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Mayo got over their first hurdle of the championship season with a nine point win over Sligo in MacHale Park on Sunday afternoon, but Stephen Rochford will be looking for a big improvement from him his side come their meeting with Galway next month.

With last weekend's meeting of Knockmore and Castlebar Mitchels postponed and Ballintubber playing only their first league game after a postponement in round one, Breaffy moved to the top of the league table early doors with their second win in a row last weekend against Claremorris. They were made to fight hard for that win, with the south Mayo men sticking with them right throughout and James Shaughnessy's 10 point haul a very impressive return. Breaffy held on to win by two points thanks to Aidan O'Shea's second half goal being the decisive score.

There was more than an air of hope around the county last week that Mayo could go to Croke Park and drive a knife into the heart of Dublin's 32 game unbeaten run in their own back yard. But from within minutes of the ball being thrown in, those hopes were proved to be idle pleasures of an early spring day dream.

Mayo put in an impressive offensive performance to defeat a free falling Roscommon by eight points leaving the Rossies in dire relegation trouble. The 1-19 to 0-14 scoreline suggests a rout but it is somewhat flattering considering All-Star goalkeeper David Clarke pulled off a string of top class saves to keep Roscommon at bay. Clarke, for the third league game in a row, has been one of Mayo's top performers and was deservedly the winner of the man-of-the-match award.

Mayo picked up their second win in this years National Football League with a eight point win over Roscommon in front of 11,657 spectators in MacHale Park on Saturday night. This was the 31st meeting of the sides in the league and that win brought Mayo’s record to 19-to-10 against their near neighbours in the competition.

And so it begins. With the greatest respect to the FBD league, Mayo's season kicks off in earnest with a home tie against Monaghan in MacHale Park tomorrow evening. I will let someone else tell Andy Moran about the insignificance of the FBD league. Mayo's evergreen full forward was full of passion for the trip to Kiltoom to face Roscommon in the final FBD group game, scoring two late goals to ultimately decide the contest and rub salt to the wounds of the Rossies' who had given him plenty of stick while he was on the sideline.

The last time that the Mayo senior footballers were in action was the heartbreaking All Ireland senior final replay defeat to Dublin and since then they have been the talk of the country following an interview by their former managers. Almost all of that squad are currently on a team holiday in South Africa so for this Sunday's FBD League opener, it is going to be a very different looking Mayo side for supporters to get their voices behind for the first time this year, and concentrate on things on the field rather than off the field.

Croke Park on the first Saturday in October will be the defining memory for a lot of Mayo GAA supporters that they take with them into 2017, but while there's still great disappointment that the Mayo senior footballers fell short at the final fence following a fantastic effort, there is still much to celebrate coming out of 2017.

Last years beaten finalists Breaffy made it to their third Mayo senior semi-finals in four years on Saturday afternoon after a hard fought win over Crossmolina Deel Rovers in MacHale Park. Peter Ford and Shane Conway’s side were pushed right to the wire by a battling brave Deel Rovers side, with the displays by the likes of Fionan Duffy, Conor Loftus and Cathal Carolan pointing towards a very bright future for the north Mayo men. There were also very good showings for the beaten side by goalkeeper Patrick Loftus and veteran Peader Gardiner who almost caused a major surprise against a much fancied Breaffy side.

Over the next two days, MacHale Park in Castlebar will host four big games as the quarter-finals of the Mayo GAA Senior Football Championship are down for decision. Our Sports Editor, Colm Gannon previews the action.