Pick out the positives and buckle up for Clones

Welcome back to earth. After a heady few weeks, Sunday’s comprehensive defeat was a bit of a reality check. In the grand scheme of things, maybe it’s no harm. The hype-ometer had begun ticking upwards again of late with reported sightings of Mayo fever around the county. Sunday’s loss should quell the noise somewhat and remind everyone that this Mayo team remains a work in progress.

While the result itself wasn’t overly disappointing, the first-half performance certainly was. That was a chastening 35 minutes. Donegal were excellent but Mayo lacked bite and were far too passive. They couldn’t beat their man or break through the channels while any long ball sent in simply didn’t stick. With a gale-force wind at their backs, Mayo failed to generate many shots on goal and too many of those they did take were wild and errant. It was a horrible opening half and Andy Moran will be hoping that is as bad as it gets during his tenure.

To their credit, there was a marked improvement in the second-half and Mayo were arguably the better side in that period. It looked like Andy took out his hair-dryer and gave the lads a rollocking as there was far greater physicality and intent evident in their play. Had Mayo converted any one of their four gilt-edged goal chances, a comeback might well have been on.

The introduction of Conor Loftus in the first-half stemmed the tide and gave Mayo much-needed ball-carrying and line-breaking ability. It was great to see Loftus back and in just 40 minutes of football he was comfortably Mayo’s standout performer. Paddy Durcan, introduced at half-time, offered a similar presence and directness and you can be certain both will start next weekend in Clones.

That stirring second-half showing brought a number of positives. Playing into a tricky wind, the likes of Enda Hession, Sam Callinan, Darragh Beirne and Jordan Flynn kicked some lovely scores. Even against the breeze, Mayo’s shooting showed far more conviction and accuracy than in the opening half. Truth be told, the wind appeared to change after half-time, going from a powerful gale straight down the pitch to something more swirling and unpredictable.

In poor conditions and with the game slipping away, Mayo deserve credit for sticking at it. At half-time, a drubbing looked on the cards but they hung in and can take some encouragement from the trip north.

I was also heartened by the number of goal chances Mayo created. Donegal boast six serious defenders and a well-drilled defensive setup yet Mayo opened them up four or five times. Donegal goalkeeper Gavin Mulreany made four outstanding low saves to deny Mayo a crucial goal that could have ignited something. Creating goal chances has been a feature of Mayo’s league campaign so far and it bodes well for the summer.

The chief goal-creator once again was Darragh Beirne. Following his goal-scoring exploits in rounds one and two, he fashioned several more opportunities here through direct running and clever evasion. He can clearly kick points, adding two more lovely scores, but it’s his ability to consistently get sights of goal that has pleasantly surprised me. Like much of the team, he endured a tough first-half but that’s all part of the learning curve and is an experience he can bank.

Donegal, particularly in the first-half, were superb. We all knew it but watching them up close really highlights their running power and love of the hand-pass. They have little interest in kicking the ball unless it is between the posts. You could almost count on one hand the number of times they kicked the ball into the attacking ‘45’ all game. Their running angles, handling skills and support play are phenomenal and look to have been honed through countless hours of ball-carrying drills on the training pitch in Convoy.

They opened Mayo up at will in the first-half with the angles of their support runners, the timing of the final hand-pass and dead-eye finishing leaving Mayo chasing shadows. Loftus’ introduction tightened things somewhat but even in the second-half, when Donegal eased off slightly, they were still able to create point-scoring opportunities to maintain daylight between the sides. They didn’t fashion many goal chances and Mayo actually created more but Donegal took the one that mattered, leaving Mayo lamenting “if only…”.

While Mulreany made several massive saves, Mayo did get joy from an aggressive press on his kickouts in the second-half, often obliterating their restarts. As such expert hand-passers, you get the impression that Donegal would prefer to restart the play with the hand rather than the much riskier kickout. Indeed, I get the feeling that control-freak managers like Jimmy McGuinness and Kieran McGeeney loathe the new kickout-outside-the-arc rule. It introduces an element of lottery, concedes possession far more frequently and prevents meticulous, detail-obsessed coaches from planning for every eventuality.

McGeeney said as much after Armagh’s shock loss to Roscommon: “The kickout rule makes it a fifty-fifty game that everybody wants. There’s no skill in it, it’s just pure piggery… it’s kick and hope.” It undoubtedly makes for a better spectacle but forcing kickouts beyond the 40-metre arc negates a team’s ability to protect a lead and throws another major variable into the mix, something anathema to authoritarian micromanagers.

Mayo also performed reasonably well on their own kickouts and are reaping the benefits of having big men around the middle. It’s no coincidence that Jason McGee has become such a central figure for Donegal this season as McGuinness needs giants capable of winning long kickouts under the new rules.

The positives from the second-half must now be carried into next weekend’s clash in Monaghan. It’s a big game. Win and Mayo are probably safe, lose and they could be dragged into a dogfight. Monaghan aren’t flying but they arguably should have beaten Dublin and are a different proposition in Clones. They’re also fighting for their lives so buckle up.

There is nothing easy in Division 1. Different styles, different challenges, tough games every week. The perfect breeding ground for Andy to build a team.

One more thing… 

University of Limerick completed a remarkable Sigerson Cup–Fitzgibbon Cup double this week. This feat has occurred only four other times in history: UCD in 1977, UCG in 1980 and UCC in 1988 and 2019. UL’s success further underlines Munster GAA’s national dominance in Gaelic football and hurling across schools, colleges, club and intercounty competitions over the past 12 months.