COMMENT - Nobody cares how far Donegal supporters have to travel to see their team play

STATISTICS are funny things. One can use them to suit any narrative. We've heard a lot of talk this week about the distance from Malin Head to Hyde Park in Roscommon and how long it will take Donegal supporters from that most northerly point make the journey to see Donegal play Mayo.

We've also heard how long it will take the Mayo supporters from Ballyhaunis travel to the Roscommon venue on Sunday and the comparison is stark. It will take the Malin Head crew three hours and 55 minutes to complete the 270.9km journey if they don't stop for toilet breaks or a stretch of the legs. It will take the Ballyhaunis gang 40 minutes to cover the 45km. They probably won't need a toilet break or a bit of a stretch. The statistics tell their own story.

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However, I presume not all Donegal supporters come from the lovely lands around Malin Head, while I'm certain not all Mayo followers populate the gran old town of Ballyhaunis.

I'm also well aware that not all Mayo fans are from Blacksod which is 185km from Hyde Park and the excitement awaiting them there.

INJUSTICE

In Mayo, we're surprised, to hear some Donegal people complaining about the venue for Sunday's big game between the two counties. We've been in the same situation before and made the same mistake.

In 2014, we drew with Kerry in the All-Ireland semi-final in Croke Park and were told to go to the Gaelic Grounds in Limerick for the replay. All week, we complained and whinged about the utter injustice of having to make the long journey south while the Kerry people could almost walk to the great stadium on the Ennis Road.

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What difference did our complaints make? Absolutely none! Instead, Kerry said nothing and got on with preparing for one of the greatest games of recent years. Mayo tried to do the same, but the fire-storm about the venue surely caught the attention of players and management for even a few minutes that week.

If that distraction cost them even one percent of preparation time, it was detrimental, because the Green and Red somehow lost that thriller after extra-time. The fixing of the game for Limerick was a huge story in Mayo, but nobody else cared a jot about it. It was a cold, hard lesson for us. Nobody cares!

What are Donegal people looking for this week? Where do they want the game played? Markievicz Park in Sligo would be ideal, but that stadium isn't available. What about Breffni Park in Cavan? That's nearer to Malin Head than Blacksod, so would that be fair if one follows the logic fired into the ether this week by some Donegal people? That issue doesn't come into it anyway as the stadium isn't available for a number of reasons.

COST OF LIVING

What everyone should be talking about this weekend is the growing cost of attending games. Mayo and Donegal supporters almost always have to travel long distances to attend games at neutral venues, given our coastline positioning. The condensed season means our supporters have to travel to games every two weeks and that's costly. We want to attend every game our teams play, but it's sometimes not possible when bills and other things take precedent.

FAMILIARITY

From a football point of view, I'm sure Jim McGuinness won't be too worried about whether people from Malin or Blacksod have to travel a little further, but he will be concerned about Mayo's familiarity with Hyde Park.

The Green and Red play there very regularly and haven't been beaten in the Roscommon venue since 2001. It was a similar situation in 2014. Kerry knew the Gaelic Grounds like the back of their hands and knew their way around the dressingrooms and the time-lines getting to the ground. Mayo will have that advantage on Sunday, but it's the only advantage they'll enjoy.

Nobody outside Donegal cares how far it is from Malin Head to Hyde Park. Nobody cares how far it is from Ballyhaunis to Roscommon. We learned that lesson in 2014. Believe me – Nobody cares!

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