Search Results for 'McHale Park'

Galway and Mayo renew rivalries this weekend in provincial deciders at both senior and u-16 level.

Wow, can you believe it, London are in the Connacht final after one of the most enthralling and entertaining games the province has produced in a long while. Game over at half time with London being an unassailable 14 points ahead, or so you thought.

Last Saturday evening in a windy McHale Park, the Mayo minors opened up the championship account for the year with a comprehensive 10 point win over Leitrim setting up this Sunday’s semi-final against Galway. Speaking to the Mayo Advertiser this week ahead of the game, Mayo manger Enda Gilvarry looking back on the Leitrim game said, “It’s good to be up and running, we could have done better, but coming into any championship game you’d take a 10 point win.” He also pointed out that it was a hectic week for a number of his players last week. “It was a difficult week for some of the lads, who were coming off the Leaving Cert and then facing into club championship games the next day.”

Lambs to the slaughter; the class of a top four in division one team against division three mid-table mediocrity, use whatever other phrase you like but the gulf in class between Mayo and Roscommon was of epic proportions. I was being very kind to Roscommon last week while predicting a five to six point win for Mayo, and was fearful of insulting any Roscommon reader in my first column, truth is I expected it to be a lot more, and when asked before we went live on Mid West Radio on Sunday if I thought Mayo would win, I told Shane Curran (former Rossie keeper and current St Brigid’s net minder) and all listening that Mayo would hammer them.

Castlebar Mitchels man Richie Feeney has been handed the number 11 shirt for Sunday’s Connacht Senior Football Championship semi-final against Roscommon in McHale Park. The versatile Feeney will replace the injured Cillian O’Connor who dislocated his shoulder in a club championship match for Ballintubber against Claremorris, the week after Mayo’s opening round victory over Galway in Salthill.

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.”

With time ticking down to next Sunday’s Connacht semi-final against Roscommon in McHale Park, James Horan and his managment team took the chance of last Monday’s challenge game with Cavan in James Stephens Park to run the rule over a number of fringe contenders for a place in next Sunday’s side. Kenneth O’Malley in goal with Kevin Keane, Shane McHale, and James Burke were all given chances to impress in the defence, while Jason Gibbons put in a good shift, especially in the second half while partnering Aidan O’Shea in midfield. In attack Richie Feeney stepped into the number 11 shirt vacated by Cillian O’Connor because of his shoulder injury, while Darren Coen started at corner forward with Andy Moran in the other. The Ballaghaderreen man got some good game time under his belt in his battle to get back to full match fitness as soon as possible.

Mayo will make the same long journey their footballing brothers made a few weeks ago to Newry tomorrow afternoon looking to pick up a second win in the league and set them up for the Christy Ring Cup in the not to distant future. Christy Phillips’ men currently sit in fourth place in the six team division, out of contention of making the league final which will be contested by Meath and London the two sides who have beaten Mayo in this campaign so far. They sit one point behind tomorrow’s opponents from Ulster, thanks to their draw with Roscommon on the first day of the league and win over Armagh a fortnight ago in McHale Park.

Last year’s Christy Ring Cup winners will be calling into McHale Park for a visit on Sunday afternoon as Christy Phillips’ Mayo senior hurling side look to put together back to back wins. Mayo will go into Sunday’s game boosted on the back of impressive scoring haul of 4-16 in last weekend’s victory against Armagh in the same venue.

The Mayo senior hurlers go looking for their first win of the season when they host Armagh in McHale Park on Sunday in the curtain raiser to the footballers’ encounter with Kildare. Throw-in in this game is at 5.15pm and gives the Mayo GAA crowd a great chance to come out and support the small ball game. Saturday evening’s opponents for Mayo have a one win from two games record coming into Saturday’s game, losing out to London at home on the opening day of the league by 0-22 to 0-14, before a third quarter blitz last Sunday saw them beat Roscommon on a scoreline of 3-15 to 2-11 in Athleague.