Mayo cruise past disappointing Cavan

ALL-IRELAND SFC GROUP 2 ROUND 1

Mayo 0-20

Cavan 1-8

Hastings Insurance MacHale Park, Castlebar

MAYO got their championship campaign back on track with a comfortable win over a disappointing Cavan outfit this evening. In front of one of the smallest championship crowds in Castlebar in living memory (9,197), the home side were never in any danger of being overturned by the Ulster men who never really gave their supporters anything to shout about.

The hosts began without Aidan O'Shea, who was replaced in the forward line by Cillian O'Connor. The leading scorer in championship football was making only his second start of the season and looked lively and energetic throughout, ending the game with four points to his name.

Mayo were four clear at the interval, 0-9 to 0-5, and the gap should have been greater, despite playing into a stiff breeze. Mayo bossed the possession stakes and were very efficient in their efforts at point-taking, wasting no effort in the entire half. However, they did show some reluctance to move the ball quickly when goal chances arrived,

At the other end, Cavan looking dis-jointed in attack without injured talisman Paddy Lynch and the Mayo defenders gobbled them up. 

The men in blue only threatened the home posts fleetingly. Oisín Brady converted three frees for the guests while midfielder Oisín Kiernan and wing-forward Ciarán Brady also troubled the umpires.

However, the home side were dominant throughout the opening half with Matthew Ruane and Diarmuid O'Connor doing well around the middle, and Ryan O'Donoghue busy in attack.

At the back, Mayo were comfortable for the most part. Cavan did have a sniff of a goal after 26 minutes when wing-forward Oisín Kiernan burst through but Mayo men swarmed around him and smothered the danger.

At the other end, goal chances for Darren McHale and Matthew Ruane finished up over the crossbar and that trend continued in the second half when a driller from Cillian O'Connor flew just over the crosspiece.

Cavan needed a surge early in the second half to revive their fortunes but it failed to materialise as Mayo controlled matters around the middle with Diarmuid O'Connor, Ruane, Jordan Flynn and Jack Carney seeing a lot of the ball.

O'Donoghue continued to kick points for the leaders and he was joined on the board by Stephen Coen, Conor Loftus and McHale.

Cavan needed a goal to have any chance but opportunities were squandered when they arrived. Paddy Meade punched an effort wide when he had more time in front of the posts than he realised and Pádraig Faulkner shot for goal after 58 minutes but Diarmuid O'Connor was well-placed to block the shot on the line and the Ulster men found themselves trailing 0-7 to 0-16 at the hour mark.

However, moments later they did get a badly-needed net-shaker when James Smith's blasted home after Tíarnan Madden's effort had been blocked by O'Donoghue. That gave Cavan a glimmer of hope but points from Cillian O'Connor and O'Donoghue in the following minute soon dampened any hope of a close finish.

A good day for Mayo was clouded somewhat in the last play of the day when team captain, Paddy Durcan, who had been introduced from the sub's bench seemed to pick up a leg injury and had to be carried off as supporters raced on to celebrate victory. The Castlebar Mitchels clubman had just returned to action after a calf injury and his latest setback will surely worry Kevin McStay as his team prepare to face Roscommon in the next round.