Search Results for 'Donal Vaughan'

The Alliance National Football League kicks off this Saturday and first out of the blocks in division one are Mayo, under new manger James Horan. They take on the defeated All-Ireland finalists Down at 7.30pm in McHale Park under lights.

Longford:1-12

It seems now that Mayo's dreadful display against Cork in the league final earlier this year was not a once off, but a fair reflection of where this team and management currently stands. In that final we played like a division four team. We looked every inch a division four team again last week. I realise that winning performances are not always associated with dazzling displays of individual or team brilliance. A winning performance is achieved by relentless work, harrying, hitting, running, tracking back, tackling, winning dirty balls. This is a basic requisite to be successful in championship football. That's what we wanted from our evening in Sligo. As a result of the defeat Mayo has also missed out on an attractive home tie against our old friends, Galway, in a few weeks’ time. It was planned to coincide with the official opening of the new stand, but that too must be shelved for the time being. This missed opportunity also means a very significant loss of revenue for the County Board and another hit to local businesses.

Galway have been warned.

Irrespective of the result in Markievich Park tomorrow evening, you will meet the happy chap who will have consoling words for the losers along the lines “it's not the end of the world”, “you always have the back door”, and “anyway where were we going this year?” These platitudes may all be wonderful to the guy who hasn’t prepared for a match of this magnitude, but try telling that to the players or management of the losing side and I can guarantee you it will sound very hollow!

Following on from last weekend’s win over Cavan in a challenge game in Belmullet, Mayo saw off Westmeath in Tarmonbarry on Tuesday night by 1-13 to 0-11 as their build up to the championship continues at pace. That build up will continue tonight when Dublin head to south Mayo, Hollymount to be precise, where the sides will lock horns with John O’Mahnony’s Mayo in another challenge game with throw in down for 7.30pm.

Management continuously search for the edge when preparing teams. And because they do, there will always be a variety of opportunists offering their services in the hope of cashing in on the back of a successful outfit. I have fallen into the trap myself, when I got a call from a ‘friend’ championing the quality of a sports psychologist. He came so highly recommended that I couldn’t wait to unleash him on the football squad. I recall sitting back at the rear of the room with a few fellow selectors. Within minutes we realised we had a dud on our hands. Out of respect we allowed him to complete his gig that particular time, but cancelled the remaining five sessions that were supposed to complete the package. My message to unsuspecting managers is to be careful of the articulate incompetent.

John O'Mahony named his squad for the championship on Monday, there were no major surprises in the 30 men named, with Belmullet's Billy Joe Padden the only man who wasn't involved in action so far this year coming back into contention. O'Mahony now has 33 days to get his team ready for Sligo in the Connacht championship opener.

Opportunity knocks for Mayo footballers next Sunday in Croker. A victory over Cork in the National League final would be an enormous achievement for this present group of players. On the basis of the compelling evidence of Mayo’s victory over the same opposition two weeks ago, I really do think a National League title is imminently achievable. Granted, next Sunday’s opposition have been making all the right soundings in their impressive league campaign with a number of good victories to their credit, but Mayo have also enjoyed a terrific league campaign, with six out of seven victories in the campaign. The question is being asked in these quarters, however, were Cork really trying in that last league game in Pairc Uí Chaoimh two weeks ago? As we know, Cork had already qualified for the league final before the last game and, to a certain extent, they had an influence on who they played in the final. To step off the gas and allow Mayo win without too much exertion might just present a handier opportunity to win a league title in Croker. A final against the Dubs in front of a large Dublin crowd just might not have been as easy, they might have been thinking. A few people have suggested to me that once Cork discovered that the Dubs were trouncing Tyrone in the first half in Omagh that same Sunday, their intensity dropped quite noticeably and they ambled through the remainder of the match unconcerned about the result. Nonetheless that was not the situation in the other games played in Division 1 when Mayo ground out impressive results against formidable opposition.

Mayo 2-12