McStay: 'There was nothing more I could asked of players'

Oiread na fride. By the skin of their teeth. I can thank the match programme for teaching me that bit of cúpla focal while Dublin can thank Cormac Costello for saving them from the rarity of defeat.

In 10 years of championship football the Metropolitans have only lost twice, against Mayo and Kerry in 2021 and 2022 respectively, but when Ryan O’Donoghue won and converted a free to hand Mayo a 0-17 to 0-16 lead with less than one minute of stoppage time left to play at Dr Hyde Park on Sunday last, it looked as if the defending champions were about to be shown the back door.

Instead, it was the Green and Red who had a direct route path to the All-Ireland quarter-final slammed shut when Dublin, straight from the restart, worked the ball forward to Costello whose fisted equaliser condemns Mayo to a packed schedule of games, presuming they are able to navigate a home preliminary quarter-final against Derry next weekend.

Win that and for the second year running Mayo will be out on three championship weekends in-a-row. Lose, and for only the second time in 13 seasons, Mayo will not be involved in the All-Ireland SFC quarter-finals. At last, the championship has become straight knock-out.

That 73rd minute point by O’Donoghue, who is the championship’s top scorer with 0-50 in six games, had put Mayo in front for the first time since the 14th minute and yet for all their chasing, the general consensus was that Kevin McStay’s side would have been full value for the win. A couple of wrong options taken in front of the posts and just plain old inaccuracy, particularly in the first-half, were their biggest downfall but in an overall context, to have drawn with Dublin – and come so close to beating them – was a world away from the majority of pre-match predictions.

“We went for the win. I hope it looked to everybody that we were trying to win it and we gave it a great shot,” said McStay in what was a shot fired towards those who had suggested Mayo might have been better to rest players in the expectation that they would lose to Dublin regardless, and therefore be better prepared for next weekend.

“My big emotion is how proud I am in the group that we stayed to our own business the last few months, worked hard to get ourselves into a position to take on the champions and a point up with a minute to go, we were so close to it.

“We left a few easy scores behind us. That’s the bit that will disappoint us but that’s part and parcel of this game. When we look back on it now, we’ll say ‘oh God, there were a few easy scores left behind’ and at this level they’re the ones you can be left singing for. That was a bit unfortunate but it’s just the effort… you’re the manager of a team and you demand effort from them and they died with their boots on and you can’t ask for anything more. They gave us everything they had, the boys that came on, the boys that started. What more can I ask from them?

“They (Dublin) are a super team. To win a kick-out and somehow get the ball out of the scrum and come up with a point. It’s just disappointing that we go into a prelim but this time it’s at home so there is a completely different vibe about it this year compared to last year. We came back later to training this season with different loads, we learned a lot from last year so we’ll be in good shape to get ourselves into a quarter-final by hook or by crook,” assured the Mayo boss.

Monday morning’s draw paired Mayo with a Derry side that while winning this year’s Allianz Football League Division 1 title, has since flattered to deceive. Saturday’s four points victory over Westmeath was their first in four games having lost an Ulster SFC opener to Donegal after which they were beaten by Galway and Armagh in the All-Ireland group stages. But if there’s one manager who knows how to make life difficult for Mayo in the confines of their own MacHale Park, it’s Mickey Harte.

His Derry side were perhaps even more convincing winners than the 3-15 to 2-13 scoreline might suggest when Mayo succumbed in Round 6 of this season’s Division 1 campaign while as Louth manager last year, Harte brought the minnows to within two points of Mayo in the All-Ireland group stages. And in 2020, when still the manager of Tyrone, he oversaw the win that condemned Mayo’s relegation from the top flight of the National Football League for the first time in 23 years.

Kevin McStay was speaking in advance of learning Mayo’s opponents but cited the one-week turnaround inflicted upon the opposition as well, along with Mayo having the home venue and therefore no travel or overnight stay, as all being to his side’s advantage.

“We’d like to think we died for the cause today and Mayo people will say they are worth following and worth supporting and we get a big crowd out. If we play at that level, we are going to have a great chance to get to the quarter-final by the preliminary route, and that’s what I’d be expecting. But we have to manage the week carefully, but we have a little bit of experience of how to do that now.” 

There has been positive developments on the injury front for Mayo, with Diarmuid O’Connor returning to play the final 15 minutes against Dublin and James Carr, who underwent surgery after playing just a handful of minutes in the league, featuring among the substitutes. Eoghan McLaughlin, however, was withdrawn as a precaution shortly before half-time on Sunday.

“It started with an ankle, then it went into a knee and ultimately he had a tight hamstring and he was afraid it would pop on him so we couldn’t take that chance,” explained Kevin McStay. “A week is tight now, but that’s the rhythm we are involved in. We don’t have the fortnight now so everything tightens – medically, rest, recovery and all that. But I think we’ll certainly have a strong 15 for next weekend,” he assured, imploring the GAA authorities to schedule the clash with Derry for Sunday afternoon.

“Surely Sunday. It’ll have to be Sunday, won’t it? Six days? We are not thoroughbreds.” Nor are they also-rans. Ní féidir a shéanadh.

One cannot deny.