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They don’t make it easy on the faithful, but the Mayo congregation will head to church at least once more this summer after a dramatic draw with near neighbours Roscommon on Sunday in Croke Park. There were more than a few decades of the Rosary said by the traveling worshipers down the final few minutes of injury time as Mayo created and fluffed a few chances to win the game and the devotions were dedicated to the full time whistle blowing when Roscommon looked to steal it right at the end.

It wasn’t pretty for a long time, but when it came to the crunch Mayo dug deep and ground out the win the required against Derry in MacHale Park. The wide count almost tallied the scores for Mayo on the day, as they looked like they might kick themselves out of the championship and only for a late rally they could very well have been looking at the rest of the summer free from inter-county action.

Group One

Mayo left Salthill with even more questions to answer than when they were turned over by Galway at the same stage of the competition last year. Last years win by the Tribesmen in MacHale Park - was seen as a smash and grab raid by the visitors, one that Mayo would learn from. This result was something else entirely, the decision by Stephen Rochford to drop Colm Boyle from the starting line-up was something that had everyone talking in the build up to throw in.

Almost anything can happen this weekend in division one of the national football league, but there is one thing that Mayo need to see happen. Take at least a point from their game against Donegal and they can be assured of top flight football, simple as that. There are lots of other permutations and combinations that can see Mayo stay up, go down, or even end up in the league final as distant a possability that is.

The start of the National Football League on Saturday evening will see thousands flock into MacHale Park to see the new season get under way properly. The league is often seen as time for guys to be given a chance to impress in the early rounds and stake their claim for a place later on in the year. But is this really the case?

Four games spread across three venues will determine the future of eight sides all looking to be the one to claim the Mayo Intermediate Championship and book their place with the big boys in the senior event next summer. The last few games that had to be tidied up in the group stages took place last weekend and Kiltimagh, Westport, Belmullet, and Islandeady topped their groups, with Moy Davitts, Burrishoole, The Neale, and Shrule Glenncorrib joining them at the quarter final stage as runners up.

When Mayo needed a man to show the leadership in a clutch situation, their star man came good right at the death. Cillian O’Connor showed why he was picked by Stephen Rochford as his captain, when he created the space he needed to shimmy inside and drill the ball through the drizzle over the bar and electrify the Mayo faithful in Croke Park to haul his side level at the death.

Connacht Championship quarter-final

This Mayo team have never shirked away from a challenge, they have shown over the past six years they will give it their all. After having to swallow the bitter taste of defeat for the first time in the Connacht championship in more than half a decade against Galway they faced some hard truths. Cillian O'Connor recounted some of those sessions in the lead up to Sunday's All Ireland semifinal against Tipperary last week. "It wasn't enjoyable, it's not easy to go through things when they have gone wrong but you have to just face up to them, you can't hide away and hope they fix themselves so we just got back training," the Ballintubber ace recalled.