Frustrated but not panicking.
2 games and 4 new players to add to panel.
Probably missing 6 of our championship starters.
But sure we will see what championship brings .
Stay positive WJ . No All Ireland on the agenda but let's hope for progress. 9

I'd never discount the possibility of an All Ireland.
Here's a scenario that puts us right up there competitive.
1. Aidan returns, he's very effective with the solo and go and extra space.
2. Tommy Conroy returns and he's a very useful pacey impact sub, especially with the solo and go.
3. Paddy Durcan returns at a decent level.
2-3 current starters would go to the bench, so the first 2-3 subs in improves.
If the above had us at 18/1 for Sam, well 18/1 chances do win.

Regardless of how much the public and/or media discount Mayo’s chances in any given season, the objective and ambition of every Mayo management and player group should always be to win the All Ireland. This must be the ultimate objective. Management can express whatever angle they wish publicly and to the media. but privately and within the camp, winning an All Ireland has to be the target. The depth and calibre of talent available to a particular management will of course fluctuate but their role is to do the best with what they have at their disposal. Playing a standard, orthodox strategy when you don’t necessarily have the most talented panel available will rarely bring success. This is when a good manager comes up with a strategy and system that maximises the chances of success with the player group he has. Unfortunately for Mayo, we’ve not seen anything close to this over the past 2 seasons and this I think is what is really frustrating Mayo supporters at the moment. It’s not the fact that we’ve lost our two opening games. It’s the manner in how we’ve lost them. Nothing different and a sense of lack of morale, leadership and direction.

Key players opting out. An inability to close out games. Weird team selections; with players being played out of position and head scratching substitutions. Few if any players improving over the past 2 years. Form just poor. It ain’t been good!

I supported the McStay ticket in 2022. But, after a good start with the league win (beating Galway in the final), it’s been poor enough. For 2025, you’d feel we need to have 5-6 players breaking through, a more effective style and a run to a semi final with hopefully a Connacht title thrown in. Otherwise, with the number of panel withdrawals we saw this year, it’s hard to see the current regime lasting for 2026. 3 years is a decent opportunity for anyone to show viable progress, you’d feel.

I agree WJ that it's important to not peak early and we don't want to be at full tilt yet. However we should at least be able to show that we know what we're trying to do and what the gamelan will be. If we had a set style and showing that we have a handle on the "new" game fans would accept it and believe things would improve with new and returning players. Sadly I just don't see this. While others are able to condition and tweak we seem to be starting from a lower level than we did when this management team first took over. If there is not a marked improvement in selection, rules understanding and style for the Tyrone game I think the last scraps of trust will disappear.

Mixed feelings on what is happening at the moment. On the one hand it’s only February and we have lots of important players to come back plus I think some of the new lads have done ok. Look at Galway this time last year etc etc. But on the other hand there are many reasons not to be cheerful. I honestly don’t think our panel is nearly as strong as it needs to be. Most of our players are not of the same standard as 2011-2017 era. While we say Galway are near full strength they have actually 5 to 7 potential starters who didn’t play against us and have a very strong panel. We big up a guy who has one good game and criticise a lad who has a poor one. We have got to realise with younger lads it’s all about consistency and it takes a while to achieve that. I reference Galway here because they are our biggest rivals and have had the edge on us of late but if we go out of the province we see a host of strong teams in Ulster. Our visitors next weekend have an abundance of super young players who will be breaking into their seniors in the next few years. Derry have a powerful team also with a wealth of young players coming through. Armagh are AI champs and Donegal are rejuvenated under Jimmy. Kerry are Kerry and even the dubs, though supposedly on the decline have a very strong club set up from which to choose. These are difficult times for Mayo,, management, players and supporters. We have dined at the top table for so long but we need to be winning or at least be ultra competitive at underage to keep the supply coming through, Even at Sigerson, while we have a smattering of players on a number of teams we don’t have too many stand out players in that competition either.

It is early day, and management maybe putting all eggs into championship basket. But at least get to know the new rules. And don't be surprised when referee correct in his interpretation of rules. Also from Monaghan game, need to adapt to 2 point arc, I think it's here to stay. Need to defend it better, and in attack get better at it.

@to win just once: An odd year for Sigerson alright. In theory we had impressive numbers at 33 involved.

A few lads put in great showings (Fallon & Kelly for UL, Gibbons outstanding for TUS Midlands, McLaughlin some fantastic moments in cameos for DCU - didn't get to see or even hear many reports on UoG but impressive to see MacMonagle a nailed on starter in 2nd year) but a lot of the folks we'd have hoped to see push barely saw any time at all (Ivers, Thornton, Irwin, Morahan, Duffy - at least some choosing to opt out).

(Numbers were done on the last official panel of 35 submissions prior to R1 - but likely a handful of changes occurred given Ivers wasn't included in those.)

Sigerson counts by county:

53 - Kerry
51 - Cork
45 - Galway
40 - Donegal
32 - Mayo
25 - Tyrone
24 - Dublin
23 - Monaghan, Sligo, Kildare
22 - Meath
17 - Armagh, Roscommon
16 - Derry, Westmeath
15 - Down, Leitrim
14 - Offaly
13 - Cavan
10 - Antrim
9 - Wicklow
7 - Longford
6 - Fermanagh
5 - Tipperary
4 - Clare, Louth
2 - Laois, Limerick
1 - Waterford, Wexford
0 - Carlow, Kilkenny

If it's any consolation, our lads were absolutely outstanding in Freshers this year. Hurley, Cronin, Walsh, Guilfoyle, Silke & O'Loughlin all putting in some outstanding showings (5 lads involved with the 2 teams in the upcoming final - you'd expect Hurley & Hoban both starting, with DCUs game plan focused on trying to stop Niall). Potential for similar next year too with some of the lads about to hit that level (assuming any/many end up going that route).

@To Win Just Once…couldn’t agree more with you with regard to underage success. I’m tired of hearing about ‘underage success not being a guarantee of success at senior’ or ‘we’re better off nurturing skills’ (rather than physicality, when we get bullied by underage teams like our minors v Monaghan in 2023 and Armagh in 2024). Of course we want to nurture skills! But anyone at that game v Armagh last year and their boys had physicality but a tonne of skill too, as did Monaghan the year before. Success breeds success! We need to stop finding excuses and start developing a winners mentality at underage. Winning Connacht isn’t enough! We need national titles or at the very least appearances in the last two on a much more regular basis. Anyone following Mayo underage and it’s so ridiculously clear that our S&C is miles behind. Miles! Peadar Gardiner referenced this in his review last autumn. But he was part of previous u20 management so why is it only dawning now? And what actually is being done about it? Myself and a few others have raised this on and off in recent years. It wasn’t an issue 10-15 years ago but we’ve fallen massively behind the past 5-7 years. I’ve not seen one article in Mayo media about it. Why can’t the Mayo GAA Podcast (or Ah Ref?) dive deeper into this glaring deficiency in Mayo football. It’s even clear at senior level now. Pushed around last week by Galway but several of our players who have been on the panel 3 years now look way underdeveloped physically. Seriously folks it’s gone by one a joke!

There are so many examples that people can turn to go back up various arguments about underage. Like, Donegal. No underage success but they win Sam in 12 and have a strong team now. Armagh in 2024…I don’t believe they had much prior to that, but in Mayo, our strongest team in 70+ years was built on the back of absolute dominance at u21 level in the mid to late noughties where we kings of Connacht, reached two All Irelands, winning one. We need to get back to that level. We hear a huge amount of talk about talent coming through but we’ve no national titles. One minor team reached a final. Sin é. Compare it to Tyrone and Derry in recent years and we are well off it.

It’s not helpful to say this but this is an opinion site and that’s what following a team is all about, opinions.
This management team is going nowhere, if it was you’d see signs of progression from year 1 to year 2 etc. if anything we’ve probably regressed, we’ve uncovered a few players which is good but our “marquee” players have burnt some more miles on the clock.
A Connacht would be an achievement this year, I think the chances of staying in Div 1 are unlikely and it’s then hoping our CB manage to make a sensible choice in the mgmt team for year 3.
How were we so wrong about Stephen Rochford? Donegal and now this. He got us closer than anyone. Is it being a number 2/coach doesn’t suit him? Were there others in that previous mgmt team that were driving it on?

This years championship will be won by the team that adopts best to the new rules.
Key players in the old rules may not make it.
Backs were spoiled in the blanket defense as their mistakes were covered up by colleagues.
Fitness will be key as will rotation of the 6 players left back or forward.
Without dominant midfielders a lot of ball will be broken which will suit the likes of Neary.
Alarming that the rules could be tweaked a week before the Sligo game.

If I'm honest I would have expected us to struggle in those first 2 games and figured we'd probably be sitting on zero at this stage.
Whilst it's all about championship and not overly concerned about league placings I don't want to see us dropping down a level as div 2 is a bear pit that can be hard to climb out of.
With a few returning players and some more game time for some of the newer lads I'd hope to see us return to winning ways in last 3 games with improved performances and take that momentum straight into championship anf then reset our radar with the goal being back competing for top honours.

If you get relegated and aren’t good enough to bounce back up then, you’re just not good enough. Without stating the obvious! So it can be a good testing ground. A stint in Div 2 can be useful for an emerging side, provided as I said, there’s an immediate return to top flight.

The league is not the end of the world of course that’s true but i certainly wouldn’t be convinced it’s a good thing to get relegated at all . Every county is different and id argue our long stint in top flight bar one year has served us well . To lose every single game in the league would not be good and at this point id say that’s more likely than unlikely but that can turnaround very quick , we desperately need a reaction next Sunday

I'm not particularly concerned by losing games in the league. League form does not usually translate into championship success. What matters is the manner in which games are lost, the attitude of players and management, and tactical awareness and evolution. In all of these areas we are severely lacking.

Sure, there may be a "reaction" against Tyrone and others in the next few weeks but there is no evidence that we know how to properly exploit the new rules, that we have a variety of tactical plans depending on different situations or that we have any idea how to protect a lead going into the final stages of a match. I expect that most teams would pick Mayo as the team to face if they were told that they would be losing to an opposition with a few minutes to go. They know we are psychologically weak and don't have a plan B. Until these things change we will continue to be losers.

Also, we should consider ourselves as All-Ireland contenders every year. That has to be the mentality. We cannot allow the rot of low expectations to set in. Too many people seem prepared to acquiesce to the view that we are in "transition" or something similar. This is year three of the management team. It should be the culmination of a journey and one that we expect to lead to an All-Ireland title. Anything else is failure.

In 2026 All Ireland finals moved from July to August, meaning the Connacht football championship will begun in later April or May instead of early April 3 Quarter-finals & 2 Semi-finals in the Connacht football championship in seperate weekends. In 2026 Connacht football championship in England Mayo vs London, Stateside Roscommon vs New York. The open draw Connacht Quarter final between 2 teams of Galway, Sligo & Leitrim will be played after overseas games are over.

We do need a reaction next weekend. It's a must win I think. League is league but does not do well for confidence if we loose 3 in a row. Loose next weekend & relagation is nearly certain.

A good piece btw WJ. An accurate summary of the general mood

Don't think anything has been decided about moving the all Ireland to Sept. Tom Ryan was flying a kite to see the reaction. A lot of discussion before that will happen

If McStay could play Diarmuid Duffy in the League last season surely he should be bringing in Darragh Beirne and try him at right corner forward once Colmans are finished in the All Ireland Schools series.

JP, Can I get them tablets across the counter or do I need a doctors prescription?

'Mayo possibly winning the All Ireland' ? ! Ah will ya stop, please. We won't be within an asses roar of An All - Ireland

Here’s something different to talk about! I admire Gough’s honesty, which vindicates those of us who felt he’d had a huge hand in swinging the result in Galway’s direction: https://www.irishexaminer.com/sport/gaa/arid-41571397.html.

It also makes Kevin McStay’s “best ref in the world” comment afterwards all the more perplexing.

@Willie Joe wow fair play to Gough for actually admitting that.. I know he was under massive pressure with PJ screaming in his ear and we were called moaners for going on about that free but there you have it he still feels guilty!

It was an atrocious decision which everyone in the ground knew was wrong.mcstay now looks very foolish for not calling it out

I understand that McStay went to the Refs dressing room after the final and it was explained by Gough that he made a mistake.
These things happen, McStay took the long term view not to moan about the Ref.

It was hard to swallow at the time but nothing but respect for a man who admits he was wrong, Pat McEnaneny and Cormac Reilly never put there hands up for much worse in 96 and 2014.

I wasn't just that winning free that he got wrong in added time. The other two were soft at best.
Its there on youtube. Watch the 5 minutes added time. He absolutely rode us. The decision against Tommy against John Maher over a 50/50 ball. Rotten.

In all fairness to Mcstay i think there was a element of shock in the fact we had been beaten. Gough is one of the best around but we just happened to get the worst 5 minutes of his career. .

That's the margins and the luck of the draw, if Gough got that decision right we could have taken Galway's route to AI final last year and who knows after that against an average Armagh side.....and we would be claiming Kevin McStay as Kingmaker in Mayo for the next 50 years or so! Now it could be the oppositive if this season goes pear shaped...
On another topic great to see another Mayo school competing in an A colleges semi final vs Mullingar CBS shorty, after Gerards last year doing the same there is plenty of underage talent in the county if it nurtured in the right way.

Gough craves attention. I have no sympathy

Let's start a petition to get Gough in charge of the potential mayo galway connought final this year....if we get there....he sure does have a few wrongs to right....lol

The decision was ludicrous as Conor Loftus was effectively assaulted by the two Galway players.it wasn’t a judgement call by gough he just caved into the Galway sideline that day

My sentiments too @Pod Fan. It's hardly news to anyone who saw it that it was a mistake,and not the only one he made against us. A fat lot of good it does us seeing it in print. But sure he's one of the ''best'' around.

Not a easy job, to ref, at intercounty level. Was a really bad decision, against Galway. But sometimes need to take these decision out of ref hands, we were playing around in our backline with the ball, inviting galway onto to us, Playing in the wrong area of the pitch. And not the worst decision, seen against Mayo. kieran donaghy phantom free against us in Limerick, was worst. Liam McHale sending off against Meath haunts me,

Good point Sam Og.

In truth it should never have come down to Goughs mistake in Salthill last Summer. We played those final 7 or 8 mins with the handbrake on and in negative mode. Never give a sucker a chance they say, but we gave Galway a chance by leaving them in the game when we should have drove on for more scores to put them to bed. They got an opening, took their chance and fair play to them.

Still think Gough is the best ref in the country. Was watching back the 2 games V Kerry in the 2017 campaign ( guilty pleasure, what a team that was ) and he caught a lot of off the ball stuff in the replay. Unless they bring in video decisions like Rugby they are not going to catch every foul. Who would sign up for the abuse. Fair play for admitting the mistake as I don't recall any other apologies from any other Refs.

@mayo man for life an average armagh side. That’s ridiculous. Armagh would’ve beaten us last year no doubt. Who on the mayo team is getting on the armagh team?
Gough made a mistake but we shouldn’t have been in that situation in the first place. We shouldn’t be complaining it’s our faults we lost that match.

Maybe our men could learn from the ladies.i believe our girls really upped the physical stakes here in Navan against Meath last week.

@Plunkett, quite right. I think Armagh would have beaten us easily, as would Donegal.

We had Galway by the balls & didn't put them away. Same vs Derry after one of the most shocking first half displays I can ever recall. We had the winning of all those games. We threw them away, simple as.

Reading both Brolly and Keegan, the message from both of them is that Mayo are not embracing the new rules. 'Afraid to take chances' is the dominant aspect of our style of play.
Sure, players coming back will be a morale booster, but I believe the best we can do is continue to give newbies plenty of game time in the league.
So many good players playing below form is a concern, makes you wonder did COC see writing on the wall at the start of year.

A combination of writing on the wall and pissed off at lack of game time in 2024 (which I’d completely agree with). He’s a big loss, as is James Carr. The new rules would suit them more than any of our other forwards. The two of them fit both start for me.

Mayonaze, that's the thing though. Neither Carr nor Cillian were ever truly fully fit last year. Carr was never able to put two seasons, back to back, where he was fully available to train and play throughout the seasons. It's really difficult then to try and introduce a player into attacking structures when he is unavailable for 50% of the time. As a coach, you're really wasting 50% of your time because you know the work you are doing is not going to make it to the pitch because Carr will be injured again. Not nice, but it's the truth.
A players best ability is their availability.

Yep losing cillian is massive , you only had to hear it from boyler in the days after the announcement to understand the central figure he is even when he’s on the bench . It’s a fookin disaster , you’d near concede the year but it’s a bigger cause that has to always be supported. Sundays game will be fascinating for many reasons .it will test the mettle of management that’s for sure

Although I agree Gough was wrong in his decision, and some will say fair play in his honesty, I personally think the guy just craves attention.
For a referee he is everywhere, pod casts, radio tv etc, I guarantee he'll be on Dancing with the Stars yet..

If Leicester can win the Premier League we can win Sam. Tablets available without prescription, trust in the maths :) @paddyjoe
I'll bet we'll be back on here in a few weeks talking about now Aidan is really effective under these rules. Watch this space. If Aidan is really effective then we become the ones doing the knocking.

1.Reape
2.Morahan
3.McBrien
4.O'Donoghue
5.Hession
6.Callinan
7.Sharoize/McLaughlin
8.Carney/Irwin
9.Flynn
10.Cian McHale
11.Conor Loftus/Boland
12.Ruane/Reid
13.Towey
14.Aido/Kevin Quinn
15.ROD

We are so light in the forwards after losing Cillian, Carr and Aidan Orme and Tommy Conroy injured.Kevin Quinn needs a start if Aidan isnt fit to see if hes up to it We seem to have very few natural inside forwards and Frank Irwin at FF isnt going to work as the season goes on either midfield or half forward.Matty Ruane needs to come out from centre field as he cannot field high ball.Flynn/Carney looks the best pairing.
Morahan and Eoin O'Donoghue look the 2 most natural corner backs we have and that releases Enda Hession and Sam Callinan to there best positions in half back line.

@Tuamstar 100 per cent agree on your point about Gough. Don’t know what is the point of referencing it now

Never had any doubts but that Gough made a serious mistake but I do think that he is one of the better refs in the game and I actually would give him credit for admitting his error. Fantastic information regarding Sigerson there Tsudhonim . I did not realise there were that many Mayo players on original Sigerson panels. I do check match reports but certainly didn’t see a huge number of Mayo lads so maybe some dropped out or didn’t make match day panels etc Good also to hear that lots of lads from the county are involved in other Third level competitions.. Sigerson is close to inter county standards so the more exposure to it the better

Good team Sam og.

Have to make room for Mchugh surely though