Clash of Mayo club titans to be a close call
A presentation of a signed framed jersey was made recently to John Dunleavy of Dunleavy Meats in recognition and appreciation of his continued support of the Ballina Stephenites Senior Football Team for the 2026 season. John is pictured with his daughters Rose and April, alongside Frank Irwin and Conor McStay who made the presentation on behalf of the Stephenites.
Many would have expected this to be a dress rehearsal for a meeting between these two later in the championship. But for the three-in-a-row senior champions Ballina Stephenites, their championship hopes are hanging in the balance.
Garrymore pulled off the shock of Round 1 with a big victory over Ballina in James Stephens Park and the green and red know a defeat here, coupled with Garrymore avoiding a loss against Balla, and the Stephenites will not make it out of the group stages for the first time since 2018, a year that, ironically, Mitchels were in their group.
The challenge for them looks set to be an even more challenging one given that top scorer Evan Regan, who kicked their five points of the game, went off during the second half of their game against Garrymore with injury and it looks far from certain he will be back in time for this Friday evening’s do-or-die clash.
Should Regan not be fit to return, Frank Irwin, Patrick Carr, Niall Feeney, Conor McStay, Ben Thornton and Luke Feeney will all need to chip in with extra scores, but it might not be enough to stop a Mitchels team who looked mightily impressive against Balla.
The yellow and red were irresistible against Balla. They never allowed Balla to settle and the game was effectively over five minutes into the second half thanks to the impressive Cian Walsh, who kicked 1-5.
There may still be question marks on whether Mitchels have enough in their attacking ranks to win a first senior title since 2017, but they passed their first test with flying colours although Walsh, Ethan Gibbons, Calum Filan, James Durcan and Neil Douglas will be asked much tougher questions this time around by the likes of Liam Golden and Sam Callinan.
At the other end, Mitchels have quality in abundance. All-Ireland winners Donnacha McHugh, Sean Morahan, Paddy Durcan and John MacMonagle were outstanding in Round 1 while Bob Tuohy also excelled in the middle and his battle with Mikey Murray and Frank Irwin will be one to savour.
A reaction from Ballina is expected, but Mitchels could send the statement of the weekend if they sent the defending champions packing.
