Search Results for 'Kevin Keane'

All eyes on Sunday will be on a new look Mayo front six as the Connacht Championship throws in for another exciting instalment. Injuries have forced the hand of James Horan into lining out without what most people would say are four of his chosen starting forwards. While it’s good news that Alan Dillon and Andy Moran have made sufficient progress to take their places on the bench for Sunday, how match fit they are and what kind of impact they will be able to have after prolonged lay-offs is yet to be seen. The loss of Jason Doherty in recent times has added even more to Mayo’s problems up front along with loss of Michael Conroy a few weeks ago for a good portion of the early summer at least. Stepping into fill the gaps on Sunday are two championship debutants, Cathal Carolan and Darren Coen. While Carolan has got some inter-county miles under his belt in this year’s league campaign from the first Dublin game on, the only game time that Coen has seen in the senior side in the league this term has been a brief blood sub appearance on Leeside. Joining Cillian O’Connor and Kevin McLoughlin and the pair of debutants in attack is the experienced duo of Alan Freeman and Enda Varley.

Five years ago, Kevin Keane was looking forward to hopefully a long summer of minor football in the green and red of Mayo. That summer brought him all the way to Croke Park on All Ireland final day and ultimately a heartbreaking defeat to Tyrone in a final replay in Longford. Since then Keane has worked his way though the ranks of the u21s and up to a starting spot in the senior final against Donegal last September. The Westport native and Sligo IT student was in McHale Park this week to launch this year’s Electric Ireland All Ireland minor championships, and he puts what he learned playing in the minor championship five years ago as one of the major reasons he is where he is today in the game. “Back in 2008, it was a great honour to represent your county first and foremost and then to go on to where we got, was just amazing. It was a huge stepping stone looking back on it now, getting to represent Mayo as a senior footballer. It was a great level to learn your trade as a footballer, which is what it’s all about really in developing you as a footballer. I was lucky enough to win a Connacht title and get to an All Ireland final in Croke Park, which at 18 years of age is one of the most amazing things you can ever do as a footballer, especially when you’re only 18.”

Dublin 2-16

Down 0-13

It was only a matter of weeks ago that the curtain came down on the club scene in Mayo for 2012 and now on the second Sunday in January, the curtain is coming back up on the inter-county season for 2013. While the members of last year’s senior squad enjoyed their well deserved team holiday in Miami last week and the early part of this week, this Sunday in Ballinamore is going to be a very different experience from the sun and sand of South Beach.

I regularly email a friend of mine in the US regarding the progress of the Mayo team. He is quite fanatical about Mayo football and regularly travels ‘home’ to see his beloved county play in the championship. He could not travel for the All-Ireland but did watch it live on TV. He sought my views on the game. I have decided to let you see his response to my email where I suggested that Mayo were beaten by a better team on the day.

Belief is everything in sport and long before the GAA was heavily populated with sports psychologists, this current Donegal side always looked like their name was on the trophy irrespective of who they were playing in the All-Ireland final last Sunday. I do not think the intervention of any amount of psychology would have stopped them winning their second All- Ireland. For a combination of reasons they had acquired a belief that they would win this year’s title, unless maybe an exceptional team stood in their way. Mayo are a very good team but, unfortunately, just did not have a sufficient number of big powerful men in key positions throughout the field to deny this Donegal side. One line in particular could have done with a big strong ball winner. If we had a Michael Murphy at 14, then I believe Mayo would have walked the steps on Sunday evening as champions. That is how close it was. But we do not appear to have that extra jewel at the moment. The fact that the aforementioned Michael Murphy is half a Mayo man does not make it any easier to accept!

Donegal 2-11

It has taken a little over 210 minutes of championship football to get here. Leitrim, Sligo and Down all stood in the way, but were not up to the challenge. On Sunday things get very real, but this is what Mayo have been preparing for ever since the final whistle blew in the same venue in last year’s All Ireland semi-final against Kerry. They are back to where they want to be, their fourth championship game in a five game series they hope will end in victory and a place in the All Ireland final for the first time in six years and another crack at bringing Sam Maguire back to Mayo. But that is another battle to be fought at a later date, and all that will be on Mayo minds on Sunday is the game ahead of them.

Ballaghaderreen v Garrymore