It's a really tough ask for our guys. I'm going to go with a Mayo win by 1 point with our guys coming out fighting for pride .

As you said it would be such a Mayo thing to do .

I've opted for a draw, primarily because Tyrone packed a lot of energy and endeavour in against Donegal, and it's bound to take some form of a toll. You don't leave Ballybofey unscathed.

I just have a strong feeling Mayo will win. When our backs are to the wall we seem to perform so wouldnt suprise me in the slightest if we beat Tyrone

There is a maturity and physical toughness about Tyrone that's not there yet for Mayo. Tactically they are smart, know how to pick holes in a defence, and not afraid to mix it with direct football.
They have fielders in midfield, we'll be doing mighty well to break even on our kickouts.
Tyrone will see this as a game which will put them to top of table, there will be no lack of motivation.
It's the type of game we need, exposure to the standard required to be competing for Sam, but unrealistic to expect we can win imo. Tyrone comfortably for me.

With the sudden change in weather it feels much later in year and almost like the end summer and it’s hard to escape the thought that it’s probably the end of mayo’s summer as well.The idea that winning this game is like something mayo would do is more connected to the mayo team of the last decade.This particularly crew have shown no real evidence of that.Our form so far in this championship has in the main been extremely poor .Are we suddenly going to start winning midfield with the same personnel.Are we suddenly going to start shooting two pointers.i have no doubt there will be some reaction from the players but will it be enough to overcome all the other issues that have become more and more apparent over the last few games

Not the normal thing to say but I don’t believe Tyrone or Donegal are that brilliant but we are obviously not performing to their standard at this point so far . Could be a tight affair with our lads gaining a bit of confidence during the game but have they the stomach for the battle after such criticism (justified) from the Cavan game . Selection will be interesting, players that didn’t perform last couple of games ie Jordan Flynn for example , do you stick or twist , ya know he’s a lot to offer if he rediscovered his form but he looks shattered to me , played a lot of ball this year . Personally if he has been showing well since in training and head is in the right place I’d still go with him .

Tommy ???

Tyrone were desperately unlucky to be relegated. They ran Armagh really close in Ulster championship even though they would say they didn’t play to their potential that day. They were hugely impressive v Donegal last Saturday to suggest they have as good a chance of winning the All Ireland as any of the other teams tipped to do so. Going on form we have little chance. We stumbled over Sligo and Leitrim, played ok for spells v Galway but were really poor v Cavan. I would have to presume our confidence is at a fairly low ebb at the moment while theirs must be sky high. Padraig O Hora was suggesting on GAA plus on Saturday that we’d turn up with all guns blazing and I hope he is right, but let’s be honest it would be quite a shock were we to get anything out of it. On the positive side Tyrone must have expended lots of physical and emotional energy in defeating Donegal so maybe, just maybe they may have difficulty getting up to a high level on Saturday evening.. They have a strong team, very good goalie, a big physical presence in the middle and some top class forwards, so a big ask indeed but hopefully we go out and have a real go.

I hope for the players and management sake there is a big Mayo response in this game as I said on a previous thread we need this to be Salvation part 1 and not Apocalypse 2...DOC and EMcL are big losses for a game like this but players need to step up big time for this one. I'm hopeful but not confident...

@1985
Great summation at where we are at...unfortunately

Unfortunately, I have to agree with you 1985 this Mayo team just doesn't seem to have the same fight or resilience as the sides from 2011 to 2017. Look at the Kerry games in the 2022 league final and quarter-final, the Dublin quarter-final in 2023, and more recently Galway in the 2025 league, the Kerry 2025 league final, and even the Cavan game. In all of them, it felt like we folded too easily when things got tough. Previous Mayo teams would have gone down swinging—they had that never-say-die attitude. I really hope I’m wrong, but right now it feels like we lack the mental toughness of other top sides and are too easily bullied out of games.

Physically and emotionally the Donegal game will have taken a bit out of Tyrone, i'd see their level of intensity dropping back a bit.
On Mayo yes you would expect the stinging criticism to be still a clear memory along with the bit of turmoil that is bound to effect training this week is going to either galvanize the group and maybe inspire a much better performance or else we accept that we are not just good enough no matter how inspired we might feel .
I'd give us a reasonable chance if we have a cut at it and with Paddy back doing what Paddy does,or used to do and hopefully still can.
A tight win for Mayo would be my hope.

Hoping Mayo turn up and produce a proper performance but all the evidence points to a straightforward Tyrone win even if the quick turnaround hampers them a bit.

Tyrone have better forwards, better midfield and better game plan.
Mayo would have to pull out a performance and tactical plan that hasnt been seen in 12 months.

We live in hope - but its the hope that kills you.
Good luck to anyone going up to watch it. I hope the players at least play like they appreciate your effort to go see them

The fact that we are hoping that Mayo ‘turn up’ is an embarrassing indictment of where this team is at and how far Mayo have fallen back over the past two seasons. It’s unacceptable. Strategy is bonkers to put it kindly. Player management is clearly failing because how many lads have a form-line moving in a positive trajectory over the past 18 months? Very, very few. We’ve had a member of mgnt walk away. Key players walk away. It’s bad. Very bad indeed.

The Cavan, Sligo and Leitrim performances were woeful. The effort in the Connacht Final was what you expect from any team playing championship against a rival. Unfortunately when the chips were down Mayo failed, once again, to deliver. A common theme for us in recent times.

If our team follow the strategy (if you’d call it that) that they’ve been largely adhering to then they’ve absolutely no chance. I think we all expect a dramatic change. In a way the gap between the Cavan game and this match in Omagh might feel a bit like an extended HT in the Athletic Grounds. On the one hand, a flat insipid performance and on the other, a fiery ‘cut loose from the shackles’ type performance. Anything less, and we are in ‘they should be ashamed’ territory. But I’d be awfully surprised if we end up there. In my opinion, regardless of how individual players feel about the state of affairs (it’s clearly dire), they’ll fight for the colours on Saturday. Whether that produces a win or draw is anyone’s guess.

I think we'll see a much improved performance but Tyrone to win by 3-5 points. Mayo look so shot of confidence that pride will only take you so far. Tyrone will have their eyes on the big one now. Their keeper is the best in the business, defense is solid, midfield better than ours, and up front they are very solid without being spectacular. It would be a huge shock if Mayo won.

Malachy O'Rourke is an absolutely top class manager. His stamp is beginning to show and they'll be strong contenders for a semi final berth. Tyrone are exciting to watch and becoming more so with each game. My favourite opposition fan base. They're stone mad and very decent. Can't see us winning but I'll go for the hospitality!

I'm a expecting a response from Mayo are is normally a response after a poor showing. The two week prep time to Tyrone's 7 day turnaround should be helpful also. Good win for Tyrone against Donegal but have my doubts they would have won had Patton played.

Brian Kennedy, Conn Kilpatrick;
Seanie O’Donnell, Mattie Donnelly, Ciarán Daly; Darren McCurry, Mark Bradley, Darragh Canavan

We need speed and power in fullbackline to try neutralise their forwards.

Hession on Darren McCurry, hess hasn't the ball carrying skills to be halfback of required quality.
Mcbrien on Mark Bradley, Sam on Darragh Canavan .
Mchugh on Matty Donnelly and either side of him Kelly/Coyne and Coen for dogged halfback performances where we win breaking ball.

AOS will actually keep with Conn Kilpatrick midfield so I'd put him and Carney in middle.
AOS can hold the middle he doesn't need to be running all over the shop.
Matty Ruane to fullforward, he's mobile and accurate enough so better option than most.
Darren McHale and Neary either side of him with Irwin, ROD and Flynn in halfforward line.

That's as positive as I can be but I do feel as if we can slow Tyrone to our pace and they will allow us to bring our chaos to the breaking ball but lads need to show hunger and desire for breaking ball.

Ya feck it I'm.going for Mayo win . I don't think all things are resolved but Tyrone may just allow us to mix slow play and speed without need off too much dependency on new rules

Hoping to see a reaction from Mayo but still don’t see us having enough to win. Tyrone by +5.

I can't understand why Tyrone and Donegal have to play two weeks in a row, even if, in Tyrone's case, it didn't involve that much travel. We've had two weeks to work on things - that's important. I honestly am not signing up to the doom and gloom approach. We've lost two on the trot for sure, but the Galway match was lost by a whisker and should have been won. Non-Mayo people were very impressed with the football in the CF and with Mayo too.

These group games are very tricky - it's very hard to win all three and our group is the group of near death. Cavan now have to be rated ahead of Derry, whom Galway should dispose of easily I think. In other words both Tyrone and Donegal will probably beat Cavan, but won't relish playing them one bit. Donegal have taken a hit, but they are a good side and with McGuinness at the helm this is a challenge he/they will relish, which is a bit of a worry for the final match.

Tyrone have to 'come down' from last week's high and that gives us some leeway. I think our chances boil down to one big question - can we get enough possession around the middle, and keep it? That's the critical thing and it has been our one weakness all through 2025. We don't have to win the bloody thing from kickouts, but we have to make it a nightmare for those who do. Remember that win over the Rossies during the COVID year when we beat them at The Hyde? We didn't win a ball at midfield for the match, but we mopped up on the breaks and broke their hearts. That and holding our nerve in the final minutes, if we are in it. This is a new development and it's hard to say what can actually be done. Keep ball is the obvious thing, but it's a loaded dice, get the opposition to concede a 45 or kickable free is another - Offaly minors did that brilliantly.

Can we do it? Why not?

You would expect a reaction from the group. We never laid a glove on Cavan the last day. We will need to lay plenty on Tyrone and go after them all over the pitch. That alone will give us a chance but we need to be more adventurous on the ball to win the match. Tyrone will devour us if we are slow and lateral as we have been all year.. We have to mix it up and keep them guessing..

Its unlikely Kevin will be on the line and I wish him a full recovery. I hope the lads can put in a big one to lift everyones spirits.. its been a bad few weeks since the Galway game

I think anyone predicting a win could not have been in Castlebar the last day. I was at the Longford game and we were worse than that. Players gave up and I cannot see how they can get to the required level to challenge Tyrone.

@Justoutsideballagh

I was at the gane we were absolutely terrible no denying that .

But I'm just expecting a reaction from the guys. Weather that can be a win who knows.

Whatever about the do it for Kevin aspect , there's definitely a do it for yourself, part which must kick in with the lads own pride.
I never have know lads to be called out so much so in the media from well known people like Billy Joe , naming players its been a rough few weeks for the lads

I'd stick Jack Coyne in Canavan...I don't think Sam has the tools to deal with him at the minute, his confidence seems to have taken a few hits of late.

Canavan roasted Sam in the Sigerson either last year or the year before.
Matchups will be vital.
We normally get them fairly right.
We have nothing to loose.
No gambling with kickouts.
Plenty coffee energy please.

We are grasping at the usual straws in e, pectin a win in Omagh. "We can beat anyone on our day" (I hate that phrase-we can also lose to anyone on any day, as evidenced against Cavan.), "we perform better as underdogs", "you never know what Mayo will turn up" etc. Taking off the green and red tinted glasses, it is very difficult to see anything other than a Tyrone win. They have a better defence, better midfield, better forwards, are better organized, are on a roll and are in front of a home crowd. I am just hoping that, with our backs to the wall, and pride in the jersey, we put in 70 minute performance of intensity, similar to second half against Galway and, if that is good enough, great, and, if not, at least go down fighting. We will need our best performance in quite some time. Let's "give it a lash".

It’s going to take a monumental effort from this Mayo team to beat Tyrone and I’m really struggling to see that happening. On last week’s Podcast Billy Joe said ‘we’ll need physical domination of the kick outs and midfield’ and the need for ‘an aggressive performance we haven’t seen all year’ to have a chance of beating Tyrone. He doesn’t think that kind of performance is in this Mayo team and he just can’t see us winning. Neither does Boyler on the same Podcast. It’s very hard to disagree with them when you look at the way we’ve played, not only this year, but for the past three years. I think our best chance of a win is against Donegal at the neutral ground.

Mayo would need a performance like 2004 when Tyrone were holders, was it the quarter final I think...wow! Long time ago and mayo had Mcdonald, Brady Dillon Mortimer Nallen etc in their pomp. Alot has changed in the football landscape since then. Tyrone are just a better balanced team at the moment. Mayo unfortunately not at that level. A win for the Red Hand with a few to spare.

McStay has stepped back, really hope he is ok!

So, Rochford is taking over... Hmmm
Best wishes to Kevin. Get well Kevin.

I just saw that on mayogaa.com ..wish him well.

Stephen Rochford first match in charge since Kildare in 2018?

Cant see Kevin on the side line this Saturday. We wish him a speedy recovery and our best wishes to his family. Football not so important at this time.
In my honest opinion I believe we will be as good as out following our trip Omagh. Our form is rock bottom and just can’t flick a switch to turn things around. Time for a complete reset for management and team let’s get futuristic.
Mayo Abu.

Best wishes for a full recovery to Kevin, and welcome back to Stephen. I still feel that Mayo have not fully embraced the new rules. The lack of a kick out strategy is taking a toll. While it was OK to take the Sligo and Leitrim games as a chance to learn a bit more about our squad, I felt the Galway game was a disaster. Mayo were 1 point down, after reeling in an 8 point deficit, and playing with a strong wind when the short kick out was intercepted. Worst case scenario was Galway would get a goal and leave Mayo 4 points behind but still wind assisted. Instead Rory panicked, got a black card, and Galway went 2 points clear. With 14 players we never looked like getting back in the game. Again when we played Cavan there appeared to be no strategy for kick outs. We could get away with this if we had people winning loose ball at midfield, but unfortunately we don't.

The poll tells its own story. We're usually an overly optimistic group of fans even when the odds are against us. Only 35% at the minute thinking we'll win on Saturday. It would be the perfect time for an upset. Anyway as the managers recent health scare has shown us. It is only a game at the end of the day.

Best wishes to Kevin for a speedy recovery . His recovery is more important than us winning a Match. If for no other reason I’m hoping the Mayo Team go out and play for Kevin v Tyrone. Play for Kevin, play for pride and bloody well get stuck in… Play for Mayo. If we are going to go down then Leave everything out on that pitch. Mayo by 3.

Best wishes to Kevin, how things can change in a heartbeat. I think we need a Pod on the County Board meeting, have only heard snippets but bizarre to say the least. On Saturday, who knows at this stage. Keep the faith.