An absolute jailbreak there for Ballina. Fair play to Frank who had had a relatively quiet day. I thought McDermott had settled it for Westport with that screamer of a two-pointer. Keegan was a huge loss to them, and they responded very well after he went off.

Very happy as a supporter to have another day out to which to look forward. Two fantastic games - the Intermediate final was a real classic.

Well done to both teams for a great game of football and excellent entertainment. I think Ballina will win the final and glad it wasnt finished today on penalties they deserve another day out

What a game a draw was a fair result the replay next Saturday is going to be amazing and I think Ballina Stephenites will shade it but I would not be surprised if Westport Snuck it by 1-3 points.
Westport may just sneak it but I am going for Ballina to win by 1-2 points

Don't think Westport will allow an eight point lead to develop the next day. Would love to see Keegan and O Hora back but its unlikely. A belter of a game and the joy of the possiblilty another one next week. Hopefully they stick it on TG4 but Midwest was exceptional coverage. Popcorn will be at the ready.

Watched that back last night. Honestly, O'Hora should have been sent off. It might not be intent but it was a really reckless tackle that caused a bad injury. Really disappointed in that.
However, the game was brilliant to watch. The second half intensity was savage. And what a finish.

I thought the first half was quite poor, but it sprung to life in the final twenty minutes which were terrific. I was delayed in getting to it and it was 7 to1 Ballina at that stage. But, as far as I'm concerned, it was pretty much all Westport. Kilkenny and Moran didn't get going really, though Kilkelly did very well with that free. They can do better next day. I keep liking the look of Dylan Thornton; thought he was outstanding really, and that run by Luke Doherty - can we have more of that please? Ballina powerful around the middle but Westport mopped up the breaking ball. Eoghan Mac very solid, how can we do without him?

@waiting for sam

I tend to agree on the o'hora tackle. Its a red card for me. I love full blooded commitments and physicality as much as anyone but he is not in control at all when diving in like that when the kicking player is completely exposed while kicking. I don't think it was malicious but those things need stamping out as I recall a teammate of mine getting a career ender injury when a guy mistimed a clumsy block and landed recklessly on his standing leg

Any update on Keegans injury, will he be fit for replay, should O Hora get suspended on video evidence, with new rule's and fast open game now no need for aggressive dangerous play.

@Waiting for Sam,
Agree 100% re red card.
It was the third time, after taking out Conal Dawson, and having a go at Eoghan Mc before that.
I have no bother with physicality in the game, but player protection is paramount.

Also agree on the O'Hora tackle, he'd want to have a good long look in the mirror. There is a world of difference between total commitment and recklessness. He was late and Keegan was prone, unprotected with both legs extended - it was only going to go badly.

On the match itself, lots of talk today about Westport missing their chance but I really fancy them in the replay. They look to me to be the team with the more football in them. If they can win enough ball around the middle, I can't see them losing. They had 11 different scorers the last day, while Ballina feel a little reliant on Evan Regan. If Westport can get to grips with him, I think they should have too much.

I believe that Ballina were extremely lucky,Wesport by far the better team ,I fancied Ballina ,but they have not got a hope in the replay,Westport for me far better players

Saturday Oct 2025,
Ballina Stephenites V Westport GAA
Time: 15:00
Venue: MacHale Park, Castlebar
Referee: James Regan

Padraic O Hora needs to take a long look at himself, should he be fit to play, similarly Eoghan Mc Laughlin picked up a silly booking, lack of respect for player on the ground.
Unbelievable finish to the game, some silly mistakes mixed with brilliance, McDermotts two pointer and Irwins equalising free were standout moments.
Westport to come back hungrier than ever, there will be not shortage of belief that they can get over the line

Culmore - only video evidence I seen was mayogaatv. Nothing there to suggest it was a red card.

I think that Ballina is poor,I don't know they won two county titles,poor team,Westport for me

Does anyone else think Finbar McLoughlins style of football is very similar to Robert Finnerty - the way he runs, style of kicking etc

Finbar a natural, came up through underage ranks, confident., polished and def comparable to finnerty.
O Hora caught Keegan very late when standing on one foot. Height of wrecklesness, after already downing Dawson with a crushing tackle. Might not have been evident on tv but pain of both felt in the stands. Maybe it's time for OHora to go climbing mountains

Now I know I can post some ridiculous stuff at times but to say Mayo haven't a hope in the replay and how they won back to back county titles because they have apparently poor players is just ridiculous haha .

The blog now seems to have gone into the twilight zone and this isn’t directed at anyone just in case

- Westport just have to eliminate their slowness in getting into games, same pattern all championship.
- They simply could not get possession due to Ballina's excellence around the middle and playing into the wind and a blinding sun did not help.
- It's there for them on Saturday and who the hell picked a 3pm start on a Saturday of a Bank holiday weekend especially as this could easily be played under lights.
- I hope they find the keys of the exit gates before the next game as everyone on the Terrace had to go all the way over to near the Stand entrance to get out.

Olive Kerrigan, what lights? That's the problem I do believe.

hopefully it doesn't result in us not getting to see Keegan play again. Need rules like rugby where reckless tackles are punished either in game or retrospectively.

Have to give huge credit to O’Hora. I watched back the tackle and the don’t think in my entire life I’ve seen a player dive on the standing foot of a player before.

Forgive me if I’m wrong but isn’t the whole point of a diving block to block the ball, ie the foot of which it is kicked off? I certainly hope it wasn’t a genuine attempt to take out Keegans standing foot because if it was, it has to be the dirtiest tackle of be could ever make.

Let's put that O Hora tackle into perspective. If he put a reckless tackle like that on Kobe McDonald, how would every last county supporter feel about it today? Time for a little respect for Keegan. And the tackle on Conal Dawson was on a similar category

I’m glad to see the OHora tackle getting more coverage today. The only times Ive seen Lee Keegan carried off was when he injured his finger in 2012 v Dublin and in 2016 after concussion v Cork in League. My point is it takes a bad injury to get him to leave a pitch

It’s impossible to prove there was any intent from OHora, it’s just a coincidence Westports inspirational leader suffered a bad injury early in a county final from kicking a point

I hate to see a dirty tackle in a game.
However we can't have it both ways: we are often accused of softness and have been taken out of games by cynical play.
A bit of hardness would not go astray but some tackles in the final were over the top.

O Hara is long enough playing football to know that a tackle at that force and late has the potential to do serious damage..
Nice to see the Ballinrobe and Crossmolina t teams of 2000 honoured on Sat .
Pity there wasn’t a Connacht intermediate championship that time . Ballinrobe beat Ballaghadreen 1.21 to 6 points in the final and would surely have done well in Connacht
Really hope Westport win the next day ..!!!
Ballina a big physical team , Westport brought a bit more flair and skill , Keegan a huge loss though.

Just going back to the challenge on Keegan - Mayo Gaa added a sequence of photos on this incident. I stand corrected on this, O'Hora didn't go through Keegan's standing leg. He was so late in fact, that he went through Keegan's kicking leg as it hit the ground. Keegan's right knee looks to have hyperextended.

A really dangerous and reckless challenge, and one I'm honestly sick of seeing in the game. O'Hora is a great man when he's playing for your team but lets call a spade a spade, he loves an opportunity to do a fellow player and anyone who goes on the pitch looking to injury players needs to find another past time.

Unstoppable - in other words I hadn’t seen what happened yesterday but I came on regardless to slate O’Hora. Was looking at the challenge with 6 others at teabreak and all agreed it was not intentional or a red card offence.

O' Hora should not be let play in the replay if fit. 'Tackle' was so late and reckless and should be punished.

Very hard to call the replay, don't think Ballina or any team can live with Westport when they reach that intensity, they just need to get going from the start and cut out silly mistakes. Ballina very lucky to get the draw on Sunday, both goals questionable and both went in their favour. I think both teams have room to improve but I think if Westport can break even around the middle and convert a few more chances they are the better team.

@Just a thought - I watched the game live and watched it back when I got home (there was no replay showing the angle that the pictures show).

The tackle was reckless and there was a very high probability of injuring Keegan. Obviously I can't say if it was intentional, I'm not inside O'Hora's head but it was certainly a silly one with the ball well gone.

@Mayo_1951

He was also injured in the tackle so a high chance he wont be able to play anyway some witch hunt out for O Hora on here . It was a reckless tackle but I don't think he intentionally went out to hurt Keegan .

O'Hora is just very unlucky it seems. He landed on the the standing leg of Keegan in the final, he landed on the standing leg of Jordan Flynn in the semifinal and he arrived late into young Sean Og McGuinness in the semifinal as well. People should have a look back at these tackles to see how unlucky he is.

Clare
How common is it for a defender to dive on the standing foot of a player when trying to make a block?

It cleary looked intentional as it was very late and not towards the boot of Keegan’s kicking foot. It certainly isn’t a witch hunt for people calling out what at the very least looked to be a reckless challenge.

If I look back at the Crossmolina round 2 game he made a few late tackles in that one too, not least on Dylan Flynn and thankfully the lad didn’t get hurt.

It would be great if both players were available for Saturday but I’d be 99% confident Keegan is out and I’d be more confident that OHora is fit.

Needless to say IF the tackle was intentional then the last place OHora deserves to be is on a football pitch next Saturday.

Not a witch hunt at all, a stupid tackle like that (and a few in the past) deserves calling out. And hopefully the ref is aware is aware of it this weekend again, if he’s on the field.

Clare, a witch hunt out for O’Hora? That is ironic coming from someone claiming that they saw Paddy O’Malley kicking an opponent from their armchair in Ballina or should that be Killala although the incident wasn’t captured by Mayo GAA TV. In this case the incident was captured by TV and the intent is clear for anyone that understands football. Nothing further to add.

Im all for physicality and hard honest hits but anyone who has ever played the game knows o'hora knows what he is at there. Its a cheap shot as he knows Keegan is exposed and can't protect himself.

He has no business landing on keegans supporting leg if its the ball he was after. At best its clumsy and badly mistimed, at worst he has gone out to leave a bit on him and take him out, we can't presume to know what his intentions were, but either way its a red card for me. He has a duty of care to his opponent

Supermac - He did not land on Keegan's supporting leg. If you seen it you would know that.

@Supermac, O'Hora was actually so late he didn't come through Keegan's supporting leg, he came through the kicking leg after it hit the ground causing hyperextension of Keegan's right knee.

Tbh from looking at the pictures and watching it back, I have no clue how O'Hora was injured so I'd expect him to line out at 6 on Saturday afternoon. (Still expect Keegan to pick up the cup though)

@Unstoppable

Maybe the man himself POH might confirm what his intentions were, on one of his almost weekly interviews in the national media

@Supermac😂😂

I've just looked back at the incident a good few times now. Padraig O'Hora starts his dive to block the ball well after Lee Keegan had kicked it so there's no question but that he was beyond late in doing so. He simply couldn't have been diving to block the ball as it was already gone. One time dangerous play would have earned a player a straight red but that seems to have gone out of fashion in recent years. Ballina were very lucky that O'Hora didn't see red for this incident and I doubt we'd be looking forward to a replay on Saturday had this happened. That's to say nothing of the huge loss Keegan was to Westport the last day and, almost certainly, the next day too.

It's an infringement that I hope referees will sit down and discuss in detail when reviewing these games. As I said in a previous comment if that was dished out to Kobe we'd all be up in arms. It's a pity it can't be dealt with in the aftermath of the game. I can't remember if he got a yellow card but that would be irrelevant anyway.
Unfortunately the scenario is that OHora will start and Keegan will not in replay.

I don't remember a card being issued ontheditch... I'd say officials were following the flight of the ball as most supporters were . I definitely didn't notice it till I saw them both on the deck

Yes thanks 2 hops. Our concern at the time was for the two players.
I watched back on tv afterwards and notice that mayogaa tv do not show replays on controversial events, only scores. Is it a condition of them being allowed to televise the game. There is normally a commentator and analyst on the broadcasting team.
It's an area they could improve on.
Radio commentators could be forgiven they were following the play and the tackle was so late.
Ballina got away with it on the double, no red on the day and no Keegan for the replay.
McLaughlin gave Andy moran one reason for concern, the picking up of a silly yellow card.
Time to move on

@Ontheditch

Your right it is time to move on O' hora was in the wrong weather it was intentional or not who knows but time to let it be and hope Keegan recovers soon . There is no guarantee that O 'Hora will play in replay he got injured to . I do feel bad for Keegan though .

On who will win at the weekend I kind of feel Westport missed there chance Ballina wont let them get as close again and will have learnt from this. Keegan is also a massive loss for Westport .

I don't think missing their chance will even come into the equation in the westport thinking. This one is for Lee as and they westport driving force will not falter.
I don't know how Ballina will feel playing alongside OHora. Both teams have made big sacrifices for this game and wrecklesness causing serious injury will not go down well with ballina players either. Time to find another pastime for o hora

Oh, time to move on - maybe suggest that to Lee Keegan, our greatest ever footballer who we might never see on a football field again. Pathetic.

Time to move on from discussion around the incident, but it will be interesting to see if O Hora is selected for replay.
Westports Trump card is still strength in depth. Evan Regan unlikely to get the same space as he did in first half and I'm sure there will be a focus on coming faster out of the blocks...

@Maggie

Not sure what you expect to happen but going on about the tackle on a blog is not going to change things .There wont be a ban on O' Hora. Ballina suppotters do feel just as bad for Keegan as Westport do . But nothing will happen so there for yes it is time to move on. If westport are good enough they will do the business for Keegan and do the talking on the pitch .

I just feel they will be deflated after getting so close. Ballina have the experience and be back to 15 men . They got out of jail the last day but they will make sure they are not back in there again come Saturday .

O'Hora off his feet with his arms outstretched before Keegan kicks the ball. Assuming this is the incident everyone is talking about?

https://flic.kr/p/2rAW6f9

I can assure you Clare Westport without Keegan will need no motive to finish the job.
I'd be more concerned as to how the younger Ballina lads in particular feel taking the field with OHora. The affectionate nickname Swanny has lost its glitter. Just wondering did he do his usual social media broadcast this week?

@ Digits, roll it on there, what happened next.....

@ontheditch

I am not doubting you whats so ever on that they will want to do it for Keegan . I feel bad for Keegan to most in Ballina do to . Weather they can finish the job is another thing .

It's kind of like the time we got so close to beating the Dubs in round robin and then kilkenny got the draw the last minute. We were soo deflated v Derry after that. I just feel Ballina will have to much for Westport . They wont be as patchy as they were the last day having gotten that scare .

@ontheditch I wasn't defending or otherwise there. My allegiances are definitely not with Ballina. I just don't think it's accurate to say that O'Hora began his blocking dive after the ball was kicked.

I think the argument made by most posters is that O Hora making contact with Keegan so long after he had kicked the ball. Refs linesemen and supporters at the game were following the flight path of the ball and saw two players lying on the ground after the point was scored. The seriousness of the injury is an indicator of the recklessness of the challenge.

There is a regional tournament every year here in Meath after the county finals.
It hasn't ever really taken off, but it gives lower grade players a chance to shine.
With the right regional managers and a new man in charge in Mayo I think it would really take off.

Would be a great way to showcase lads for sure JR.
Only issue you might have is a lot of lads would have let loose after getting knocked out, others still involved in provincial campaigns. So they may not all be in top shape.

But there are quality players playing at lower levels who need a platform to show what they can offer. Some players also improve with better players around them.

Personally would like to see something like this