Search Results for 'Keith Higgins'

"We’ll be competitive and we’ll be looking for a performance every day that we go out and we can be honest in ourselves and we did ourselves and the county proud and we’re going the right direction towards what our goals will be.” That's what Stephen Rochford said back in December 2015 — two days after he was appointed Mayo manager. While there have been days when things haven't quite gone to plan they have always been "honest" in themselves as a team and that's what has brought them to where they are right now, 70 minutes away from their final goal.

This win wasn’t lucky, it wasn’t by chance, it came about through sheer hard-work, believe in themselves and by playing some breathtaking football. It has taken Mayo 21-years to beat Kerry again in the football championship, but the jubilant Mayo faithful - who roared on their hero’s from the first minute to last, know that there is still a big job to do in three weeks time. But that doesn’t mean that this game is not to be savoured.

There have been plenty of talk and plaudits for the attacking return for the Mayo full forward line of 1-10, 1-9 of it coming from play against Kerry last Sunday. While he only registered 0-1 of that total, the influence that Burrishoole's Jason Doherty had on Mayo's ability to get scores was far more influential than a scoreboard analysis will show at first glance.

Dear me, not again. The winners of this year’s Sam Maguire will have their name etched on the famous trophy but there is absolutely no doubt Mayo’s 2017 championship campaign will command the most paragraphs in the championship 2017 yearbook. Bizarre does not even go close to explaining it. Mayo supporters again travelled in their tens of thousands clogging the N5 and N4 all the way to the capital from early morning. It is very obvious that football is more important than Christmas for the supporters of the green and red who now have to contend with a ninth championship game in 2017 after another heart stopping semifinal clash with Kerry in Croke Park. They will not have a cent left for the festive period.

There’s no easy way to win an All Ireland, and boy are Mayo doing it the hard way. It’s back to headquarters on Saturday for another swing at Kerry as the look to book an All Ireland final date in Croke Park in September.

Not long after Mayo rattled in their third goal in the first half of their All Ireland quarterfinal replay win over Roscommon, the thoughts of plenty of Mayo supporters wandered to what will we do to stop Kieran Donaghy, the man who has inflicted more pain on Mayo in recent years than probably anyone else on big days.

A week is a long time in politics, bu it seems that eight days in football can be even longer. Having struggled to impose themselves for long enough periods to win the first day against Roscommon, Mayo hit their neighbours with everything they had on Monday and ran out more than convincing winners. Right from the throw-in four days ago, you could see that this Mayo team were a very different animal to the one that that had turned up eight days previously.

“Mayo football is in a critical state,” “the players are finished,” “the management aren't up to it,” “I hope Roscommon beat us to put us out of our misery.” They are just a small example of what I listened to last week in the build up to the replay against Roscommon. Fast forward three days and the Mayo for Sam bandwagon is in full swing. “That was Mayo's best performance in Croke Park,” “This is the strongest squad Mayo have ever had,” “every player played well,” “Rochford is a tactical genius,” “I think we'll win the All-Ireland this year.”

Monday's All-Ireland SFC quarter-final replay ended in bitter disappointment for Roscommon as Mayo cruised to an emphatic 4-19 to 0-9 win at Croke Park.

When 15 minutes before throw in, it was announced that Footballer of the Year - Lee Keegan wouldn’t be starting there was an air of fear amongst the Mayo supporters who made the pilgrimage back to Croke Park on Bank Holiday Monday. But once the ball was thrown in that unease was soon vanquished as Mayo went right at Roscommon and rolled them over in impressive style at the second time of asking.