Mayo GAA Discussion

He's not that rash in the tackle but I agree he can improve - still fouling outside the scoring zone can be very useful - just look at Kevin McLoughlin, he has made a career out of it. Eoghan needs to learn how to do it as slyly as Kevin does. Of course his shooting is inconsistent, he's a wing back (Paddy Durcan is inconsistent too), but like I said he has the courage to both get himself in the position and then actually shoot. You'll miss some but he also scores lots. Didn't he carry the ball forward and offload this weekend just gone in the build-up to the crucial McBrien goal?

They're all "team men and dedicated to the role" - again intangibles. Composed and safe but doesn't take any risks which is what you have to do to win the match. Yes, he is a good aggressive tackler. He did so little v Galway and we have players on the bench like Hession who have the courage to take the ball off the keeper under pressure and then break out of defense with pace - helped us win the match. I am on his case to show how people can be so harsh on the player who tries to make something happen while rarely do the same to the guy he takes the "safe" option.

Carney can do all those things you mention but he won zero high balls in the Galway game and was largely anonymous - following on from a similar display against Cork. My opinion is he is lucky he is competing in a weak line (half forward) and not an ultra competitive one (full-forward).

Again, I don't profess to know more the than Horan, Rochford, or McStay. His worth is over-stated, in my humble opinion - I think that's what internet forums are for and they'd be pretty boring if we just said nothing.

Coen scored a point in 2 finals (2020 and 2021, one was a mark) plus a point against Kerry last year in the QF. He has scored 14 points in 44 championship appearances since 2016. McLaughlin has 1 goal and 7 points scored in 16 championship appearances since 2020 - plus man of the match in a Covid Connacht final of 2020.

If you're putting Coen in a team to score points you ain't that smart.

The fact that he does score the odd point in big games is a bonus.

This is my point, posters have this view of Coen that we all have to accept how limited he is from an attacking perspective (and let's not forget defensive too given you can't put him on someone really fast) and then all criticism should be tempered, but McLaughlin is not being judged by the same standards. McLaughlin does massive defensive work too, covering, hassling, and making turnovers.

He's an excellent man marker, he marked and kept scoreless Diarmuid Connolly at his absolute peak. His lack of pace is always called out but it's very hard to point to occasions where it's exploited because he reads the game well.

He's been a started for Mayo for 5/6 years now, that's three different management teams.

But you're probably right

You can't possibly be calling Coen's skill set limited while also claiming Eoghan McLaughlins are solid

He's very frequently called out by top level coaches, managers & players (teammates and opponents) around the country as one of the most underrated players. A fair bet you could be underrating his play.

"He's never given the job of marking the opposition's best forward."

Sure he has. Multiple times over the years when we were lacking better options. He's done solid jobs on physically imposing inside men dangerous on the edge of the square like Michael Murphy, Rian O'Neill & Damien Comer or lads further out who tend to pull strings like Diarmuid Connelly, Matthew Tierney or Johnny Heaney. We won't tend to use him on the square at the moment, we have options like David, Rory or Donnacha that can handle various matchups we've in the past had to turn to Stephen to fill, but saying he's never given the job when he's done it frequently in the past is inaccurate.

When you compare him to speedsters based on speed, or to attacking defenders on attacking ability, he won't 'win' (should be noted he's gone from one of our least progressive passing defenders to one of our better head up scanners for the new system waiting for the right penetrating ball & making the right choice consistently - complaints on his attacking ability are a bit outdated based on the last 6 months) but that's not how the game works. It's about a total package and what Stephen brings isn't matched 1 to 1 by anyone else in the squad (in the same way what Eoghan, Paddy, Enda, Sam or David bring isn't matched 1 to 1). He won't tend to blitz past a defender at 100mph but he'll quite often surge down the field completely unmarked where the 'faster' opposition don't have the legs to keep up with his running any more.

Try and get to a quiet challenge game at some point and stand near the Mayo 45 or defensive D. Just listening to Stephen barking orders to the surrounding lads (he was doing it to veterans like Boyler, Keegan and Vaughan even as a young fella any time they switched off momentarily) you'll get a masterclass in top level defending. He does his own role well (with that role varying from filing gaps from 2 to 9 and doing the donkey work all over the pitch) but just as importantly he dramatically cuts down on 'mistakes' (be it defensive positioning or dropping intensity) by the others around him making them (and the team) better.

Sean Deane steps down as minor manager and expressions of interest being sought for the U20 position... Seems inevitable

Does under the bar count?

In terms of ability and leadership , Callinan to me is alot like Sean Kelly when he first broke through

The closer it gets, the more excited I feel about it. Should be a great game either way and I feel both teams won't be lacking any hunger. There might be an edge to it, but that's what you want imo. Looking forward to it now.

I expect Mayo to win , more confident about this one than I was about Galway

Coen in at 6 and I can see hession strating

That is a good bench to call on. Very arguable that the following should be first team players:-

Enda Hession, Sam Callinan, Cillian O'Connor, James Carr, Conor Loftus and Donnacha McHugh. If those 6 were on the team instead of a current 6, I don't think it would weaken the team in any way. Great choices to have.

If Hession does start, maybe a place in the half forwards tracking Jack McCaffrey might be an option, and trying to get McCaffrey facing his own goal with Endas pacy runs. But it's not as easy as it seems to change a back into a forward and expect it to work straight away. I know Mayo did it with Keith Higgins some time ago, and it worked sometimes, but other times the game just passed him by. Going to be a bit of pressure on Ruane on Sunday - eyes will be on him to see how he reacts after being dropped for the Galway game. It will be great if he responds in the positive, and we can say afterwards that maybe being benched had a good result. But if he has another anonymous day, it will be a further nail in the coffin that we will need to find an alternative.