Search Results for 'FBD league'

Wherever he lines out on the field, Danny Kirby is a man who gets special attention. The big Castlebar man could feature anywhere from midfield through to full forward for his team on Sunday. While some players like a certain role in a team, Kirby feels that his adaptability has made him become a much better player, as he told the Mayo Advertiser in the build up to Sunday’s final. “I think it’s a help, you become a more rounded player. If you’re in the full forward line you see the kind of ball a full forward wants; when you’re out midfield and you get the full forward line giving you a bit of guff about the ball you’ve played in, you know, yeah you’re right, this is ball you want.”

His imposing presence in the heart of the defence for his club Ballaghaderreen over the past number of years has seen David Drake earmarked as one of those who could add something to the Mayo set-up. The 24-year-old former Sligo IT and UCD Sigerson Cup player has been given that chance this year and he is looking to become the latest in a long line of men whose postal address may say Co Roscommon, but will bleed green and red on the football field rather than primrose and blue.

Mayo: 2-15

If all 2,500 of Mayo’s season ticket holders make the trip to St Conleth’s Park in Newbridge, they will take over almost half the capacity of the Lillywhites home ground on Sunday. While it is not expected Mayo supporters in that number will make the trek east on Sunday a very healthy number of supporters will be on hand to see the latest update of James Horan’s Mayo make their proper competitive debut of the year, after the shadow boxing of the FBD League. Horan has given two players their Allainz Football League debuts with Aghamore’s Brendan Harrison getting the nod to start in the half-back line alongside Shane McHale and Lee Keegan. While Mayo Gaels’ Adam Gallagher will come into the team in the number 12 shirt in a half-forward line anchored by Keith Higgins and with Cathal Carolan on the other wing,

Oh to have a crystal ball to see what fortunes lie ahead for Mayo football in 2014. One thing for sure, one Mayo club — Kiltane have a superb chance to claim one of the early pieces of silverware when they take on Truagh of Monaghan in the All-Ireland intermediate final in Croke Park on February 9, a feat my own club Charlestown should have accomplished last season but for some calamitous decisions when they were coasting against eventual winners Cookstown of Tyrone in the All- Ireland semi final. Kiltane were simply brilliant last Sunday. If you were to tell me before the game that star attacker Mikey Sweeney and Tommy “Goals” Conroy were not going to score against Clyda Rovers, I would have re-mortgaged the house on Clyda.

If there is a man, woman, or child to be found the villages and towns that send their sons out to do battle in the blue and yellow of Kiltane on Sunday, it would be a safe assumption that they are tourists, trying to figure out why exactly there is no-one to be found in this secnic part of the country. They take a lot of things seriously in that enclave of the county, but not many things more seriously than the game of Gaelic football and on Sunday afternoon with a chance of an appearance in an All Ireland final in Croke Park, it’s the only thing that matters to the men who have been training all guns blazing since the end of 2012 to get to where they are on Sunday.

Mayo 2-8

Now that 2013 has almost gone to the history books it is time to reflect on the year that nearly was. The Mayo senior team played their first game against Leitrim in the FBD league on January 13. Little did we know back then what the year was about to unfold. Mayo’s National League campaign was not of the consistent variety and after a convincing win at home to Kerry on February 3 we became expectant again. That was followed by four consecutive losses to Tyrone, Dublin, Down, and Kildare. The Tyrone game was a crushing defeat, Stephen O’Neill’s last gasp penalty winning for the red hand. Mayo were given a taste of Stephen Cluxton’s ability in the league game in Croke Park in March, the Dubs convincing winners; Bernard Brogan was unmarkable the same night. Worrying for Mayo were the losses to Down and Kildare, two games they should have won. Mayo were now in real danger of being relegated and had to beat All- Ireland Champions Donegal in Castlebar and then travel away to Cork to try to complete a miraculous escape. What was of great concern was the lack of goal chances and goals, Keith Higgins’ goal against Tyrone the only attempt to hit the net in five matches. Michael Conroy bettered that stat with a soccer-style finish against Donegal in a game in which Barry Moran was in superb form. Mayo well and truly ground out a result in Cork, winning by the slimmest of Margins 0-11 to 0-10 to achieve their goal of staying in division one of the league. It was a complete bonus that they sneaked into a league semi-final and had another big game in Croker against the Dubs. Confidence may not have been too high after Dublin easily won the league semi-final by 2-16 to 0-16. Bernard Brogan was untouchable in the first league encounter, Paul Mannion the star of the semi-final scoring 1-04. It really was amazing Mayo got to a league semi final despite losing four games on the spin while staring relegation in the face. Two goals in eight matches had to be a very worrying stat for James Horan and his management.

Mayo will get the 2014 season under way five days later than initially announced, with the announcement on the county board Twitter feed on Wednesday evening that the FBD League game against NUIG would now take place on Friday January 10 in Elvery’s MacHale Park. Mayo will be in action again two days later against IT Sligo and then face Roscommon away the following Sunday, January 19. With Mayo on their well deserved team holiday at the start of the month, the fixture change was inevitable. The change will see Mayo GAA fans get to see the senior side in action twice in three days at the start of the month, and the county’s u21 side in action on the Saturday sandwiched between when they play in the Hastings Cup at home to Cavan on January 11. Mayo are hosting a fundraising banquet in the Knockranny House Hotel on Sunday December 22 to raise funds for the team holiday with tickets costing €100 per adult and €10 per child. To book your place contact Elverys MacHale Park on 094 9250487 or contact 087 6680115

The biting cold of the tunnel under the stand in McHale Park was the venue for James Horan's latest debriefing with the press pack following Mayo's sixth game in this years national league. In a freezing cold wind that wouldn't be out of place at the start of the FBD League, things were kept short and to the point. Asked about his initial thoughts on the game the Ballintubber man said, “We showed a lot of character and hard work and honest endeavor today, so I'm delighted with that. We made hard enough work of it from a scoring point of view. We turned over a huge amount of their ball, we won a huge number of turn overs today, so that's ultimately what won it for us today. I'm delighted with the two points and we can look forward now.”