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The freezing conditions that have beset the country have seen the cancellation of the first round of games in the Connacht FBD League this weekend. The Connacht council announced the decision on Wednesday saying: “Due to hazardous driving conditions and having checked the weather forecast for the weekend Connacht GAA Council has postponed the start of the FBD Insurance League until Sunday January 17.” Mayo were scheduled to open their FBD League campaign with a tie in Garrymore against the students from NUIG on Sunday, but all the ties have now been put back a week due to the snow and ice. Mayo will now start their campaign on Sunday week, and follow it up with a game at home to Sligo IT on Sunday January 24 in Charlestown, and wrap up the league stages on Sunday January 31 in Ballinlough against Roscommon. The home final for the league has been pencilled in for either Saturday February 20 or Sunday February 28, and the final against New York on Sunday October 10.

After the pre-season warm up session on the far side of the Atlantic it’s back to more traditional fare, albeit on a Saturday evening for Mayo. And with McHale Park getting the go ahead, it’s all systems go for the welcoming of Roscommon to Castlebar for the first time in five years, and four years after the sides last met in the Connacht Championship.

I was in McHale Park to see Mayo disembowel Roscommon at their ease and I was in Markievicz Park to see Galway stumble luckily to a narrow 1-13 to 0-12 victory over Sligo. Based on the respective performances from both panels and managements, there will only be one result in Pearse Stadium in just over two weeks’ time. And that is a Mayo victory.

Sometimes there can be no hiding from hard facts. And here are two: Firstly, the Galway senior football team have not won an All-Ireland quarter final since 2001. Secondly, they have not won a single game in Croke Park in the past eight years and on the clear evidence provided last Sunday against Sligo, even if they did beat Mayo in two weeks time, which is a big if, that statistic is unlikely to change.

The weekend could see things sorted out in section A if Killala and Kilmaine are able to pick up the points on the road leaving both sides to battle it out for top spot in the table on the final day. Last year’s beaten finalists gave Tourmakeady a 10-point trimming in the first round, while Killala had enough to hold of Hollymount by two points in their first game. This weekend sees Killala make their way to Tourmakeady for a do or die battle for the Gaeltacht men. Tourmakeady would have fancied their chances of coming out of Kilmaine with some points on the board last time out and came home with their tail between their legs, so they will be all guns blazing on Saturday to take the points. Despite having a win in the bag already, Tourmakeady should take this one.

Sometimes there can be no hiding from hard facts. And here are two:

The news that Ronan McGarrity had been selected to play in Sunday’s Connacht Senior Football Final (subject to passing a fitness test on Sunday morning) against Galway in Pearse Stadium was a major boost for Mayo when John O’Mahony named his side on Wednesday evening. The Ballina midfielder looked to all intents and purposes to be out of the game after he picked up a fractured cheekbone in Ballina’s Mayo senior football club championship clash with Crossmolina almost a fortnight ago.

After Kerry hammering the lard out of Dublin last Monday it is difficult to predict the victors now with any huge degree of confidence.

After Kerry hammering the lard out of Dublin last Monday it is difficult to predict any victors now with any huge degree of confidence.

Swinford made their way into quarter finals of the Mayo intermediate championship last weekend thanks to a 1-11 to 1-6 win over Davitts in Ballyhaunis. The east Mayo men became the seventh team into the last eight, with one spot left up for grabs in the competition. On Sunday in Bonniconlon Davitts will get their second bite at the cherry when they take on Belmullet in a winner takes all clash at 2pm. The play-off was necessitated by all three sides finishing level on points in their group and one game in the group not being played, and a walk over handed to Belmullet, so points difference couldn’t be taken into consideration.