On- and off-field strife had long made the prospect of Mayo's failure feel inevitable

Whoever writes Mayo’s scripts is a sick and twisted person. They keep finding new and more tragic ways to break our hearts.

Last Sunday saw yet another heartbreaking loss at the death – a painful addition to a growing catalogue of near misses over the past year.

This may not be the best Mayo team of all time, but it’s certainly not the luckiest either. If we didn’t have bad luck, we’d have no luck at all.

In the past twelve months alone, Mayo have:

• Lost two Connacht Finals by a single point.

• Conceded a last-minute equaliser against Dublin this time last year, which saw us slip from first to third in the group on the final day.

• Been knocked out of a preliminary quarter-final on penalties.

It was a similar story in Roscommon last Sunday, only crueller, as another buzzer-beater denied Mayo and ended our season prematurely.

Some will say that luck has nothing to do with it – that this Mayo team lacks the cynicism and killer instinct to see out games. There may be some truth to that. But one cannot deny the team’s commitment or heart and it’s hard not to feel sorry for Kevin McStay, Stephen Rochford and their players.

Had any of those losses gone Mayo’s way – had even a grain of rice tipped the balance in their direction – the progress of this team, and its legacy, could have looked very different.

Maybe Seán Morahan should have pulled down Ciarán Moore as he bore down on goal. But unless he did it very early in the move, any foul after that would likely have handed a red-hot Michael Murphy a free shot at the posts with the wind at his back to win the game. There were three Mayo men chasing Moore. Had Morahan fouled him once he crossed the 45, you can be sure his teammates would have given him an earful for not trusting the pack to drive him wide and turn him over.

Hats off to Moore though – it was a phenomenal run with tired legs in the 70th minute, and an even better finish from a defender: jinking inside and calmly stroking it over with bodies clawing at him from all angles. It was a clutch play, reminiscent of Ciarán Kilkenny’s monster catch at the same venue in the same round last season. Sometimes you just have to hold your hands up and say, that’s brilliant play.

As usual though, Mayo died with their boots on. Their first-half performance was passive and pedestrian, but they came out a different team after the break and produced another gutsy display full of aggression, directness and endeavour.

The team’s ability to raise, or lower, their intensity to match the opponent is worthy of a doctoral thesis in sports psychology. Against Galway, Tyrone and Donegal this season, they gave as good as they got. But the turgid performances against Sligo, Leitrim and Cavan barely warrant comment.

Indeed, the disaster against Cavan has put the kibosh on the entire season and will be the one that players and management look back on with stinging regret in the winter months.

While this match wasn’t as fluid or high-scoring as some of the thrillers we’ve seen in Gaelic football’s Championship 2.0 in recent weeks, it was a hugely intense encounter with a grandstand finish.

I can’t decide whether Paul Faloon’s refereeing style contributed to a good game or prevented a better one. He let so much go; there were hits flying everywhere and bodies dropping like flies. At times, the combat zone resembled a WWE Royal Rumble. The heavy contact led to plenty of turnovers, quite a few skill errors and poor shooting. You’d have to wonder if a more whistle-happy ref would have delivered a tidier, higher-scoring affair.

There wasn’t much pretty football on display, but if you need a man to muck in, get physical and still find a way to split the posts, then Michael Murphy is that guy.

There isn’t a soul in Mayo who hasn’t wondered how different things might have been if Michael Murphy’s Garda father, Mick – Bonniconlon-born and bred – had been stationed somewhere local instead of Burnfoot in the 1970s. Were there really no barracks in Mayo that needed manning at the time? Murphy Jnr would have been our missing killer instinct. How many All-Irelands might we have now?

As good a finisher and kicker as Murphy is, it’s his dominance in the air that truly sets him apart. Like Brian Cody’s all-conquering Kilkenny hurlers, Murphy commands the skies in a way that pulverises his opponents – physically and mentally. He is what Jürgen Klopp would call “a mentality monster.” The dirtier the ball that needs winning, the greater his desire to win it.

Make no mistake about it: Donegal would not have won the match on Sunday without the Glenswilly man. Prior to this game, I thought Donegal might be the best bet to win the All-Ireland in a wide-open field. Right now, I’m not so sure. They dominated possession against Mayo and flashed about the place with strong running, but they flattered to deceive a little bit and lacked some punch up top. Apart from Murphy’s aerial and finishing prowess, Mayo handled their threat pretty well.

That was typified by the performances of Jack Coyne and David McBrien, both of whom have had great seasons. Coyne boasts an impressive list of takedowns of marquee corner-forwards in recent weeks. None of Rob Finnerty, Darragh Canavan or Oisín Gallen have gotten the better of him. Finnerty and Gallen are current All-Stars and Canavan is sure to earn one imminently. No bother to Coyne though, who possesses a steely focus, pace and tenacity that makes him a formidable opponent.

McBrien’s goal was a standout moment but his general play and aura have been equally impressive recently. He has grown into the centre-back role and now looks like a top-quality intercounty six.

Up front, we’ve been crying out for forwards other than Ryan O’Donoghue to chip in with scores from play and help lighten his load. On Sunday, Donegal worked hard to contain O’Donoghue and Aidan O’Shea, but Darren McHale and Conal Dawson really stood up to the plate and gave them different problems. Both players have grown in recent games and it’s a pity they won’t get another day out to build on their stellar form.

Funnily enough, amidst the crushing disappointment, there were plenty of green shoots on Sunday. The bitter irony is that they appeared on the very day we bowed out of the championship – and likely marked the end of this management’s tenure.

So that’s all she wrote on Mayo’s 2025 campaign. It ended in typical Mayo fashion, from boom to bust, a peak to a trough in a matter of seconds. Was it ever going to end any other way?

One couldn’t call this season a smooth ride. Following Mayo is rarely simple, easy or straightforward. On- and off-field strife had long made the prospect of failure in this campaign feel inevitable. But there’s a way to lose, and the Mayo players gave it their all last Sunday – they can hold their heads high.

One more thing… 

Every team remaining in the Championship has lost at least one game. None of the provincial champions topped their group. So, who is going to win this most open of All-Ireland Championships? Not a clue! What a wonderfully exciting prospect for GAA fans.