GAA Features

Dublin should provide a good yardstick for James Horan's Mayo, Mickey Harte may have unearthed a new centre back and Donegal could do with some positive vibes for a change.

Where are Mayo at?

On the surface, life seems pretty good for James Horan and Mayo football at the moment. His first season in charge yielded a Connacht title and a magnificent victory over Cork and although they were decisively beaten by Kerry in the All-Ireland semi-final, it was far from the trashing other Mayo teams have received at the hands of the Kingdom in the past.

So far this season, they’ve an FBD title (and a New York holiday later this year if you don’t mind) in the bag and had a very decent away win against Laois last weekend. The problem for Horan is that Mayo supporters are a hopelessly optimistic bunch and tend to get carried away at the slightest hint of success.

Before long there’ll be talk about ending famines and booking hotels in Drumcondra for the third Sunday in September. I should know!

While Horan will be eager to keep a lid on the hype machine, there seems a fair bit to get excited about at the moment. Faithful servants like Alan Dillon and Andy Moran still have plenty in the tank, youngsters like Alan Freeman and Cillian O’Connor will be a year wiser this time around and if that wasn’t enough, the Mort is back.

Last season, a naive Mayo side went up to Croke Park and conceded four goals to Dublin. That is unlikely to happen in McHale Park on Saturday and although Dublin will still be dusting off the cobwebs, it will be a good test for Horan and his men. He’ll just hope the crowd don’t get too excited if they come out on top.

Has Mickey Harte found himself a new centre back?

There wasn’t a whole lot to get excited about last weekend, but the football played by Tyrone against Kildare at times last Saturday evening was a joy to watch.

Owen Mulligan was back to his confident, nay arrogant, dummy-selling best, Stephen O’Neill continued to pop over points from ridiculous angles and in what must have been pleasing for Mickey Harte, the old guard seemed to blend in seamlessly with the younger brigade.

Peter Harte doesn't seem like your traditional number 6, but it might just work

There isn’t a lot about the older players that Harte doesn’t know, but what he will have found is that his namesake Peter has the makings of a very good centre back. He probably won’t be able to bomb forward as freely as he did against Kildare if he is going to make the position his own in the long-term, but he has pace, he is powerful and as a man that played in the half forward line last year, has a good footballing head on his shoulders.

In an Ulster derby against Derry this weekend, Harte might not find it as easy to make an impact, but he could be a major player for the Red Hands come Championship time at the heart of the defence.

Can Donegal end their losing streak?

It seems a little extreme to suggest that Donegal are on a losing ‘streak’ considering they’ve only played four games this year, including three McKenna Cup games that they appeared to have little interest in, but they haven’t won a game since that epic All-Ireland quarter-final win over Kildare last season and losing, like winning, can quickly become a habit.

The key to Donegal’s magnificent campaign last season was their consistency. Indeed, they only lost two games, one in the league to Laois, who they went on the beat in the Division Two Final, and of course, the All-Ireland semi-final against Dublin, which looked as if it was theirs for the taking.

There has been too much bad press surrounding Donegal ever since the Kevin Cassidy debacle last season and Jim McGuinness needs more positive vibes surrounding his charges at the moment, starting with a definitely winnable home clash with Laois this weekend.