Great podcast, far better flow with Mike at the wheel.
Matchups will be key, the knockmore Ballina game will be massive as it were in the semis a few years ago, also in Crossmolina.
If Jack Irwin is out thats a massive loss , Frank Irwin and Mikey Murray are lovely ball playing midfielders but I think they won't get it their own way against Knockmore.
Knockmore have such physical strength in this area and can start and end the game equally as strong be it Connell Dempsey and Staunton or P Ruttledge and Armstrong.
The experience of Naughton, Mcloughlin, Mchales and king , will be what sways this game for me in favour of Knockmore .
Knockmore have more scoring forwards , maybe not as individual high scoring but a better spread and when they lock down Mcstay and limit Regan aswell as Frank Irwin, having enough to do in midfield, I can only see one winner in Knockmore and their ability to win by means of suffocation or strangliation with the greater bench and spread of scores .
Their sideline also deserves respect and Dempsey and Brolly will have them well buoyed for this .
A cracker but not a purists game .

Crossmolina v Westport is one I think will be closer than many imagine but semis are for winning.
Could see this going to extra time but Cross coming through.
Kilkenny, Dawson, Moran and Mclaughlin pose a new age threat while Keane, Holmes and advance forward of Mclaughlin, Brick and Keegan will keep Cross honest .
I think concession of goals will be what will keep Westport in this and old school , reverse of Mayo Donegal 2012 , early high ball in, will see Kevin Keane on the otherside of the sword.
Would be surprised to see Westport having as many goals as points at halftime .
People say oh Crossmolina have yet to have a bad game. Its just their such a collective that if one doesn't play well, the other picks up slack.
First day out in Garrymore was dog fight and Jordan Flynn couldn't get going from attack point of view but Josh Moyles attacked at will, Maheady made the ball stick , there's a will and a way with them all the time .
I think they will win but will get it in Lorryloads from Westport Physcially but yet with pace and guile from Dawson, moran and kilkenny .
Westport are finding form at right time and have to realise it would very all over for them if Breaffy didn't give them such a gift , so they will be a different team the next day

Still think Ballina will get to another final you can never write them off. They always up their game for Knockmore is well. It will be tight but Ballina by about 3 .

Ballina would be far the bigger more physical team in middle third, with 3 midfielders who are or were county players this year and last. Jack Irwin is meant to be training away so imagine he will be playing.
Pearse Ruttledge is an excellent player, and doing well in engine room but would not be near the size of their more traditional midfielders.
Ballina raging hot favourites at 4/9 I think.
Crossmolina raging favourites as well, but expect Westport to really put it up to them.

Crossmolina/Ballina final for me, looking forward to seeing how it plays out this weekend

Did Oisin Mullens team win in Australia

Ballina vs Knockmore: Will be tight but I have Ballina to win this by 3/4 points. I just think over the field they have the stronger players.
Crosmollina vs Breaffy: Another close game and these teams have met before this year! It is young vs old and Molina are big favourites but I expect the experience of Breaffy to see them over the line and back into a county final. Win by 1 point

Crossmolina playing Westport not Breaffy

Crossmolina Vs Knockmore Final , Cross to win it overall.

Lots of questions to be answered in the Cross/westport clash. Will Conal Dawson show he is a county player? How will McDonald cope with Keegan at midfield? Loftus/Joey Holmes battle. Can westport hold free flowing Cross forwards.
I feel there is more purpose to Cross attack but Westport will not be pushed aside. Could go either way.
Ballina have the players to March on.

I've just stuck up a battery of polls to see who you think will make the Senior, Intermediate, Junior and Junior B finals. Get voting!

Vote. Done - early and often!

Weather getting worse and pitches getting heavy, I would wonder about Crossmolina.
Knockmore have to be hurting after last year, could be a surprise on the cards.

@JR

Yeah but they did win the all Ireland in really awful conditions . I just wouldn't write off Westport .

Saturday's game should be deferred to Sunday as the weather will make scheduled games a lottery. That's what you get when the CB calendar is so drawn out and pedestrian. How come the players union is not jumping up and down and demanding a tighter club-championship playing window, as pertains in intercounty championship.
Playing the provincial club championship in winter is daft for so many reasons. What does it take to convince the CBs nationwide of the obvious.

@Mayo Exile

Totally agree . The weather is awful up here in Dublin and hear its twice as bad down home in Mayo . Also pitches might be water logged .

Should be tighter club championship playing window to . Mad thar Kerry are finished there's and we are only into semis weekend .

You'd imagine Crossmolina pitch will be under serious pressure as will the Bohola Moy Davitts one in this weather.

Kerry have finished their club championship because they played 6 games n 6 weeks with no break.
They have now started the county championship where some of the same players could be playing 5 games n 5 weeks.
At least 4 of their county team have picked up injuries that has likely finished them for the rest of 2025.

@Southmayo Exile

They still have not stopped them winning the most celtic crosses in the country sure .

@Gizmobobs

That pitch will be100% be flooded . I went to Gortnor Abbey the years of our pitches being flooded was ridiculous . A few talented guys actually gave up gaa because the flooded pitches don't blame them.

Gortnor Abbeys pitch is right beside lough conn. The match is in Charlestown.

@CDR: Gizmo was discussing St. Tiernans Park in Cross as it's due to host Ballina Knockmore (despite the phenomenal work done there in recent years it still doesn't handle the rain brilliantly - was cutting up fairly noticeably in the 2nd half of the Belmullet game). Clare was just sharing her personal experiences with flooding when attending Gortnor Abbey.

A risk to all the games at the weekend. Flooding or water logged an obvious one, but with the (orange) wind coming this evening and tonight potential for some structural damage too.

Thankfully the last of the warnings (yellow wind) still seem to be expiring at noon on Saturday. So it'll mostly be a question of what happens between now and then rather than any live issues at the time(s) of the game(s).

No doubt cross is a great venue for a match but I agree the pitch doesn’t hold water well. I still think these county semi finals should be played in McHale park.

You’d have to feel that a very damp and heavy pitch will favour ballina at the weekend, given their strength around the middle and Cross typically being a tighter pitch.

On the flip side Charlestown pitch does hold water pretty well. The only question is weather the storm will destroy a good football spectacle. Can’t believe I’m saying it but the bad weather might actually suit Westport more than Cross this time around.

How does the Charlestown pitch hold up in bad weather?
Sounds ridiculous that Kerry were in an all ireland final and have their club championship done and dusted before us, but I certainly would not be in favour of 5 games in 5 weeks.
Pitches have to be marked out for games, I would be in favour of moving Saturday games to Sunday.
Hard to see the logic of the Paddy O Malley decision. Sets a poor standard for any other sending offs

@Ontheditch: Charlestown always seems to have solid drainage.

Off the top of my head I'd be thinking Bekan, Islandeady & Charlestown as some of the better venues if I was going to be playing on a nastily wet weekend.

Apologies my mistake

Paddy O'Malley being back for Westport is a huge plus for them...he has a massive boot on him,by passing midfield with ease,70m plus I'd say.
Not saying refs decision shouldn't have stood but I thought it was harsh at the time. It was more of a kick out as in an attempt to trip Neary who ran across him, rather than a dangerous kick. Imo

Thanks green and red. And TSU

On the ditch,

Apologies my comment is confusing. Charlestown pitch tends to drain water pretty well and seems to have a bit more of a solid bedrock. I always felt the cross pitch was a bit softer even in good weather.

As for Paddy Omally red, I never saw the incident but in the past the CCCC have made it their business to not overturn red cards. I think back to the Rutdledge one last year for the final. No way the CB were overturning it. Pure lack of consistency and simply not good enough at all.

If I didn’t know better I’d say there are a few conspiracy theories around the CB but it just seems they can pick and choose which appeals the reject and accept. Even the H/C appeal, the ref wrote a letter acknowledging the mistake and it fell on def ears.

As for Kerry playing championship. It just goes back to the point of how badly managed this county is. God bless Andy, Colm and co having to deal with them. Despite Andy being the most positive man around, I could even see him cracking up over the next 2/3 years!

All adult games cancelled for the weekend.

https://x.com/MayoGAA/status/1974083582550553030

Sensible move and good that the announcement was made so early. This will give everyone more time to vote in all those polls I put up yesterday!

I thought you were rushing us out to vote in presidential elections there WJ foe a second...till I gave my head a wobble.