Being back and bloddy traffic

Well I made it back and was well rested, that was until yesterday and the nightmare traffic jam that was Newbridge after the game. After watching a good win by the boys in green and red was something positive to think about for the forty or so minutes, we crawled from traffic light to traffic light. So hope ye like the report and will be posting more thoughts on the game and this weekends one and anything else of interest in Mayo during the week, following my sabaitcal. And it was good to see St Partrick had a sense of humor yesterday, with his banner saying “No Wooden Spoon for Mayo” following on from the Donaghy incident.

All a little bit to easy in the end

Allianz National Football League Round five

All a little bit too easy for Mayo

Mayo 2-14
Kildare 2-8

It was all a little bit to easy for Mayo in the end, what John O’Mahony and his management team will have really learned from this game we will have to wait until the summer to see, but a six point win and two points in the bag was a good return from the long trip to Newbridge yesterday.
Mayo won comfortably, more comfortably in fact than the final gap of six points suggests and any who were stuck on the slow moving convayer belt of traffic out of the Kildare town heading west will have had plenty to think about on the slow crawl out of the town.
The dividend of five points from five games, may be less than were used to for this stage in the league, but the last few weeks have seen us pull away a bit from the quagmire of the relegation battle and look to move to the safety of mid table.
Mayo were the better side by a long way and rather than get carried away with this win over a side who got beat out the gate by Derry in there last outing, we should really look at some of the negatives from the game before counting the superlatives. Mayo were 1-3 to 0-0 down after eight minutes in which, the Mayo defence had all the look of six lads who won a competition to wear the green a red rather than be top class footballers. Things were tightened up but, if Mayo let a top drawer side, like which we protest ourselves to be, get a start like that we’d probably never get back within touching distance.
Tom Cunniffe was in all sorts of trouble from the get go, despite his fine showing in the corner against Kerry, it’s plainly looking like a case of round pegs for square holes the tight marking necessity of the corner don’t suit him and he was a much better prospect in the half back line as his bullocking run and point in the first half proved.  David Heaney had a very poor game, a number of misplaced passes and being to slow on the turn a number of times could have cost Mayo very dear indeed. Of the other members of the back six, Trevor Howely continued his bedding in at number six, Keith Higgins did well when asked to go back to the corner back position and with Kieran Conroy getting only his second start and Colm Boyle his first at this level they did pretty well considering.

James Kavanagh opened the scoring on thirty seconds, when Tadhg Fennin played a qucik free into the corner forward who took it in front of Conroy before swinging it over the bar, the impressive John Doyle doubled the lilywhite advantage in the fourth minute from a free after Michael Hartnett   was fould by a number of Mayo players on the deck. Doyle was involved again when he beat Cunniffe to a long ball in before laying off a neat reverse hand pass to Kavanagh who clipped over a fine score. The start went from bad to worse for Mayo when on eight minutes Conor Mortimer and Andy Moran in their eagerness to get involved in the game both contested the same ball in the air only to see, it spill away from the both of them.  It ended up with Tadhg Fennin on the right wing who swung the ball low across the park, Cunniffe made and attempt to pick it up, but got it wrong and it fell to Doyle who cut inside and put it low under David Clarke to open a six point gap.

Mayo got off the mark in a rather fortitutios manner when referee Pat McEnaney moved the ball forward to ten yards to a more scoreable position for Alan Dillon following dissent from Anthony Rainbow. Conor Mortimer got off the mark with one of those efforts which if it went wide he would have been barrated by every Mayo supporter up and down the county, with the ball in hand about 35 meters out he was being bottled in by the Kildare defence, a cross field ball to a free Mayo man looked the senisible option, but not for Conor who swung the ball over his shoulder high and creeping inside the post to fully kick start the Mayo fight back.
After having a ten minutes to forget at the start of the game, Tom Cunniffe showed what brought him to so many peoples attention as a minor in 2005. The Castlebar man barreled up field, as Alan Dillion and Austin O’Malley worked the ball between themselves before Cunniffe came at pace and slotted it over the back spot.
All this good work could have quite easily been undone two minutes later when slack marking by the Mayo midfield allowed Kildare to break at Mayo again,  Brian Flanagan was the man the ball ended up with after a neat integrated hand passing move only for his shot to be saved by David Clarke and Fennin taking the safe option of the point from the rebound.

Ronan McGarrity who along with Tom Parsons was beginning to get a grip around midfield pointed  after a Conor Mortimer free, to cut the gap to two with 17 minutes left in the first half, but the injury jinx which has plagued Trevor Mortimer since 2004 struck again forcing the Shrule Glencorrib man off the field leading to the introduction of Pat Harte. Which was followed by another John Doyle.  With 22 minutes on the clock Mayo strung together their very first real flowing move of the game. Austin O’Malley won a high ball in from Tom Parsons and laid it off to Conor Mortimer who danced his was past one defender before spotting the run of Parsons who had followed his punt forward, Mortimer played in the Charlestown man who in full stride planted the ball past Thomas Corley in the Kildare goal to put Mayo back on level terms.
David Heaney had the chance to put Mayo into the lead shortly after, but as he was having a poor day at the office he screwed his effort wide of the mark.  Mayo finally pushed themselves into the lead finishing off a fine comeback on 26 minutes when pressure from Andy Moran forced Thomas Corley to play the ball on the ground and offer Conor Mortimer the simpleist of tasks of clipping the ball over the bar from 13 yards out. Moran was coming more and more into the game and got himself on the board after he won the ball over his head and opted to point from a difficult enough position when he had David Heaney outside him on the overlap, Mayo were on a roll and Conor Mortimer hit over another point from play from a difficult angle, which was replied to by a Ken Donnelly point. But Andy Moran was about to kill the game off with four minutes left in the half, Trevor Howley launched the ball forward to an isolanted Moran who won the ball in front of his man, and using his quick feet he put himself one on one with Corley and applied a deft finish to put it under the Kildare number one and Mayo into the lead by five, which was made six by the break when Austin O’Malley got his reward for an honest 35 minutes of effort.

While the fist half had everything the second was a far more lackluster affair, with A Tadhg Fennin free failing to ignite a Kildare fight back early on in the half points from O’Malley, Mortimer (twice) and Dillon left Mayo up by nine with ten minutes gone in the half, there was a 18 minute spell when neither side troubled the score keeper until Austin O’Malley swung over a great score from the right wing. Doyle increased his personal tally from the penalty spot on 34 minutes after David Heaney fouled Kavanagh and he also clipped over another point from out on the right wing to bring to an end a rather dull second half.

Mayo: D Clarke; T Cunniffee (0-1), K Conroy, C Boyle; D Heaney, T Howley, K Higgins; R McGarrity (0-1), T Parsons (1-0); J Gill, A Dillon (0-2,2f), T Mortimer; C Mortimer (0-5,3f), A O’Malley (0-4), A Moran (1-1). Subs: P Harte, M Ronaldson, B Moran.

Kildare:T Corley; E Bolton, K O’Neill, M O’Flaherty; A McLoughlin, A Rainbow, B Flanagan; R Sweeney, A Rainbow, B Flanagan; R Sweeney, D Early; J Doyle (2-3), M Conway, T Fennin (0-2) ; J Kavanaghh (0-2), M Hartnett, K Donnelly (0-1)  Subs: G White, D Flynn, A Smith, A Barry

Ref: P McEnaney (Monaghan)

The weekeds just keep getting more hectic

The Easter Bank Holiday weekend is a time for making trips across the country and some relaxation, that is my plan anyway (promised herself we’d go away for it ages ago) more the fool me with the Connacht U21 clash with Leitrim being brought back a week from the original fixture date, so I won’t get to see Pat Holmes, Noel Connelly and Micheal Collins’s charges in action on Saturday or the minors (again) who are in minor league action on Saturday evening against Galway in Ballinrobe. That along with the hurlers heading down to Kerry in the league, a game if they win and Westmeath do the business should put them into the league quarter final. I also believe that the ladies are in action, but no one seem’s bothered by them and the farce that the senior side have become, but more of a problem on the ground is that I have been told by a number of people involved in clubs in the county is that they still haven’t got fixtures for the year and don’t know when they will, (That was a few weeks ago will check back with them this evening and see has it changed). All this coupled with the second round of the league’s taking place over the weekend makes it a feast of football for Mayo followers this weekend and the senior men aren’t even in action.

I’m glad to see that the County Board have decided to do something about the Kieran Donaghy incident last weekend, who ever threw the timber at him should be named and shamed for their actions, because there is no room in Mayo for this kind of behaviour (or anywhere).

Anyway I’ve put together this weekends fixtures as good as I can from the Co Board website, hope your able to mark a few games to go to in your dairies.

Saturday March 22nd
Connacht U21 Football Championship semi-final (At 2.30pm)
Mayo v Leitrim, Ref: M. Duffy in Castlebar

Connacht Minor League (At 5pm)

Mayo v Galway, in Ballinrobe

Welcome Inn Senior Football League Div1C (At 5pm)
Killala v Kilmaine, Ref: J. Boyle in Killala

Welcome Inn Senior Football League Div1D (All games at 5pm)
Parke-Keelouges-Crimlin v Ballina Stephenites B, Ref: M. Barry in Parke
Crossmolina Deel Rovers B v Balla, Ref: R. Cosgrove in Crossmolina

Welcome Inn Senior Football League Div1E (All games at 5pm)
Knockmore B v Kilfian, Ref: J. Finn in Knockmore
Bohola Moy-Davitts B v Lahardane, Ref: P. Carney in Foxford
Ballycastle v Ballinrobe B, Ref: R. Devine in Ballycastle
Charlestown B v Ballintubber B, Ref: G. Carmody in Charlestown
Castlebar Mitchels B v Ballaghaderreen B, Ref: J. Reynolds in Castlebar

Welcome Inn Senior Football League Div1F (All games at 5pm)
Béal an Mhuirthead B v Ardagh, Ref: J. O’Malley in Béal an Mhuirthead
Lacken v Westport B, Ref: B. Holmes in Lacken
Shrule-Glencorrib B v Breaffy B, Ref: M. Vahey in Shrule
Cill Chomain B v Acaill B, Ref: P. Doherty in Cill Chomain
Kilmovee v Aghamore B, Ref: T. Ward in Kilmovee
Swinford B v Ardnaree B, Ref: M. McHale in Swinford

Sunday March 23rd
Allianz National Hurling League Div 2A (At 2.30pm)
Kerry v Mayo in Austin Stack Park, Tralee

Welcome Inn Senior Football League Div1A (All games at 2pm)
Ballinrobe v Breaffy, Ref: M. Daly in Ballinrobe
Davitts v Charlestown, Ref: M. Murphy in Davitts
Bohola Moy-Davitts v Ballaghadereen, Ref: J. Hughes in Foxford
Knockmore v Crossmolina Deel Rovers, Ref: C. Collins in Knockmore

Welcome Inn Senior Football League Div1B (All games at 2pm)
Ballina Stephenites v Kilmeena, Ref: P. Geraghty in Ballina
Cill tSeadhna v Islandeady, Ref: M. McCarron in Cill tSeahdna
Garrymore v Ballintubber, Ref: D. Harrington in Garrymore
Shrule-Glencorrib v Claremorris, Ref: D. Corcoran in Shrule
Castlebar Mitchels v Louisburgh, Ref: K. Connolly in Castlebar

Welcome Inn Senior Football League Div1C (All games at 2pm)
Hollymount v Cill Chomain, Ref: R. Gurren in Hollymount
Mayo Gaels v The Neale, Ref: J. Feeney in Mayo Abbey
Swinford v Kiltimagh, Ref: L. Devenney in Swinford

Welcome Inn Senior Football League Div1D (All games at 2pm)
Moygownagh v Carramore, Ref: G. Loftus in Moygownagh
Eastern Gaels v Acaill, Ref: J.S. Walsh in Brickens

Monday March 24th
Welcome Inn Senior Football League Div1A (At 2pm)
Béal an Mhuirthead v Burrishoole, Ref: V. Neary in Béal an Mhuirthead

Welcome Inn Senior Football League Div1C, (At 12pm)
Aghamore v Bonniconlon, Ref: P. Costello in Aghamore

Welcome Inn Senior Football League Div1D (At 12pm)
Ballyhaunis v Ardnaree, Ref: M. Kenny in Ballyhaunis

Welcome Inn Senior Football League Div1F (At 12pm)
Crossmolina Deel Rovers C v Claremorris B, Ref: K. Corcoran in Crossmolina

North Mayo Junior Winter League (At 2pm)
Knockmore v Lacken / Ballycastle, Ref: TBC in TBC

Mayo win greeted with posativity by the nationals

Even with the controversy which followed the final whistle yesterday with the Donaghy incident which I missed to see as I funneled quickly out of the cold and home to post and get ready for a few celebrationally beverages yesterday evening the national beavers in the decprit press box in McHale Park were all positively welcoming our win yesterday. Our own national pressman Liam Horan penned a really enjoyable piece where he played very well described both the Mayo management and fans love/hate affair with our hero yesterday Austin O’Malley for the examiner.  While Cliona Foley in the Indo opened her report with relaying to the nation how much it means to Mayo people to beat Kerry even if it is only in Spring time.  Keith Duggan from the big paper who must be sick of watching us play was more than positive towards the green and red, noting that we may be around for a lot longer this summer than many think.