Mayo GAA manager Kevin McStay hopeful Paddy Durcan will be back soon

Mayo GAA team captain Paddy Durcan and full-back David McBrien should be back for Mayo's meeting with Derry in Castlebar on St Patrick's Day. That was the message delivered by team boss Kevin McStay after Saturday night's comfortable win over Roscommon on Saturday night.

However, McStay is a realist. He has spent a lifetime around football and is well aware of the peaks and troughs associated with the game. On Saturday night in a chilly media room under the stand in Castlebar he put words on the game just ended.

His team had won comfortably, they had played some fine football at times, but he was also acutely aware that improvements were needed and Saturday night's win was just a vehicle to collect two league points and probable safety in the top division.

“Six points might be enough and we're delighted with that, but seven would make it a certainty. League-wise we're not too bad after tonight I think,” he stated before being asked about his side's excellent start to the second half when Mayo kicked seven points without reply.

“We targeted that at half-time and went after it bald-headed as we did at the start of the game. We got a very good opening 20 but we fell off it a bit then. They were shooting the lights out. Their conversion rate was very high from distance, but they have that. That's why they're a team that contend and I'd say in four or five weeks it will be some fun if we go back up to Roscommon (in championship).”

Thoughts were quickly turning towards championship encounters and scrobes wondered about the fitness of Durcan, McBrien, Diarmuid O'Connor and Eoghan McLaughlin who was very impressive on Saturday before picking up a late knock which saw him helped from the pitch.

“We'll have to see how Eoghan is. It's a leg muscle injury for sure, so we'll have to wait and see. We got Conor Loftus back on the field tonight which was great.

“We'll see Paddy and David back for the Derry squad and the Monaghan match. That's what we're hoping for anyway. Diarmuid has a little bit longer to go and it may be the New York game before we see him,” the manager added.