Mayo's attack fails to fire in opening round defeat to Galway

CONNACHT LGFA U-16 CHAMPIONSHIP ROUND ONE

Mayo 0-4

Galway 1-12

In Swinford

THE Connacht campaign for Mayo has started with a heavy defeat at the hands of Galway.

It was a case of whoever handled the atrocious conditions best would come out on top, and it turned out the guests had more firepower in their locker. The first half was played in constant rainfall and a treacherous wind.

The match on Saturday afternoon was originally meant to take place in Foxford, at Moy Davitt's GAA, but the expected exceptionally wet weather led to the match being moved to Swinford Amenity Park.

Mayo held their own defensively for most of the time, especially the full-back line did a good job. Leah McNamara, Clara Kennedy and Aoife Gannon frustrated their opponents efforts time and time again. 

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But ultimately it was up front where the game was lost for manager John Gerard Butler and his team. Mayo seemed to make the wrong decisions too often. 

Galway on the other hand were much more efficient and their midfielder Katie Brogan was a handful with her athleticism and powerful ball-carrying. Kym McNulty was a constant scoring threat, shaking off defenders. The half-forward contributed 0-4 and was Galway's top scorer.

Galway were also able to bring in plenty of players off the bench that seamlessly fitted into their flow of play. 

While Mayo's captain, Mykayla McLoughlin got the first point of the day, after a lively start from the girls in green and red, Galway gradually took over and turned the screw on the hosts.

Seven unanswered points followed, and Mayo had a lucky escape when Kyilah Maloney's point effort drifted off and hit the inside of the post, bouncing back into play. Some already had the goal celebrations ready to go. 

Mayo came to life a bit afterwards, thanks to points from McLoughlin and Ríona Kelly. They were five down at half-time, 0-8 to 0-3, and with the breeze in their back for the second period, there was still hope.

The break was unusually long, as referee Eric Rainey had asked the teams to wait a bit longer for the torrential rain to stop - and it worked. When Mr Rainey emerged back from the dressing-room after about 20 minutes, the downpour had stopped.

Unfortunately for Mayo, it would continue to rain Galway points on them. Only five minutes in, Torai O'Flynn's effort somehow ended up in the top left corner of the goal, Mayo keeper Anna Meaney beaten by the deceptive long-range shot.

Galway now had a commanding 1-9 to 0-3 lead and Mayo never looked like finding the switch to get back into the game. Their attacking play never got going. 

Mayo will take on Leitrim next weekend.

A full match report will be carried in Tuesday's Mayo News