The perfect end to an epic 

Of the many images that are etched in the memory bank from last Sunday, one predominates above all others. It is of the moments before referee Martin McNally threw in the ball and the two teams were breaking away from their respective huddles. Mayo were to play into Hill 16, which had been turned green and red for the day, and Darragh Beirne set off to take up his position in the full-forward line.

Most players jog into position, some might even break into a reasonable gallop, but young Beirne charged towards the hill like a bull unleashed onto the streets of Pamplona. It was some sight, especially as the press box had been rife with rumours earlier in the morning that Beirne might have to cry off due to a reoccurrence of his previous ankle injury. Watching the Claremorris teenager tear towards the Hill 16 goal, the only conclusion one could reach was that there was nothing dodgy about his ankle, and his appetite for battle wasn’t half bad either.

It’s easy to look back on moments in hindsight but Beirne's pre-game cameo seemed to reflect a rebellious mood among the Mayo players as they set to overthrow the Kingdom and end 75 years of bitter disappointment in All-Ireland finals. In fairness, Andy Moran had set that tone after the semi-final victory over Louth when he called out the national media for their constant obsession with this thing called ‘Mayo hype’, as if no other county had ever gone a little wild after qualifying for the All-Ireland Final.

In a remarkable debut season as Mayo manager, that was Andy’s finest moment, and he was rewarded on All-Ireland Final day as the Green and Red army rallied around his team at critical junctures in this game. It was simply astonishing to see the huge Mayo attendance in Croke Park – outnumbering Kerry by at least three to one – and the noise they made, especially from the famous Hill, was like nothing this writer has ever witnessed in many a long day travelling to big games in Croke Park.

Everyone on Hill 16 should take a bow because they really performed the role of ‘ultras’ to perfection and would have given the most passionate Argentinian soccer fans a run for their money. The Hill was packed long before throw-in and they set about creating a raucous atmosphere, cheekily greeting the Galway jubilee team to deafening chants of ‘Mayo, Mayo’. But there was respect too for our neighbours and that was especially evident when young Finn Clancy, son of the recently deceased Paul, stepped forward to greet the crowd. The only sound from the Hill – and, indeed, the rest of the ground – was a heartfelt round of applause that grew in waves and waves, even as the youngster returned to his position in the Galway line-up. It was a particularly poignant moment for all of us who fondly recall the wonderful football talents of his late father, and it really showed the GAA at its very best. Some moments are above age-old rivalries, and that was one of them.

John O’Mahony was, of course, the manager of that great Galway team and his spirit seemed to be ever-present on this All-Ireland Final Day as his protégé, Andy Moran, finished the job he had started way back in 1989. Johnno was the man who made the initial historic breakthrough by bringing Mayo to the first All-Ireland Final in 38 years and we have almost gone through another 38 years as we searched for our Promised Land. There were times in this game, especially in the opening quarter, when it looked as if our wanderings in the desert would continue for yet another year and it is a measure of the belief Andy Moran has instilled in this group of young players that they refused to buckle under the full weight of a Kerry onslaught in an All-Ireland Final.

Kerry really got off to the perfect start with Dylan Casey – who had been assigned the task of man-marking Kobe McDonald – scoring in the second minute before David Clifford hit a brace in the fifth and sixth minutes to put his side ahead by 0-3 to 0-0. By the sixteenth minute, Kerry were 1-5 to 0-1 ahead and it looked as if this final was about to go the same way as 2004 and 2006, games in which our All-Ireland dreams were as good as over by half-time.

Jack Carney, who must have ran Ryan O’Donoghue close for the Man of the Match award, kicked a monster two-pointer in the 17th minute to finally give the Mayo fans something to cheer about – and boy did they cheer. One of our previous managers James Horan once remarked about the ‘silence’ of Mayo fans in the 2013 All-Ireland Final when the game was there to be won, but there was no such reticence to make their voices heard last Sunday. Every score, tackle and turnover was greeted with a deafening roar that seemed to echo around the old stadium with a thunderous ferocity that matched the display of Mayo out on the field.

Rarely have a Kerry team got as badly beaten around midfield in an All-Ireland Final as last Sunday. Mayo’s display in the 25-minute golden spell on either side of half-time, when they outscored the Kingdom by 1-11 to 0-4, was as good as we have ever seen from our senior footballers in Croke Park, especially against top-level opposition. Let's not forget - Mayo had only defeated Kerry in championship games in Croke Park on two occasions since 1951, namely the All-Ireland semi-finals of 1996 and 2017, so to beat the Kingdom in a final was truly seismic.

Darragh Beirne was central to the Mayo fightback and his free-kick in the 25th minute – after substitute Tommy Conroy had been fouled – was akin to Cillian O’Connor at his sharp-shooting best. It is worth remembering that Beirne’s first touch in the game was far from encouraging as he was swept over the sideline in the early exchanges, but like so many of these young players under Andy Moran’s stewardship, he never allowed his confidence to be shaken and just kept coming back for more, eventually scoring Mayo’s only goal after being set up by David McBrien, who was also having a game for the ages.

For Mayo, every All-Ireland Final since 1989 has ultimately been defined by mistakes rather than great moments. Goals missed, players sent off, debatable substitutions… these have been grist to the mill for the national media over the years as they sifted through the debris of yet another Mayo defeat. It was as if winners don’t make mistakes at all and that everything Mayo did in a final should be viewed through the prism of the final score.

The truth is that winners aren’t perfect and Mayo’s performance last Sunday had moments that, on another day, might have been held up as evidence of yet another Green and Red capitulation on the big day. We only managed one point between the 45th and 55th minutes, and spurned a bunch of scoring opportunities, as Kerry reduced the gap to just one point.

But our response was that of champions-elect with Jordan Flynn and Kobe McDonald hitting points within a matter of a minute to restore a more comfortable lead, 1-17 to 1-14. A two-pointer from Ryan O’Donoghue in the 62nd minute stretched the advantage to five points but then came one of those ‘Mayo moments’ as Jordan Flynn saw his flicked goal effort come off the crossbar and away to safety. Once again, it seemed as if fate was about to deal Mayo the cruellest set of cards, especially when Kerry scored the next three points, including a stunning two-pointer from David Clifford.

Our rearguard action in those final few minutes was truly heroic as exhausted defenders threw themselves into tackles to hold Kerry at bay and ultimately end that long, long wait for a fourth Sam Maguire.

Afterwards in the Croke Park Hotel, an exuberant Cavan man noted that when Mayo had last been All-Ireland champions, they were succeeded by his own native county.

“Who knows,” he mused, “it could be our turn to end a 75-year famine next year.” 

And that is the beauty about what happened last Sunday. For Mayo people everywhere it is the perfect end to an epic voyage that had been defined by disappointment and heartache for so, so long, but for many other counties the story of this Mayo team will now be held up as a cause for hope, that if Mayo can do it then why can’t we?

The legacy of this remarkable Mayo team is now assured. They truly are history makers and we have been privileged to have been there to witness them.