OPINION: Why Mayo's latest Croke Park triumph felt so different

Semi-final days usually meant a poor sleep the night before, an early start, the nerves making it impossible to eat breakfast.

There was no such thing as enjoying the game. It was a feat of endurance, fuelled by desperation to win, to get another shot at The Holy Grail. Then joy (tempered with terror) or bone-crushing disappointment at the end of the day.

The Andy era is different. Probably because of the lessons we have learned along the way.

The only ping of a nerve I felt on Saturday was while waiting for the teams to come out onto the pitch, listening to Aldoc’s ‘Takaka Rain’ blaring out over the hot grass for what felt like an eternity.

Music has a knack of taking you right back to places you’d like or hate to be again, and I always associate it with the crippling anxiety of All-Ireland final days. But for the most part, my focus on Saturday was making the most of what promised to be a brilliant occasion.

LOUD LUNATICS

“We’ll leave early”, I decided early in the week. It was my turn to drive. On Friday morning on the way to work, the car started making some ominous noises.

That poor car probably couldn’t face the thought of another drive to Drumcondra with four loud Mayo lunatics, and I wouldn’t blame it.

The other driver had to step in and did so with great generosity. We did go early, after getting the coffees in. The girl at the coffee kiosk was wearing a signed Mayo jersey.

“I’ve just had a feeling all year,” she said. Despite the time-honoured tradition of every tractor in Roscommon taking to the N5 on a Mayo match day (they surely have a dedicated WhatsApp group), we avoided the traffic delays of a fortnight ago and were taking our seats just as Down went five points up against Wicklow.

While we were getting a bite to eat before the game, a fellow Mayo fan stopped by the table. He had the look of someone who’d witnessed a final loss or eleven.

“These days are eagerly anticipated, and long awaited”, he beamed. Ain’t that the truth? Andy in his (iconic) post-match press conference referenced how we’d been “starved” for the last four or five years. That short famine has reminded us just what a privilege it is to have days like these to enjoy.

HEART AND BELIEF

On that note, had Mayo been hammered off the pitch, it still would have been worth the trip to witness one of the greatest comebacks of all time in Croke Park, and the absolute ecstasy with which Wicklow fans celebrated their monumental Tailteann Cup win.

Having never even won a provincial title, let alone an All-Ireland, that a Division 4 team could come from 13 points down at half-time and beat a Division 2 team (essentially) shows what can be achieved in today’s game, when heart and belief take over.

It was absolutely magic, and it was a privilege to see it.

But we were only on the first course. As “To Win Just Once” blared out across the hallowed ground, Mayo and Louth fans sang along in full voice.

The noise during the parade was deafening. The smoke from the flares on the hill evaporating in a haze of joy.

The game initially looked like it would be tight, but the second half produced an emphatic Mayo display, meaning that for the first time in recent memory, Mayo fans could relax and enjoy the last ten minutes.

Even as we celebrated our own performance, we could taste Louth’s disappointment. A sounder bunch of fans it would be hard to find. We know what it’s like. They will go again. Do better again.

IN IT TOGETHER

For us, Saturday was as close to a perfect day as it comes. Baking sunshine. A packed Croke Park. More memories made with loved ones. A defiant performance. Smiles for miles.

The Irish Examiner’s John Fogarty was right about the county going crazy again, if the beeping at the toll bridge on the way home was anything to go by. Mayo fans know what heartbreak is. But by god, we know how to enjoy the good days too.

It was fantastic to hear Andy Moran call “bullsh*t” on his question and have the fans’ backs; the first manager in a long time to do so. Over a decade ago, Andy first uttered those famous words: “We’re Mayo and we’re in it together.” Turns out he meant it.

My sister was with us on Saturday, home on a short break from Australia. She too has soldiered for many years and now faces the prospect of watching the final from afar.

What would be the best outcome? Being at a final and Mayo losing, or being far from home, and Mayo winning? We all know the answer, but it still doesn’t make it any easier.

STRESSFUL DAYS AHEAD

I might not even make the final myself. Despite holding a season ticket and attending every game this year, my name won’t be on the list. My crime? Leaving it too late to buy and download my ticket on a couple of occasions.

You can buy a ticket any time, but if you’re a season ticket holder, they give you a deadline. Entirely my own fault; I didn’t think in a month of Sundays I’d need to worry about it.

I’ve appealed my case to our friends at Ticketmaster, but am not expecting a favourable outcome, meaning a stressful few days lie ahead. But who’s complaining? Of all the problems I’d like to have, this is top of the list.

The pressure now is on Kerry. No-one expects Mayo to win. Jack probably needs to do back-to-back – nothing else will satisfy those “f**king animals”, to quote the late great Páidí Ó Sé. They demand consistent greatness from their team. We’d settle for just one win, for now.

But right now, we’ll bask in the afterglow of one of those almost-perfect days.

And what will be, will be.