GAA Talk

Isn’t it great!  Summer has come and the shadow boxing that was the football and hurling leagues and subsidary competitions during the winter and spring gives way to the real thing!  It’s that time of year again: dust the flags and the bunting down, the 2009 championship is underway!

First up is the Connacht Senior Football Chamionship clash between Mayo and New York in Gaelic Park Sunday next 10th May.  John O’Mahony’s Mayo will be strong favourites to come away from the Big Apple with a big win, but the Exiles are keen to cause an upset at their home in the Bronx.

As is rarely the case in Ireland, the New York players will get the chance to line out against their native county. Sunday may see Robert Moran (Moy Davitts), Dermot Keane (Knockmore), Declan Reilly (Castlebar Mitchels) and John McNicholas (Kiltimagh) tackle their fellow county men.  Five of the panel are New York born, while former Kerry underage star Dan Doona could also make a pitch appearance. On the other side, Mayo’s Tom Parsons could line out against the side he represented as a teenager.

Larry McCarthy, the New York chairman, believes that due to the Irish recession more people are returning to America for work. “Things have begun to swing in the other direction, but only slightly. And, not enough yet to really impact on the state of New York football. But this winter, certainly, there was talk of players coming back out here, instead of going home, and that hasn’t been the case for quite a few years.” He believes the 12 New York underage football clubs are going to be the future of GAA state side.

Mayo manager John O’Mahony has already named his team for his side’s first big test of the year. O’ Mahony has introduced an injection of young blood to the team, bringing in Ger Cafferkey at full-back, Kevin McLoughlin at corner-back, Donal Vaughan at wing-back and last year’s minor star Aidan O’Shea for their first Championship starts.

Cafferkey won his last under-21 All-Ireland in 2006 and since then has been beset by multiple injuries. The Westerners finished the National League campaign in impressive fashion, with a hard-fought victory over neighbouring enemy Galway and a draw with All-Ireland champions Tyrone, and so will travel to the Big Apple in high spirits.

Trevor Mortimer will captain his home side for the first time and the Shrule/Glencorrib club-man will be eager to show that he is capable of doing things his own way. After proving himself in the Allianz National Football League with a string of fine performances, he will look to repay the faith his manager has placed in him.

Kenneth O’Malley, Seamus O’Sherea, Mark Ronaldson and Conor Mortimer are all out due to exams and injury. Mortimer is recovering from a broken wrist he suffered in the Allianz League game of their campaign against Tyrone. Despite missing four players, O’Mahony is looking forward to the game. “I’m really looking forward to the Championship. I think if we get an injury-free run, work hard, show a unity of purpose and have a good attitude, we’ll make an impact.”

The majority are backing Mayo for what they reckon will be an easy win. Although with New York’s Irish assets, it won’t be over until the final whistle has blown. This is something O’Mahony is not taking for granted. If Mayo win, they will go on to face the winners of Leitrim-Roscommon in the semi-final.

The game will take place at 3pm local time and 8pm Irish time. The team that travelled to Ireland in 1984 and won a one-off tournament for overseas units will be honored at half-time. Players such as Dublin’s Fran Ryder, Derry’s Paddy Crozier and Cork’s Billy Morgan were all members of the 1984 team.

Mayo: D Clarke, L O’Malley, G Cafferkey, K McLoughlin, P Gardiner, T Howley, D Vaughan, T Parsons, R McGarrity, P Harte, T Mortimer, A Dillon, A Moran, A O’Shea, B Moran.

New York: TBC

Verdict: Mayo