Austin Garvin
ONCE again we have failed to survive a round of the Qualifiers, as inglorious defeat was our lot at GAA Headquarters against a less than brilliant Tyrone team on Saturday last. Why did we not grasp the opportunity when it was presented to us early in the second half?
Tactically, to be fair to management, they got an awful lot right on this occasion. They introduced three players from the start in defence that helped to shore up the sector and by and large they held their own and restricted Tyrone to a meagre enough return.
James Nallen, in the autumn of a wonderful career, turned back the clock and gave a display reminiscent of what he produced against Kerry in 1996. In fact, such was his display that Tyrone were forced to replace their playmaker Brian McGuigan in the second half. Peadar Gardiner did likewise on Tyrone’s workhorse Brian Dooher as he marked him tightly all through and often helped out in attack.
Tom Cunniffe, though new to full-back, did quite well on Seán Cavanagh, except for one lapse when he gave away possession needlessly. It was only when Cavanagh went outfield that he excelled. Management were forced to play David Heaney at midfield alongside Tom Parsons when Ronan McGarrity failed to recover from a hamstring injury and generally speaking, he did quite well.
Billy Joe Padden had done quite well when he came on in the Connacht final and was worth a place in the starting 15. He too did a lot of good work, particularly in the first half, before he tired in the second. In attack, Alan Dillon was once again our outstanding figure, particularly when he came to centre forward in a switch with Pat Harte. Harte unfortunately was forced to retire at half time and this robbed Mayo of an alternative at centrefield. Aidan Kilcoyne was given a run out based on his Connacht final display but this unfortunately didn’t work out for him or for the team.
Tyrone’s deployment of Seán Cavanagh at midfield and the introduction of former minor star Martin Penrose helped to turn the tide in their favour when the game was in the melting pot in the second half.
Many of Mayo’s old failings came back to haunt them. We were penalised six times for picking the ball off the ground (at least one was harsh). We gave away possession far too easily at times. We took the wrong options in attack, such as bad shot selection and delegating responsibility, and when we had Tyrone on the rack, three points to the good, we weren’t able to put them to the sword. This also happened in the Connacht final when we went into the lead against Galway.
Our expectations here in Mayo are way above the standard that is exhibited at club level in the county; those of us that watch a lot of club football see the same failings week in, week out. Such is our insatiable desire for success that we are very often blinded to the reality of the situation. We feel we should have a seat at the top table without possessing enough players with the necessary credentials.
Very often management has to rob Peter to pay Paul in order to endeavour to spread our meagre resources evenly. It may sound harsh but overall, we’re just not good enough for the next level at present. Sure, we all feel that we could do better with selection and suchlike, but the reality is that by and large, the best players in the county are on the present panel.
All we can hope for is that John O’Mahony and his team can improve our lot over a period of time with coaching and perseverance. If they can’t then we could have a long wait for success.
