and onto Claremorris will go ahead, attention naturally enough turned to the next stage.
Stories that define an age-old GAA rivalry

Stories that define an age-old GAA rivalry

Sat, 27 Dec, 2025

Next month marks the centenary of the first-ever All-Ireland senior football championship to be won by a Connacht county. In Ballinasloe in November, Galway hosted a celebration of the first of their nine All-Ireland titles.
GAA report the latest alarm bell on rural depopulation

GAA report the latest alarm bell on rural depopulation

Sat, 20 Dec, 2025

News of the extent of the challenges faced by the GAA with rural depopulation won’t be news to a lot of gaels in Mayo. They are living the experience of it and have been for some time.
John ‘Twin’ has bequeathed a wonderful legacy

John ‘Twin’ has bequeathed a wonderful legacy

Fri, 28 Nov, 2025

It was one of the best uses ever of an All-Ireland ticket. The year was 1951, and John ‘Twin’ McNamara was restless. He had just finished three years of second-level school in Achill and wanted to make for England.
Frank Durcan did his county some service

Frank Durcan did his county some service

Thu, 20 Nov, 2025

The death last month of Frank Durcan in Spain brings the curtain down on the life of a man who was one of the most colourful and controversial political characters in Mayo.
Manchán Magan was an Irish cultural giant

Manchán Magan was an Irish cultural giant

Thu, 09 Oct, 2025

The death last Thursday of the writer and broadcaster Manchán Magan has been greeted with a huge wave of sadness right across Ireland, in keeping with his monumental contributions to Irish life and culture.
Will Steen's slip lead to spoiled votes?

Will Steen's slip lead to spoiled votes?

Wed, 01 Oct, 2025

Last week I had never heard of a Hermes Kelly bag. I’m not sure my wife would take kindly to me spending €20,000 on such an accessory as a gift for her.
The West has lost one of its great champions

The West has lost one of its great champions

Sat, 27 Sep, 2025

The sudden death of Dr John Bradley last week has robbed the West of Ireland of one of its most powerful and brilliant advocates.
Debate and division in the modern world

Debate and division in the modern world

Wed, 17 Sep, 2025

The killing last week of Charlie Kirk, a US right-wing activist and close ally of Donald Trump, revealed so much of the worst of where discourse is at these days.
Gavin will need a new persona for president

Gavin will need a new persona for president

Wed, 10 Sep, 2025

One of the hardest beats for a Mayo sports reporter is going down to the dressing rooms and press conference area under the Hogan Stand in Croke Park after an All-Ireland final defeat.
The importance of teachers on life’s journey

The importance of teachers on life’s journey

Wed, 03 Sep, 2025

All over Mayo, all the kids are back to school by the time you read this. Our youngest started national school yesterday, Monday, September 1. His older two siblings joined him to great excitement.
Vile online commentary is just getting worse

Vile online commentary is just getting worse

Fri, 29 Aug, 2025

When they first came on stream, social media sites like Facebook and Twitter (now X) appeared like magnificent manifestations of the potential of the internet. We first got into Facebook in 2008 when we were travelling in Australia.
Andy's energy is just the tonic for Mayo GAA

Andy's energy is just the tonic for Mayo GAA

Wed, 20 Aug, 2025

A great footballer does not guarantee a great manager. Current All-Ireland winning manager Jack O’Connor had no county pedigree as a player.
Home will always be where the heart is

Home will always be where the heart is

Sat, 16 Aug, 2025

“Where are you from?” For many people, that is a very easy question to answer. For me, I am one of those whom such a question always gives pause for thought.
The legend of Granuaile lives on

The legend of Granuaile lives on

Thu, 17 Jul, 2025

On the island where one of her famous castles still stands sentry, the legend of Granuaile came alive in spectacular fashion late last month.
The law of averages must stop in Ballindine

The law of averages must stop in Ballindine

Fri, 11 Jul, 2025

The long wait for All-Ireland success in Mayo has changed all of us who care deeply about the fortunes of our senior football team.
€15m spend is last thing Mayo GAA needs

€15m spend is last thing Mayo GAA needs

Sat, 05 Jul, 2025

When you are in GAA outposts in Mayo like Achill, Ballycroy, Belmullet, Glenamoy, Louisburgh and Lacken, you get a great sense for how vast our county is.
A glimpse into a different, darker Ireland

A glimpse into a different, darker Ireland

Sun, 22 Jun, 2025

You couldn’t but be infuriated at the tale Ellen told on the Irish Housewife of the Year documentary on RTÉ recently.
A day for the diehards 

A day for the diehards 

Wed, 11 Jun, 2025

When we met Billy and Frances McNicholas in the Silverbirch Hotel in Omagh, the well-known Mayo GAA coach told the five of us that we had brought to 62 the number of Mayo fans he had spotted since arriving in the town ahead of the Tyrone game.
Mayo GAA debates need more rigour and less abuse

Mayo GAA debates need more rigour and less abuse

Wed, 04 Jun, 2025

Anthony Hennigan’s analysis of plans for a Mayo GAA Centre of Excellence in Bohola in this paper last week was simply superb.
A Mayo man’s herculean test of endurance

A Mayo man’s herculean test of endurance

Wed, 28 May, 2025

For those who know the world of Hyrox – a soaring global fitness trend – what James Carty is doing next Sunday in attempting to do five Hyrox events back to back in one day in Crossmolina seems like a hybrid of insanity and inspiration.
Skorts controversy is a relic of McQuaid's Ireland

Skorts controversy is a relic of McQuaid's Ireland

Thu, 15 May, 2025

Before I was even born in Breaffy, there was a very successful camogie club in the village. In the late 1960s and early 1970s, Breaffy were the queens of camogie in Mayo.
Brilliant portrait of a dark part of Mayo’s history

Brilliant portrait of a dark part of Mayo’s history

Sat, 10 May, 2025

Anyone who has ever been to the beautiful Inishkeas off the coast of Erris can attest to the magical nature of the islands, an otherworldly feeling to the place.
Pope Francis laid a path for positive change

Pope Francis laid a path for positive change

Sun, 04 May, 2025

For those of us born in the late 1970s and early 1980s, it was beginning to feel like there would only ever be one pope. Pope John Paul II was such a constant in our upbringing in a very different Ireland. Many homes had framed photos of him.
McIlroy’s fallibility is what draws us to him

McIlroy’s fallibility is what draws us to him

Wed, 23 Apr, 2025

It was a historic week in Westport in more ways than one.
Trying to go back in time just doesn't work

Trying to go back in time just doesn't work

Fri, 18 Apr, 2025

In 2017, I was extremely fortunate to be in the presence of former United States Senator George Mitchell at Mount Falcon. I like to claim it was a private audience, as that’s what it felt like.
Lessons must be learned from 'Adolescence'

Lessons must be learned from 'Adolescence'

Fri, 11 Apr, 2025

It would take a particularly cold-hearted individual to watch the final episode of the acclaimed Netflix drama Adolescence and not find it heartbreaking. I won’t lie – I was a blubbering mess watching it.
Immigration debate is at a dangerous tipping point

Immigration debate is at a dangerous tipping point

Fri, 04 Apr, 2025

Ahead of St Patrick’s Day, there cannot be too many of us who thought we’d be mentioning Garron Noone and Conor McGregor in the same breath.
The long and winding road around Achill

The long and winding road around Achill

Thu, 27 Mar, 2025

As one man told Toirlach Dever on the Saturday just after he had finished his epic 24-hour run around Achill, it took a madman to think of the idea and another level of madness entirely to actually see it through.
European support could be key for rail project

European support could be key for rail project

Fri, 21 Mar, 2025

The recent visit by members of the European Parliament’s Committee on Regional Development (REGI) to the west of Ireland is a salient reminder of the role Europe can play in our development and, indeed, wishes to play.
It's time to tackle the scourge of dereliction

It's time to tackle the scourge of dereliction

Thu, 13 Mar, 2025

We are in a housing crisis in Ireland. It is more prevalent in the east coast than in the west yet there are plenty of pinch points here too where demand outstrips supply.
Can the GAA grasp nettle of rural decline?

Can the GAA grasp nettle of rural decline?

Sun, 09 Mar, 2025

“It is unconscionable that we would be the generation who preside over the permanent demise of rural Ireland. . .
The long wait for change at MUH continues

The long wait for change at MUH continues

Sun, 02 Mar, 2025

There was something very symbolic about newly-appointed Minister for Health Jennifer Carroll MacNeill holding a press conference with local reporters outside the front entrance to Mayo University Hospital (MUH).
A chance to rebalance the books for the West

A chance to rebalance the books for the West

Thu, 20 Feb, 2025

Anyone who knows Dara Calleary realised straight away that attending the infamous ‘Golf-gate’ dinner in Clifden in August 2020 was a grave lapse of judgment rather than arrogance or contempt for the Covid-19 regulations.
Perfect storm for highlighting State's failings

Perfect storm for highlighting State's failings

Thu, 13 Feb, 2025

It is now well over two weeks since the fearsome Storm Éowyn came to our shores and left a trail of destruction behind. Incredibly, some people are still without power and tens of thousands more only had their power restored inside the last week.
Government must learn lessons from Storm Éowyn

Government must learn lessons from Storm Éowyn

Wed, 05 Feb, 2025

All hail the ‘good’ room. The much-maligned and oft-underused ‘good’ or ‘sitting’ room is something common to most Irish homes my generation grew up in.
Rural decline is decimating many GAA clubs

Rural decline is decimating many GAA clubs

Thu, 23 Jan, 2025

Cuala’s success in winning the All-Ireland Senior Club Football title was very well received in Mayo, as they were managed by Louisburgh’s Austin O’Malley.
Outward thinking is needed in the West

Outward thinking is needed in the West

Wed, 15 Jan, 2025

The GAA is a magnificent organisation. It has brought untold benefits into every corner of our country. It provides a great physical outlet for young and not so young. It also provides a social outlet for those players.
The highs and lows of the year that was

The highs and lows of the year that was

Tue, 31 Dec, 2024

When you flick through the news pages of the year just gone, it confirms the stories that dominated the headlines in 2024.
If only there was peace on earth for Christmas

If only there was peace on earth for Christmas

Wed, 25 Dec, 2024

The kids’ Christmas wishes this year are an eclectic mix. There’s a request for a tablet (electronic, not medicinal I hasten to add), a bike and from our youngest, ‘lots of torches and Peppa Pig stuff’.

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