Search Results for 'Brendan Harrison'

We knew life in division one was going to be tough.

The man who from Kenmare who had “transport issues” according the the public address system in MacHale Park and needed a lift home - will have had plenty to talk about on the trip back to the Kingdom with the new friends who were found for him.

Now that the dust has settled on the inter-county season for another year attention turns back to the local scene this weekend with the double header of replays in the Mayo Junior Football Championship on Saturday evening announcing the return to local action. The action will get under way at 6pm with the meeting of Ballycastle and Kilmeena, followed by the clash of Balla and Achill at 7.30pm.

Sometimes it’s not about being the better team, it’s about finding ways to win games when you are probably second best on the day. Dublin were able to do that, they were able to get themselves over the line right at the end when it mattered most and they claimed their third All Ireland title in a row.

Last year saw Brendan Harrison rewarded for his displays for Mayo in his breakthrough year with an All Star award for his defensive displays. While it was a nice personal recognition, it doesn't mean that the Aghamore man was able to rest on his laurels this year. "It was lovely to get one, but the ultimate goal is to get a Celtic Cross. It was still a lovely prize to get and get recognised, but once we went into 2017, you were battling for your jersey again, no-one was going to say that's Brendan Harrison's jersey — you had to go out and prove yourself again for it. You're doing that through each game, it's a new squad or panel, there are young lads coming into it and lads who have moved on; it's different set up and different unit with new people."

This win wasn’t lucky, it wasn’t by chance, it came about through sheer hard-work, believe in themselves and by playing some breathtaking football. It has taken Mayo 21-years to beat Kerry again in the football championship, but the jubilant Mayo faithful - who roared on their hero’s from the first minute to last, know that there is still a big job to do in three weeks time. But that doesn’t mean that this game is not to be savoured.

Dear me, not again. The winners of this year’s Sam Maguire will have their name etched on the famous trophy but there is absolutely no doubt Mayo’s 2017 championship campaign will command the most paragraphs in the championship 2017 yearbook. Bizarre does not even go close to explaining it. Mayo supporters again travelled in their tens of thousands clogging the N5 and N4 all the way to the capital from early morning. It is very obvious that football is more important than Christmas for the supporters of the green and red who now have to contend with a ninth championship game in 2017 after another heart stopping semifinal clash with Kerry in Croke Park. They will not have a cent left for the festive period.

There’s no easy way to win an All Ireland, and boy are Mayo doing it the hard way. It’s back to headquarters on Saturday for another swing at Kerry as the look to book an All Ireland final date in Croke Park in September.

A week is a long time in politics, bu it seems that eight days in football can be even longer. Having struggled to impose themselves for long enough periods to win the first day against Roscommon, Mayo hit their neighbours with everything they had on Monday and ran out more than convincing winners. Right from the throw-in four days ago, you could see that this Mayo team were a very different animal to the one that that had turned up eight days previously.

When 15 minutes before throw in, it was announced that Footballer of the Year - Lee Keegan wouldn’t be starting there was an air of fear amongst the Mayo supporters who made the pilgrimage back to Croke Park on Bank Holiday Monday. But once the ball was thrown in that unease was soon vanquished as Mayo went right at Roscommon and rolled them over in impressive style at the second time of asking.