Lydon leads the way as Mayo make winning start

Connacht U20 Football Championship – Round 1 

Mayo 1-15 

Roscommon 0-13 

Anthony Hennigan in Hastings Insurance MacHale Park, Castlebar 

It’s seven years since Mayo last won a Connacht U20 title but they made a confident start to the 2025 championship with a victory over Roscommon that was more convincing than the five points margin might suggest.

The home side converted less than 50 percent of their scoring attempts and life would have become a whole lot less comfortable if captain John MacMonagle hadn’t superbly blocked a goal effort by Rory Carthy with only six minutes left on the clock, but given Mayo beat neither one of Roscommon, Sligo or Leitrim in last year’s campaign, this was a satisfactory start for Peadar Gardiner’s charges for whom Tom Lydon struck eight points.

Carthy’s was Roscommon’s sole goal chance on the evening whereas Mayo scored one from seven.

When these two counties met as minors three years ago, the Green and Red emerged as two points winners on their way to lifting the Connacht MFC title and reaching the All-Ireland final. Eight of Mayo’s team last Wednesday featured in that 2022 clash, six of them starting both matches, compared to just three for Roscommon. Yet it was the visitors to Castlebar who made much the brighter start, kicking three two-pointers inside the first 20 minutes. Mayo, in contrast, didn’t raise a single orange flag over the course of the hour.

Tom Lydon had scored his first of eight Mayo points after only 40 seconds and that free was buttressed by his second on eight minutes, however, John Curran, from outside the arc, and Cathal McKeon had split the posts in between, so when Rory Carthy added three more points from two kicks, Roscommon led 0-6 to 0-2 after 11 minutes.

It took a goal-line clearance a minute later to deny Mayo corner-forward Josh Carey from punching home a major, after a move involving Hugh O’Loughlin, Oisin Cronin and Tom Lydon. And the fact that wing-back O’Loughlin failed to score from any of four first-half attempts should not take from what was a highly-impressive outing by the vice captain, making his first-ever underage appearance for Mayo. His ball-winning ability, along with that of Seamus Howard and Oliver Armstrong around the middle third, ultimately gave Mayo the platform to turn the tables on their opponents.

Luke Feeney, with Mayo’s first from play, and Neale man Lydon, his third free, had their points negated by Rory Carthy’s second two-pointer, which had Roscommon leading 0-8 to 0-4 up until Mayo struck for 1-4 without reply in a devastating burst between the 22nd and 27th minutes.

A point by Niall Hurley, who had already drawn a good save from Ros’ goalkeeper Patrick Gaynor, and three in-a-row from Tom Lydon, all from play, including one that whistle a fraction over the crossbar, preceded an opportunistic goal by John MacMonagle. A point attempt by Josh Carey had rebounded high off the Roscommon crossbar and centre-back MacMonagle followed in to rise highest and flick into the net.

Mayo suddenly led 1-8 to 0-8 despite playing against the breeze and while Brendan Murphy did pull one point back for the guests moments after the half-time hooter, the omens weren’t positive for the Shannonsiders when they reemerged for the second-half without their captain and attacking fulcrum Robert Heneghan who had succumbed to a hamstring injury.

Alongside Carthy, John Curran had looked a real livewire at corner-forward in the opening quarter and he was one of three Roscommon players, midfielder David Higgins and corner-back Keelan Kelly the others, to score during the first five minutes of the new half too, levelling the game at 1-9 to 0-12. But in general, the Mayo full-back line of Eoin McGreal, Paul Gilmore and Aaron Coggins, after a testing start, had settled well to their task. In fact, after that early second-half scoring spurt, a 44th minute point by half-time substitute Ruairí Kilcline constituted the remainder of the scoring by Cian Smith’s side.

Niall Hurley, whose movement and pace caused numerous headaches for full-back Cillian Campbell, had fired over Mayo’s opening two points of the second-half, and Lydon his seventh of the match, when Josh Carey opted to fist over when the goal was at his mercy, after a rare slip by Roscommon stopper Gaynor in the 40th minute.

Kilcline’s point kept Roscommon within two, 1-12 to 0-13, but Mayo threatened to pull away at the turn of the fourth quarter, with Gaynor back to his best to keep out shots by Colm McHale, the rebound included, and substitute Dara Neary, whose attempt also required a saving touch by Roscommon defender Ruadhan Henry.

Oisin Cronin did fist over and sub Darragh Beirne, two days after his Croke Park appearance for St Colman’s College, picked off a point too, leaving Mayo 1-14 to 0-13 in front. But their wide count – they kicked 13 in all – was continuing to mount, which together with those missed goal chances meant Roscommon remained in touch entering the closing stages.

Ruairí Kilcline’s earlier introduction had given Roscommon a useful outlet at full-forward and six minutes from time, the St Dominic’s clubman played a crucial role in fashioning the goal chance that saw the ball worked to the back post where a combination of Mayo ‘keeper Conor Meaney and the excellent John MacMonagle just about thwarted Rory Carthy, to keep the home side’s goal intact.

If there was a disappointment for Mayo, perhaps it was that their only contribution to the scoreboard for the entire final quarter was a pointed free by Tom Lydon four minutes from time. And yet their final tally still exceeded anything they had managed in any of last year’s four matches.

Tomorrow (Wednesday), the second round of matches sees Mayo visit Tuam Stadium for a showdown with Galway, who comfortably saw off Leitrim, while Roscommon welcome Sligo to Dr Hyde Park. Both games throw in at 5.30pm.

Scorers – Mayo: Tom Lydon 0-0-8 (5f), John MacMonagle 1-0-0, Niall Hurley 0-0-3, Luke Feeney, Josh Carey, Oisin Cronin and Darragh Beirne 0-0-1 each.

Roscommon: Rory Carthy 0-2-1 (1tpf), John Curran 0-1-1, Cathal McKeon, Brendan Murphy, David Higgins, Keelan Kelly and Ruairí Kilcline 0-0-1 each.

Mayo: Conor Meaney; Aaron Coggins, Paul Gilmore, Eoin McGreal; Colm McHale, John MacMonagle, Hugh O’Loughlin; Oliver Armstrong, Seamus Howard; Cathal Keaveney, Luke Feeney, Oisin Cronin; Josh Carey, Niall Hurley, Tom Lydon. Subs: Darragh Beirne (for Lydon 20-22, blood), Dara Neary (for Keaveney 40), Beirne (for Carey 43), Colm Lynch (for Feeney 51), Senan Guilfoyle (for Hurley 56).

Roscommon: Patrick Gaynor; Keelan Kelly, Cillian Campbell, Eoin Collins; Daniel Hagney, Eoghan Carthy, Ruadhan Henry; Niall Heneghan, David Higgins; Brendan Murphy, Robert Heneghan, Cathal McKeon; John Curran, Rory Carthy, John McGuinness. Subs: Ruairí Kilcline and Conor Kelly (for Heneghan (inj) and Murphy ht), Liam Óg Coyle (for Collins 45), Alan Conroy (for Hagney 47).

REF: Barry Judge (Sligo)