Search Results for 'Keith Higgins'

Having previously announced that they would be stepping aside at the end of this season, the carrot of playing in next season’s All Ireland senior championship would tempt Mayo management team of Martin Brennan and Pete Finnerty to stay on for another season according to Brennan. Standing in Mayo’s way of achieving that goal are seven other sides and the competition will begin in earnest this weekend.

Kerry 3-11

he Mayo hurlers caused one of the shocks of the year on Saturday last in Westport GAA Grounds, as they dumped early season favourites Westmeath out of the Christy Ring Cup for 2009. Westmeath came into the tie as 1/7 on favourites, but the bookies got it all wrong as Mayo kept their championship aspirations alive thanks to a dogged display of power and skill.

Evan Sweeney’s point five minutes into injury time last Saturday evening in Austin Stacks Park, Tralee, broke Mayo hearts in the first round of the Christy Ring Cup. The point saw Kerry slip by Mayo on a scoreline of 3-11 to 1-16 and send Mayo into a losers play-off with Westmeath this weekend. “It was heartbreaking,” according to Mayo manager Martin Brennan when he spoke to the Mayo Advertiser earlier this week. The Westport man has been guiding Mayo for the past two years alongside Galway legend Pete Finnerty, and before the game last weekend was full of confidence of taking Mayo that one step further this year after losing in the Christy Ring Cup semi-final last season. But no, it’s do or die for Brennan’s boys if they lose on Saturday against a Westmeath side which has won two of the last three Christy Ring Cup titles. It’s a relegation play-off and trying to avoid getting bumped down to the Nicky Rackard Cup for next season that they face.

The dual mandate may be something that has been abolished in political circles, despite the best efforts of one Mayo TD, but there is another dual mandate that is in severe decline also — the inter-county dual player. One man in Mayo is keeping that mandate alive and after a winter in Australia to let the batteries recharge after a couple of very hectic years, he’s back and ready for more.

The dual mandate may be something that has been abolished in political circles, despite the best efforts of one Mayo TD, but there is another dual mandate that is in severe decline also — the inter-county dual player. One man in Mayo is keeping that mandate alive and after a winter in Australia to let the batteries recharge after a couple of very hectic years, he’s back and ready for more.

The dual mandate may be something that has been abolished in political circles, despite the best efforts of one Mayo TD, but there is another dual mandate that is in severe decline also — the inter-county dual player. One man in Mayo is keeping that mandate alive and after a winter in Australia to let the batteries recharge after a couple of very hectic years, he’s back and ready for more.

The dual mandate may be something that has been abolished in political circles, despite the best efforts of one Mayo TD, but there is another dual mandate that is in severe decline also — the inter-county dual player. One man in Mayo is keeping that mandate alive and after a winter in Australia to let the batteries recharge after a couple of very hectic years, he’s back and ready for more.

“Nobody will remember getting to a quarter final, you only remember the winners.” Martin Brennan has had a pep in his step this week following on from seeing his side overcome Westmeath in last weekend’s Christy Ring Cup losers play-off in Westport. This weekend Mayo have a short trip to Athleague in Roscommon to face Kildare in the second tier competition in what Brennan says is “as close a home game as you can get, we’ve played there a number of times down the year and a lot of the Ballyhaunis and Tooreen lads have played plenty of hurling down there through the years”.

The whirlwind nature of this year’s Christy Ring Cup continues a pace this Saturday when Mayo make the long trip to Newry to take on Down. Mayo having reached their second semi-final in the tier two competition in two years will be looking to go one better tomorrow (June 6) after losing out to Carlow at the death last season in McHale Park.