Flynn believes final has all the makings of a cracker

Crossmolina vice-captain – and Mayo footballer – Jordan Flynn is looking forward to next Sunday’s showpiece against Moy Davitts at MacHale Park and mentions the sprinkling of youth and experience across the club’s starting 15.

“There is a lot to look forward to and there is a great buzz in the camp at the moment. We have a fairly young team and eight of our starting 15 are under-21 players and for the younger players this is massive. We have been waiting for a day like this for a long time. We have players close to breaking into the 24-man panel, lads who are close to breaking into the starting 15 and all of the players want to be on a county final panel.

“The training sessions have been going really well and last night’s was as positive a session as you can get,” insisted Flynn who was talking at last Wednesday’s press night in advance of the 2024 Egan Jewellers Mayo IFC final.

“I think Aaron Coggins is our youngest player, he turned 18 last July and I won’t say who is the oldest! It is great having that mix of youth and experience, as you have players who have played with Crossmolina at senior level as well as inter-county set-ups down through the years. Having that knowledge at the club is massive.” 

It's an obvious question to ask but one worth asking all the same: just how big an influence has John Maughan been in the management set-up? The former Mayo, Roscommon, Clare and Fermanagh boss is a sidekick to the Deel Rovers manager Brian Benson.

“John has been a massive influence this year and he will happily ruffle feathers in the best way possible. John is always trying to get the best out of every player and when he speaks to you it is for your betterment, and not just for the sake of saying it.

“On recovery days he is down with us, he’s jogging on the beach, and he is probably in better shape than most of us! John really brought the balance of seriousness and the bit of banter and team spirit at the same time. Players listen to what he says, and as I said he has been a big addition as team selector.” 

When Crossmolina and Moy Davitts met in the group stages back in August, the Red and White edged an extraordinary seven goal thriller on a 5-13 to 2-17 score-line. Jordan Flynn is hoping that next Sunday’s clash will not have a similar outcome.

“I hope that we don’t make a repeat of the last time, conceding five goals in 10 minutes. Moy Davitts are a great side for getting goals and they have some really sharp forwards and they have support runners from their backline as well who will also happily chip in with scores. I wouldn’t be surprised if there were a couple of goals in the final and if we can be more watertight at the back then hopefully we will be doing alright.” 

The Mayo star believes that both he and his teammates learned a lot from their semi-final clash against Ballinrobe, one that saw the Deelsiders emerge the right side of a one point difference after extra-time.

“Bizarrely, both teams actually played better against the wind than with the elements at their backs,” he noted. “They missed a few frees and we were probably similar with some of our wides and it was quite a cagey game but overall I would feel that we have benefited from that semi-final match.

“Our last couple of games wouldn’t have seen the best of football being played, but thankfully we have come out the right side of both matches,” Flynn added.

“If the weather is good the next day, you will see a good game of proper football between two teams who like to play football and it should make for a good game.” 

Flynn is acutely aware of what a county final appearance and perhaps even an intermediate title, would mean for the Maroon and White.

“We have been a long time in intermediate level without pushing for the title, but now we are in a final. Will it be this year? It’s hard to predict, however, just getting this far alone has given the town a massive boost and the area is pleased to see the club making steps in the right direction.”