I really hope what Colm said about moving David McBrien to midfield doesn’t happen. We were years looking for a fullback and when we finally get one, they want to use him elsewhere to fill a gap . A bit like David Heaney and Billy Joe. It doesn’t serve the player well or indeed the county. Solve one problem at a time. For me put David at 3 and Sam at 6. Rory is too slow for fullback. Could do a good job in the corner with Coyne on the opposite side.

100% Nephin on point , brick for certain games at corner back but coyne mchugh and or hession for faster lads .
Mcbrien if fit is no 3 everytime .
Sam can be 6 or 4 depends on who to Mark but in ideal world he be no6 all-time.
Coens a solid underrated 6 .

Worried about this weekend as without eoin mac and or flynn at 12 we have no tempo setters or bo attacking punch , all too lateral, flat footed 8 to 12 .
Durkan and hession are only line breakers, worried we haven't enough variety in our attack

The one surprise is Flynn not picked as he shows more bottle than most, very driven. Maybe the ploy is get the most off Tuohy and Carney who both have youth (Tuohy only 20/21) and potential to develop as players; then bring Flynn who’s more proven on for that fire sometime in the 2nd half. I guess the 2 named can pluck high ball and are good targets for long kick outs.
If McBrien isn’t FB (I prefer if he was) then we need a sweeper so why not midfield as Coen can sweep at 6. The tactic would be to add momentum and pace to midfield. Rodgers was a very good FB for Derry a few years back now in midfield. The problem to solve is that since Kevin Cahill in the 90s we haven’t had a top player 100% suitable for FB until Mullen and McBrien who are the closest. While Cahill was only a FB the other 2 are very versatile. We’ve had posters calling for both to be moved but Kerry kept one of thei greatest ever players Moynihan at 3 for most of his career as needs must. Tyrone moved McAnallen a great midfielder back from for the same reason, it’s a crucial position. We have loads of options for CHB and midfield, very few for FB. Maybe the thinking is Bric given time has the raw attributes and build a system to protect him.
Most other counties are in the same boat but it’s worth a lot to have a stopper for the Con’s and David Clifford’s and McGuigan too when things heat up.
IMO the 4 greatest at FB in the last 30 years who no one got the better of were McAnallen, Moynihan, Darren Fay and our own Kevin Cahill with Dublin’s Rory O Carroll and Cian OS (not in a traditional sense) and Donegal’s McGee not far behind.

Has mcstay lost his mind not playing david mcbrien at number 3 he plays for ballaghaderreen at number 6 leave him at number 3

@shuffly deck I'd be very surprised if he's not a last minute change into the starting 15. Although he hasn't played the last 3(?) matches due to a knock or something, maybe he'll be used as a sub.
More of a worry not seeing Diarmuid back on the bench, there's a few first teamers not really stepping up, and a fully fit Diarmuid, wound be a nailed on starter for me.

Just a quick one I was watching the advert for the Sunday game on RTÉ last night
It was in Irish basically it said 4 o clock Clare v Limerick and 1.30 Mayo V Roscommon
I am right in thinking that is mixed up
Thanks

While it is a low key lead in to championship it's not entirely the new structures fault. There has been in a lot of the previous seasons specific Mayo reasons for there being more interest/excitement .

I have 2009 as the last campaign we went into without any of the below:

1.) an All Ireland final the previous year.
2.) a League Final that year
3.) a new Management ticket
4.) COVID

Is the Sligo/Galway game available to watch on any platform?

Joe it's not on RTE or GAAGO

[Deleted].

I have a sneaky suspicion Sligo going to rattle Galway, if not now then when? Home in markievucz, sligo have v good fowards and have been improving bit by bit in recent years and galway still down bodies. I think everybody is sleeping on this one

@ Supermac - Hopefully i’m wrong but don’t see Sligo getting within 8 points of Galway.

Can't see sligo taking Galway.

Galway have their main guys back now.

Sligo are up and coming but still Galway by 6 at least.

Sligo are giving Galway plenty of it .
Galway leaking goal chances

This has a shock all over it...
Galway have been terrible..
Sligo by far the better team

Retrocut - you're going from bad to worse. What bit of not being allowed to post comments based on unconfirmed twaddle do you not understand?

As i predicted, This is absolutely here for sligo if they want to grab it. They have been much the better side. Galway look an unfit mess. Will never get a better chance

We are starting out on this year's adventure which I believe will lead us to Sam,I will set off tomorrow a a I have set out over the last sixty years expecting success,but I will support the team and management one hundred percent, I can't believe that some people comment on the team getting decent BandB,and some decent scram, those players give their time and effort,for a few euros expenses,they deserve every bit of support that we can give them,please realise that it is for our entertained and enjoyment,I will certainly enjoy myself and have some banter with Roscommom supporters,please just enjoy the day,safe travels to all supporters

Supermac - Would be great to see, listening here on the radio, Galway seem to be coming into it a bit since the introduction of Comer.

Galway win

Aww poor sligo you would feel bad for them but Galway were quite poor by the sounds of it. Until comer came in anyway

A warning there not to underestimate and disrespect lower division teams but Galway have got their wake up call now

Galway have had more than a few wake up calls this season.

I think this squad under Joyce had their peak in 2022, even with everyone fit they are a 1/4 final team in 2024 at best and it remains to be seen if we ourselves are any better.

Yea they probably did hit their peak in 2022 but so often a team that gets out of jail like that get a reaction in next game.Alot of their big names taken off today

Wonder what Barry Cullinane and Finian Hanley think now.Are Galway still the 4th best team in Ireland and better than Mayo as they said only a few weeks back or are they like the same Galway teams they played on themselves, winning fuck all and struggling to beat the likes of Antrim, Sligo and Wexford.

Dont think there is a 4th best team in Ireland Achill. There is Dublin, Kerry and Derry and the rest are all bang average but capable of beating each other on any given day. Best Galway can hope for is to get to the QF but even getting there will be difficult. Same goes for Mayo though too.

Achill, I hear ya but one good performance and its 3 connachts in a row, and the wagon is back on the road. That's an ideal game for PJ goin in to the final, even if it was a bit close for comfort, but he has a firing Comer and I doubt they will be that poor upfront again.
We have enough to worry about and as we saw with u20s, as supporters we need to look one game at a time now..

Galway and Mayo - and probably Roscommon- are all around the same level and as Chesneychet said above we are all way off the top level. But things can change as the games come thick and fast and a team can get on a roll.

Mayo are 4th I'd say behind the 3 just about.

We are actually tied 4th along side Derry favourites would you believe with boyles sport.

Get some game time into comer and other guys for Galway and I bet they will be favourites ahead of us if we get ahead of the rossies.

Derry may well end up winning this but idc what anyone says they are been blown up like theyve beat dublin and kerry in semis and finals the last five years but they are totally unproven as a contender in reality .

Think we might be seeing the end of the roaming keeper..

Hope reape was watching that goal by derry to stay closer to goal tommorow..

@Brian I wouldn't be it shows more that you can't keep the kind of tempo up that Derry were going at through the league to championship they may still win this though. Derry look flat

And people say Jim McGuinness ruined football? Absolute masterclass in quick transition play built off a solid defence. Outstanding performance from Donegal. They would beat mayo if we drew them in the group.

Brian - What is your basis of Donegal being contenders again other than having a dig at the Mayo management team ? This time last year Mayo were div 1 champions and went on to overturn Kerry in Killarney in the round robin

There is a long summer of football ahead before we know who the real contendors are.

@Brian bit harsh on management there to be honest.

Donegal are hardly way ahead of us what have donegal done to proven that? One match today where to be honest Derry look flat out on their feet after winning the league the same way we did v Rossies last year.

As @Tony freeman it's bit early to know where any team are at.

Donegal mightnt even win today's game yet Brian. Calm down. You're buying into Jim Mcguinness as the second coming of the messiah a little too early. I'm not saying Mayo are all Ireland contenders. But don't write them off fully before the championship even starts.

Brian - Think your just taking the opportunity to knock the Mayo management and team. We aren’t world beaters but id fancy our chances against any team outside of Dublin and Kerry.

The All Ireland title is wide open, Jim the Messiah is back.

Please God may reape stay in the goal tommorow and not go roaming up the field haha

@Tony freeman totally agree with you

Just on todays game , I was extremely worried at half time..
Sligo were excellent and deserve huge credit.. They are a coming force in Connacht.
We were way off it.. the young debutants struggled, we seemed to find it very hard breaking the blanket 14 defence today.
However we we also left at least 2 3 behind us in the first half which made the job very tricky..
Comer was outstanding and a game changer..
In fairness to joyce, he was ruthless taking off Walsh, Conroy and Jon Daly and his subs all worked well..
Looking forward to tomorrow now..

Derry going out of ulster makes winning connacht less attractive. You could end up in a group with Dery Tyrone Cork for example

Hopefully that will put an end to the keeper sweeper half back midfielder lark....

Do Donegal have footballers that are streets ahead of Mayo?

NO NOT AT ALL.

They have a great system where every player knows exactly what they are doing and when to go for the throat of the opponent.

The way they won the peno for that third goal. All that play was excellent. That’s elite coaching.

Jim mcguinness is so underrated , not many with a football brain like him. This is a prime example of quality management faor play to him and Donegal .

Tactics.... and scoring forwards....

Sín é

Most impressive part of Donegal game plan was thier defensive structure and protection of the area around the "D".
Derry didn't create one goal chance all day.
Derry very naive all day for the Donegal kick outs.
Let's up Reape doesn't mess up like the Derry goalie did today. Crazy goalkeeping.
Donegal knew exactly what there game plan was today. Lets hope Mayo are as clear tomorrow and we don't have players having to run to the sideline every 5 minutes taking instructions from different selectors/managers/coaches

An ill timed comment by me there. Looked like Derry were making a comeback. No harm to see Derry knocked back a bit. It was a 3 way tie between themselves, Dublin and Kerry just a week ago. A lot can change. The championship is wide open.

McStay, Rochford and Co will be up all night with Colm Reape rejigging the fly keeper tactic on opposition kickouts. Plenty of goals akin to Donegal's first two were seen in the league this year, and in the Monaghan v Cavan game two weeks ago. One has to wonder is the risk worth the reward.

Absolutely crazy stuff from the Derry keeper but he was contesting kickouts where reape tends to try to fill space .I don’t much like it either way as the risk always outweighs the reward in my opinion.Donegal performance was so familiar to the ambush on Dublin in 2014 .I think we wait until tomorrow to make a judgment on where we stand this year

I have no worries whatsoever about our management team,people trying to blow smoke up Jimmies backside,we will show the second division team tomorrow, we are in a very good position

Unfortunately the over reliance on Rod is not good.. Who else will score if he gets injured or is off? It's like Clifford in kerry.. If he's off.. Big trouble. Just no scoring forwards at the moment.

This goalie way out the pitch craic is shown for what it is today, pure madness. Not the first time Oran Lynch has cost his team dear. I said earlier in the year that Derry mightn't last the course but didnt expect them to fall at the first hurdle.

@Corick just to be clear, you have no doubt about our management who have zero all Ireland inter county medals but think Jim McGuinness, who won an AI with a team who 2 years previous were in division 3 is overhyped?

The division 2 team tonight showed the division one champions they are in a good position that being in the next round.Roscommon were a division one team this year and played against division one teams .Next year they will be a division 2 team and will play against division 2 teams .Mcguinness has returned with the same game plan as last time.defend the D ferociously no soft goals and break at lightning pace .some of their interplay was excellent.Anyway hopefully tomorrow we will see something different from our side other than the slow ponderous build up play we have become accustomed to .we know how Roscommon will set up so let’s see what’s been worked on .

Two things for Mayo after Donegal game this evening.. Keeper stay in your goalmouth and defenders tackle and get close for every ball like your lives depended on it and then move it FORWARD at lightening pace.

Keeper getting caught out was going to happen sooner rather than later. Because it happened again Donegal McGuinness is a genuis?. He has taken the doubt out of Donegal players head's and gave them clear instructions and put the right players in the right position's. Other manager's/ management teams want to make a name for themselves by looking like genuis,s by putting players in different positions that occasionally work but not regularly. McGuinness,s genuis is that he gets everyone on board, plays lad's where they should be playing,instills the belief that they are as good as anyone ,and has everyone on board

Big day for our managemet team tomorrow. Say what you want about McGuinness, but hes out of football for a few years now and returns to win Div 2 and beat div 1 winners by 10 points. Same raw material different results. They have a clear plan, hope we do tomorrow.

Tomorrow's match in the Hyde all but the final in name given the way Galway struggled and was lucky to beat Sligo this afternoon?

Today also confirmed how good of a manager Jimmy McGuinness is. Reape watching won't want to repeat what Lynch was at in the Derry goal.

Jim mc Guinness is every one's darling tonight..
Donegal scored 4 11..
Derry keeper had a nightmare , teams won't give Donegal goals like that again.. early days yet but after today's games the league is well and truly long gone.. Its all starts now.. I believe Roscommon will throw everything at Mayo tomorrow..

@Tuamstar I'm sure Rossies will throw everything at us tommorow and we will be well ready for them.. Same way sligo threw everything at ye today.

@mayomagic..Comer against our FB line tomorrow in connacht final are you sure about the walkover!
Mayo and Galway can usually go either way...

I have been saying this about the keeper situation for months on this form. Colm is coming out to far
, and he is doing this because he is been encouraged to do it by management. He has very nearly been caught twice or tree times already this year.Its only a matter of time until he is caught out. I totally agree with other posters that the risk is far greater than the reward. So just because other teams are doing this does not mean Mayo have to follow suit. Colm needs to stay closer to goal tomorrow. Roscommon will have the forwards that are capable of catching him out.

How have we do many pessimists,we will hammer the Rossies

There is a difference between pessimism and realism and if one makes the same prediction for every game then it proves the point that even a broken clock is right twice a day

Back in having been out this evening and the tenor of the comments, the night before we play a Championship game, is truly depressing.

Brian - on what planet can you term yourself a supporter? If I were you, I'd go off and find something you're interested in and forget about a topic you clearly only want to piss and moan about.

It’s been a funny ald day in the championship Sligo so so unfortunate not to get a result against a Galway team that we don’t no where the hell their at ,Sligo on an upward curve just need to get to division 2 and become competitive there and with some good youth coming through mcentee is building something, as for Galway their still dangerous with a full team fit they have quality but seem to have peaked in 22 and trying to get every one back to do one last push with a few older guys and maby Joyce in their last year , on Derry they literally are a carbon copy of us from last year win the league and then get beat in the first championship game it’s obviously so tough to keep that energy going but Donegal where so well set up but Derry didn’t help themselves, as for tomorrow more importantly in the same vain we simply don’t no where we’re at only tomorrow will answer that

McGuinness is some operator. When you think of the shambles Donegal were this time last year.
On Galway today - to say we were blessed would be an understatement!
Albeit could have scored 3-4 goals in the first quarter but our general play & intensity levels were just miles off. The introduction of Comer is the reason we won the game. Himself and Rob Finnerty dragged us over the line. Shane as usual did fuck all.
Usual non existent kickout strategy (plan A is literally belt it as far down the field as possible and hope for the best. The plan B of a short dink ball only happens if the opposition don’t press and give us that handy option to the corner back).
Transition from defence to attack on turnover ball as slow as Christmas - again as usual.
Still down a few bodies - Maher, McDaid, Tierney, Sweeney today not in the 26 - but regardless we look like we are going nowhere and this is the end of the road for Pj & his management team.
Ye will piss on us in the Connacht final.
There is a softness about our team at the moment & it really pains me to say it.
Even when Mayo might not be playing that well & have a team that isn’t as strong as previous ones they still all put a huge shift in and the intensity is there all over the pitch. The same can’t be said about us and that really pisses me off.
It’s the least I expect as a supporter.
When the heat goes up we melt that’s the sad truth of the matter. We lack leaders. Can’t expect Damo to do it for us on his own all the time when the pressure comes on.

I wasn't too hyped about the championship until watching the two games on telly, and listening to Galway v Sligo on Ocean fm. I'm buzzing for tomorrow now, with a few butterflies in the stomach to add to it. The good weather also helps these games.

I feel Galway will have burnt off a lot of dirty diesel today, an added caution needs to be put on the folk who reckon Galway won't be at it this year.

For the last weeks I had that sneaky feeling Donegal would do a number on Derry today. As good as Derry were they probably were conceding too many goals in the league. They still won't be far away, but their destiny is no longer in their hands. Donegal still have it all to play for in Ulster.

Great contest between Cork and Kerry, and it's about time Cork started competing in Munster again. I thought Kerry were class in the second half. I had a conversation with a Kerry man yesterday who reckoned it was a two horse race between Dublin and Derry, also adding that Kerry were a few steps behind. Classic cute Kerry hoorism.

@Galwayman, if Mayo get through tomorrow ye will do a number on us in the Connacht final. Comer and Finnerty will be enough to cause Mayo's full back line enough of bother. Shane Walsh is very inconsistent mind, but he will have a point to prove this year. They will learn more from that game today then if they had hammered Sligo by 10 plus points.

New column from Rob is up on Patreon, setting out some reasons for us to be optimistic about tomorrow. Having surveyed the comments posted on here tonight, many of you lot could do worse than spending some time reading it.

One reason Donegal were able to kill Derry is Patton’s kicks. They are massive and give them a definite edge. I noted it in Ballybofey last year, where his kicks kept Donegal in the match much longer than they deserved.

That said, Derry still scored 17 points, two more scores than Donegal, who are still only in a provincial semi. Galway are in a provincial final, and are guaranteed to be at least a second seed. Ditto Clare.

I think Reape plays the sweeper keeper role well, and think we should persist, though the Rossie keeper has a long kick if I’m not mistaken. Still unable to travel, but can’t wait.

Another thing I noted about Donegal was hard running and line breaking right in to a scoring position, then a back pass (off the arse rather than the shoulder?), to a player in a slightly better position, and bang, point.

Rossies on a bad streak, not easy to reignite the winning habit. Combined with them being down several players who would be starters from last year they in a tight spot.
In times like this the best poll is what paddy power has to say :) Roscommon 9/4 at home, Maigh eo Abu

Jim McGuinness is a top class manager. That is based on his fantastic achievement of winning 2012 AI and taking down Dublin in 2014. When he took over Donegal in 2010 they were an absolute shambles, Within two years he had won AI. Yet people through pure begrudgery were unwilling to give him credit , falsely accusing his teams of being ultra negative. Donegal had been very poor after he left. He took over again in 2023 a year where Donegal had been a total shambles. Won Div 2 with an under strength team and now have taken out a Derry team people have been raving about. Absolutely top man. Now in the long term I think this will suit Derry. They no longer have to worry about navigating a very attritional Ulster championship and can have a good uninterrupted preparation for the All Ireland series. They have not become a bad team based on one result. Kerry made heavy weather of Cork but will improve no doubt. Yes Cork who had the temerity to beat Mayo last year which caused such consternation in Mayo. Cork are a decent side well capable of beating any team in the 4 - 10 bracket. Galway did what they had to do today, won a Connacht semi final, Semi finals are for winning. They didn’t play well but they won. I will gladly settle for that v Roscommon. Just win the game. Don’t be talking nonsense about putting down a marker, championship football is about winning. There is no bonus prize for playing well and no bonus points for winning by 5 or 6. Hard luck Sligo, a county making fantastic progress. Looking for 3 in a row at u 20 and beating eventual winners Westmeath in last round of the league. They are rapidly catching up with the big 3 in Connacht and were very unlucky to lose today

It is good to see teams like Sligo and Cork playing well it means that we have more enjoyable games ,I personally don't like to criticise players or managers,I don't believe that I mentioned Jim McGuinness

I dont agree with the spin its not a bad thing for Derry , not at all . They could find themselves in a very difficult group , this constant need in GAA culture to put a positive on a bad result is an awful aspect to discussion imo . They were found out and the likes of dublin and kerry will have taken note too .

Training should have a regular session of lobbing the keeper nowadays .

I’m told it already does, Seán!

We can now see the difference between the league and championship, and we will see this in today's game, nothing should be taken for granted.

Going to be pretty warm at The Hyde. I think this should suit us.

Glorious day ahead. Looking for a solid performance today with no drama. Contain them first half, push on 3rd quarter and close game out confidently. But wait, we are Mayo and we do drama. That's why we are so enthralling. Hon Mayo!

The sweeper-keeper debate is definitely decisive and you either love it or hate it. I'm 100% in the latter group and as happened yesterday and in other games it's a disaster just waiting to happen. Mayo have been very nearly caught out several times with this wandering keeper caper. Can anybody point out the positives Mayo have gained from the keeper joining in play out the field? Makes me a nervous wreck watching it taking place and as with most teams we have enough problems without adding more of our own making.
Hoping for but not expecting a classic today but grinding out a single point win would do nicely and keep expectations in check.

JoeG it's our only real defensive plan apart from man to man so you'll likely be seeing plenty of it :)

If we struggling to win kickouts around middle I'd like see us let Reape boom some out to opposite 45 on Aidan. He has the range.

Remember back in 1989 when Gabriel Irwin started coming out making interceptions .don’t know was it by accident or design but it was unheard of .The strange thing about yesterday is that Derry made no alterations after being caught out twice and maybe it was the camera angle but Micky Harte looked like a spectator in the crowd watching on .i suppose he has always had this style.Hard to believe we haven’t worked on some other defensive system other than this but we will see later on

Gizmobobs if that's the case it's a major worry. Not sure I really see how it is working for us defensively apart from providing an extra body in possession but it leaves us one misplaced pass / turnover from potential disaster.
1985 I also couldn't believe the lack of an alternative plan if the roving keeper was targeted. Are we in the same boat?