No love Letter’ likely between familiar foes
Mayo’s Darren McHale and Michael Murphy of Donegal exchanged words following last year's championship clash at Dr Hyde Park. Vice-captain McHale has yet to play his first minutes of this season. Picture: INPHO/James Crombie
Valentine’s weekend is approaching so what better time – or place – for Mayo to mend hearts that were broken last summer, than in Letterkenny next Sunday.
Fergal Boland’s stunning equalising point, with ten seconds of regulation time left on the clock against Donegal, looked as though it would be enough to send the Green and Red into an All-Ireland SFC preliminary quarter-final, but on the restart Shaun Patton found Ciaran Moore with his kickout and the wing-forward tore forward to fire over and send Mayo out of the championship in what ultimately was the end of Kevin McStay’s reign as Mayo senior football manager.
But for new manager Andy Moran, it has been a case of love at first sight. Mayo are playing a style of football that is fully embracing the new rules and which has seen them win their opening two games of the 2026 National Football League. If you are truly caught in the throes of passion, akin to the name of a lovestruck podcaster, you might say that Mayo Are Back.
Notwithstanding the wins over an erratic Galway and dismal Dublin, no one will be getting carried away, with a real test of Moran’s honeymoon period coming this Sunday in the shape of last year’s defeated All-Ireland finalists.
If anyone knows about crushing Mayo hopes and dreams, it is Moran’s counterpart in Jim McGuinness, adding last year to his 2012 All-Ireland success. Nonetheless, it is not just from within the county that Mayo are being talked up, but McGuinness himself who has been impressed from what he has seen of the Green and Red so far.
“There is serious energy with Mayo right now. The belief they have from the start they’ve made, makes them a very dangerous animal,” McGuinness said in the wake of his side’s four-point win over Kerry two weeks ago, in what was a repeat of last year’s All-Ireland final.
“They have their two midfielders, but they have a midfielder at ten and at 14 as well. They have a lot of big and mobile players.
"Aidan O’Shea is playing really well. Jack Carney and Jordan Flynn are in that same vein. So they have a lot of size and physicality.
“We’ll have to take a good look at all of that now and get ready for the challenge that’s in front of us.” Of course, this may be McGuinness employing some trademark mind games, no different to what he appeared to do when criticising the choice of Hyde Park in Roscommon as the venue for last summer’s All-Ireland group stage clash. This scribe is confident that Letterkenny is a much more suitable location for Donegal on this occasion, but that’s another story.
As much entertainment as Mayo have provided, Donegal, who are the only other team besides Mayo to have won their opening two league matches in Division 1, have matched it. Defeating footballing royalty in Dublin and Kerry, expectations will be high once again that Jim McGuinness can mastermind another All-Ireland success.
Michael Murphy made his first appearance of the season against the Kingdom and Mayo will need a plan to combat the Glenswilly man as well as Peadar Mogan, Brendan McCole, Michael Langan, Shane O’Donnell and 2025 Young Footballer of the Year Finnbarr Roarty.
In fact, eleven of Donegal’s starting fifteen in the All-Ireland final were in action against Kerry a fortnight ago, nine of whom started (Murphy and Oisin Gallen were sprung off the bench). Going by that, Donegal are using the league as optimum preparation for an assault on Sam later this summer.
As for Mayo, it is a case of so far so good but sterner tests await, starting this Sunday. New talent like Cian McHale and Darragh Beirne have been taking their chances with both hands while the progress of Bob Tuohy and Sam Callinan offers further hope for the future.
Ryan O’Donoghue’s move to centre-forward has worked a treat to date and he was a cut above the rest against the Dubs. Experienced heads such as Paddy Durcan, Fergal Boland, David McBrien, Jordan Flynn, Stephen Coen, Enda Hession and captain Jack Coyne have all impressed at different stages.
Throw-in the returns of Tommy Conroy, Donnacha McHugh and Diarmuid O’Connor from injury as well as the upcoming returns of Conor Loftus and Matthew Ruane and competition for places looks to be as hot as it gets.
A clearer picture of where Mayo are heading in this year’s league and championship will become evident after this Donegal test but one thing is sure: love won’t be in the air.
Verdict: Draw
