Search Results for 'Evan Regan'

It's been some week for Noel Connelly, the former Mayo captain was appointed as the new joint manager of the Mayo senior football team alongside his old running mate Pat Holmes. While the whole appointment process and the wrongs and rights of it were played out in the public spotlight, Connelly also had to be preparing his Hollymount-Carramore team for Saturday afternoon's Egan Jewelers Intermediate Championship semi-final replay against Belmullet. Last weekends meeting between the sides wasn't anything to write home about as Belmullet played to their strengths and packed their defence and hit Hollymount-Carramore on the break and used the sharp-shooting of Jonathon Donoghue to keep themselves in the game.

There were 16 teams when it started out, but only four remain as the semi-finals of the Mayo GAA senior football championship are down for decision in Elverys MacHale Park on Sunday afternoon.

The Mayo u21s came up short against Roscommon once again at the u21 grade in Elvery’s MacHale Park on Wednesday night, with the visitors running out 11 point winners at the end of the hour. Mayo couldn’t have asked for a better start when Evan Regan drove the back of the net from close range after two minutes putting Mayo 1-0 to 0-1 in front. Mayo held on to the lead until the 17th minute with Conor O’Shea kicking a huge score and Regan adding a point from a free after the Breaffy man had been fouled. Diarmuid Murtagh who finished up with 1-5 kicked Roscommon’s first two points of the game and had a hand in Mark Nally’s goal 17 minutes in that levelled the game up. From then on it was all Roscommon and they added on two more goals before the break with Murtagh finishing to the net after the Mayo defence had been broken far to easily and Donnie Smith added a penalty right on half time after Matthew Flanagan (whose still a minor) gave away the spot kick. That goal left Roscommon leading 3-5 to 1-3 at the break and had the large travelling faithful inside MacHale Park in full voice before at the break.

It will only be the second week March next week, but for either Mayo manager Niall Heffernan or his opposite number from Roscommon, Nigel Dineen, by the time they go to bed next Wednesday night one of their inter-county seasons will be over already. The traditional once chance brutality of championship football still remains at the u21 grade and many months of work and planning for both sides will come down to what happens on the field in MacHale Park next Wednesday.

Mayo 2-8

Mayo 2-14

Two weeks on from the pain of Croke Park, it's back to playing for the pride of the parish this weekend as the quarter-finals and relegation semi-finals of the Treanlaur Catering Senior Football Championships take place. MacHale Park in Castlebar will host two double headers of last eight action on Saturday and Sunday, with the entertainment getting under way with the meetings of Castlebar Mitchels and Ballina Stepehenites at 3.30pm and Charlestown and Garrymore at 5pm tomorrow. The first game is, on paper, probably the game of the weekend, with the two most successful sides in the history of the competition going toe-to-toe. Pat Holmes' Castlebar men go into the game as favourites after blitzing their way through the group stages, which included a comprehensive win over fellow last eight side Breaffy. Holmes' team have been knocking at the door of winning the Moclair Cup for the first time since the early 90s and this year could be their time. With Barry Moran, Tom Cunniffee (if he is fit after having gone off at half-time in the All Ireland final) and Richie Feeney back in situ, alongside the likes of Danny Kirby, Aidan Walsh, Neil Douglas, Alan Feeney, and Ciaran Naughton, Mitchels have the player power to over-run any team in the grade. Not that Ballina will be any pushovers. John Healy's side will have to do without inspirational goalkeeper David Clarke, who had not recovered enough to take any part in Mayo's All Ireland series campaign. Healy will be able to call on experienced players of the calibre of Ronan McGarrity, Pat Harte, Ger Cafferkey, and Eanna Casey; while Evan Regan could have a major impact up front if he gets going. This time last year Ballina were staring down the barrel of the relegation gun after a horrible season, but they have pulled themselves together this year and will not give up without a fight. But when all is said and done, Castlebar should just have too much for them.

The Mayo Senior championship was in overdrive last weekend (I am sure James Horan was waiting anxiously by his phone to ensure all his players came through their respective games) and while I was not surprised and had predicted most of the results, the drubbing Castlebar dished out to Breaffy left me a little shocked especially as I had them pencilled in for my “value bet of the week”.

Fresh off the back of their trouncing of Roscommon last Sunday, the best that Mayo have will be back in the colours of their clubs as round two of the Mayo senior and intermediate championships take centre stage this weekend.

In the build up to Mayo's Connacht semi-final showdown against Roscommon next Sunday, Mayo manager James Horan has said that he doesn't mind Mayo being grouped in as potential All Ireland winners as that's where his team want to be. When asked did it bother him at last weeks pre-game press conference the Mayo manager said “Not at all, we're an ambitious team, we're looking to be as good as we possibly can and we feel that we have a lot of ability and that's OK, we'll take that. We're making progress and we're going the right way. So we're just going to June 16 and see can we take the next step.”