Search Results for 'Mayo Senior Football Championship'

Castlebar played Ballyhaunis in the final of the Mayo Cup in Cloondeash last weekend. This competition is confined to Mayo Junior sides. The conditions during this match were mild, wet and overcast with a westerly breeze to contend with. Ballyhaunis arrived intent on having a successful afternoon and worked hard to achieve their aim. Castlebar fielded a mixed team of experience and youth which failed to dent the enthusiastic Ballyhaunis men’s ambition on the day.

The communities of Ballyhaunis and Crossmolina have been congratulated for their recent success in the national 32-county Pride of Place awards.

It was generally felt that the Mayo u21s would not be prevented from winning their fourth Connacht title in a row at Markievicz Park last Saturday evening, having disposed of the two big heavy weights; Galway and Roscommon in earlier rounds. After 15 minutes of the match in Sligo it was very evident that Sligo were in the ‘also ran’ category! It was only a question of the margin of victory, and as it transpired Mayo ran out very comfortably on a final score line that flattered them a little. In fairness to Sligo they battled bravely right to the end, but they just didn’t have anything like the quality of players that Mayo possessed. Mayo scored 3-11 from play over the 60 or so minutes of the game and right from the throw in it was evident that management had their troops focused on the task at hand. Unfortunately, from a spectator point of view, this match didn’t represent great value for money as Sligo really had no answer to the slick mobility of the opposition. This Mayo team have already provided sufficient entertainment in two brilliant performances against Galway and Roscommon. It was difficult enough to select a man of the match as practically every Mayo player had his moments. Billy Fitzpatrick who had this task for Mid West Radio selected Jason Doherty, and it would be hard to disagree with him as Jason has improved with every outing so far this year and is playing with great confidence and authority. Aidan O’ Shea has been very good at every level this year and I thought that he in particular produced a flawless display from start to finish last Saturday. Kevin McLoughlin is another who has caught the eye and having watched him up close on three occasions I have to say this guy is the real deal. He kicked a magnificent point off his left foot from the left wing in the first half that was as fine a score as you will witness this year. Cathal Carolan got through his customary truck load of toil in another performance of relentless intensity. Tom Parsons has returned to the form that we witnessed a year or two ago and there must surely be no one doubting his talent at this stage. Eoghan Reilly, son of Tom (Monaghan and Castlebar) is another I would suggest can step up to the next level. His labour is rarely high profile (most defenders fall into this category) but he just toils away selflessly, always alert to imminent danger like a smart defender should be. I mentioned last week the immense contribution of Noel Connelly, Pat Holmes, and Mícheál Collins who have managed Mayo u21s for the last four years. They deserve a lot of credit for producing a team that are always well drilled, well disciplined, and keen to play the game as it is meant to be played.

Burglary in Claremorris

GAA presentations

Eight Mayo students were among the 224 scholarship recipients for 2008 announced by Dr Philip Nolan, Deputy President of University College Dublin.

After last weekend’s adventures on the national stage it’s back to the basics of the Connacht Junior League for the Mayo sides in division 1A and 1B. Both Castlebar and Ballina bowed out of the All Ireland Junior Cup last weekend at the first round stage, with Westport the only Mayo side to progress to the next round of the competition. With four games to go for two of the Mayo sides in the league it’s do or die time as they try to finish in the top four of the exclusively junior sides to book their place in the All Ireland cup for next year.

The 10th Annual Mayo AC Road League, which concluded with the ninth race at Westport recently, was the most successful so far. Increasing numbers are taking part in running related events and the Fit4Life programme has become another opportunity for people of all ages to get involved. During the course of the 2008 League 104 men and 100 women won individual points through finishing in the top 25 in at least one of the races.

Many small businesses face challenging times and a downturn in business confidence. Local online information portal www.mayoplus.ie has assembled an impressive line up for its business support module in an effort to present some positive options.

On Wednesday night, May 6, a garage on the Westport to Castlebar road was broken into. Nothing was removed from the premises. A garage in the Claremorris area was entered some time between May 1 and May 5, where a number of items were taken.