THE LAST TIME Mayo’s footballers did not boast Division 1 status in the National League, John Bruton was Taoiseach, U2 were going through their ‘Pop’ phase, and David Clifford hadn’t been born.
For all their ups and downs in the All-Ireland championship Mayo have been a model of consistency in the league, enjoying the longest current run in the top tier, which dates back to their promotion in 1997.
Yet that proud run is now under real threat, with yesterday’s decision to suspend all GAA activity for at least two weeks only serving to postpone what has looked increasingly inevitable over the past few weeks.
Five games into their National League campaign, the county are starting relegation in the face with just one win to their name. It’s quite the turnaround from winning a first league title in 18 years last season.
The benefits of the league tend to split opinion, but for Andy Moran, dropping down to Division 2 could have real consequences for the county’s long-term development.
“There’s a few reasons why it’s important,” the now-retired corner forward explains.
“It’s obviously important because you see Oisín Mullin last week marking David Clifford, the best in the country. All of a sudden, he knows that… his bit of movement, how it feels to mark a player of that quality. He’s as good a forward as there is at the minute. To be playing against that level, for these young fellas coming through, I think that’s important. Then obviously the financial side of it too.”
Mayo’s predicament is all the more pressing considering their fate is out of their hands. James Horan’s side still have to play Galway and Tyrone, but will also need teams above them to slip up if they are to stay afloat.
“You take great pride in it,” Moran says of the county’s impressive league record.
“Some years we snuck over the line and we got there, and it wasn’t that we were saying ‘We had a great league’, but it’s the psychological element of staying in Division 1. If we go down, it’s not the biggest disaster of all time, but at this stage, with two games to go, you would like to hope that the boys have something in them to pull out two results.”
Moran himself is still getting used to life on the outside.
After making over 180 appearances in the green and red of Mayo, the veteran forward called time on his inter-county career following last year’s All-Ireland semi-final defeat to old foes Dublin.
So far, he’s found the transition easier than expected.
“Have I missed playing? If I’m being honest, I haven’t,” he admits.
“It worries me slightly, because I don’t miss playing at all. I’m finding it a tiny bit hard to have the hunger to go to play club football at the minute, but I haven’t missed the whole county scene.”
One thing he surely hasn’t missed is the chaos that so often attaches itself to Mayo.
In the last few weeks Mayo cut all ties with long-time benefactor Tim O’Leary over comments he made on Twitter calling for the dismissal of Horan, a situation Moran understandably doesn’t want to weigh in on, given he knows all the parties involved.
He is, however, more comfortable offering his opinion of the sudden departure of former Mayo coach Donie Buckley from Kerry’s backroom team. Moran still keeps occasional contact with Buckley, and expects his old coach to find a new project soon.
“There were big rumours over the winter that it was going to happen but the timing of it, I’m very surprised,” Moran says.
“We would have great time for Donie in Mayo, he spent six great years with us and is an exceptional coach, but they probably have other really quality people around the place as well, and if they are happy with that decision, I suppose that’s on Kerry.
“I think his strengths are clear to see. Even last year he was involved in a team that got to an All-Ireland final. He got us to multiple All-Ireland finals. We didn’t get over the line but got to multiple All-Ireland finals. He’s just a good coach. Any person that can keep a team going for six years, I think that tells their quality.
“I wouldn’t expect him to pop up [with another team] in 2020, but he will most certainly pop up in 2021.
“I think it will be yesterday’s news next week. If there’s a management [team] and they’re not getting on or if they’re not kind of doing the same thing, I think it will probably do more damage by sticking with it than not sticking with it.
“Donie Buckley is an exceptional coach. Donie Buckley will have countless phone calls this week in terms of club teams and county teams, and he’ll be back in action fairly soon.”
As for Moran’s own plans, he has been keeping himself busy through a variety of different interests.
As well as running a few gyms, Moran has stepped onto the other side of the whitewash to do some coaching with the Mayo U20s and his club, Ballaghadereen. He’s even dipped his toes into the world of media by doing commentary for Midwest Radio.
It’s not surprising he’s found himself in demand.
As a player Moran won eight Connacht titles, two All Stars and, at the age of 33, was named Footballer of the Year in 2017.
Yet it is easy to paint his story as one of heartbreak. In a way, the six All-Ireland runners-up medals he pocketed represents the most extraordinary number of them all.
It is the type of record that could torment a man, but he insists the experience of losing six All-Ireland finals [playing in five] does not hang over him.
“I would be lying if I told you there wasn’t moments,” he continues.
“I remember taking James McCarthy down the inside coming out on the right in the 2016 final and missing it with the right foot… Moments that you think about and say ‘Jesus I’d love to have that moment again.’
“But like, I genuinely live in the framework, and I’m sure you do too, that I and we as a group did everything that we could do to get there. And we didn’t get there. We move on. Amateur sport is funny, because it’s the only sport in the world where you are defined by one game. In soccer like, if you don’t win the Premier League you might win a Champions League, you know? And they make lots of money and do other things, and their career is defined in other ways.
“If we keep defining ourselves by winning or losing one game, you’re mad. So I don’t. I genuinely don’t.
“I was coming up the hall [in Croke Park] there, I saw a great photo of us in the 2017 final. If you can’t take a sense of pride of being there… Of course, Jesus, I wanted to win 10 of them [All-Irelands], but like, listen, you don’t win one, you just move on.
“I have kids at home, there’s more important things. I would say my journey starts now in terms of coaching, trying to learn the game, and hopefully [I can] come back in years to come, maybe five or six years time, and try to get back involved with Mayo again and see am I good enough that side. So you know, the journey isn’t finished yet.”
Will that journey end with Moran wearing the Mayo bainisteoir bib?
“I’m not sure I’m too keen on the management side,” Moran says, pausing for a moment as he collects his thoughts.
“But some coaching role within a set-up maybe, that might be the way I go. I don’t know. Again, in terms of business, where I’m going to end up… Like I didn’t know five years [ago] we would have a couple of gyms. In terms of football I played full-back, I played wing-back, I played wing-forward, you never know where you’ll end up.
“So we’ll go away, we’ll discover it, see am I any good at the whole coaching craic. If I am, we develop. If I’m not, we’ll move on.”
Andy Moran was speaking in Croke Park as McKeever Sports announced it has secured the official GAA licence to manufacture official club and county playing kit and leisurewear.
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Quality player, very surprised he was dropped.
I’d be very surprised if he was dropped in the first place as he needed match time. He’s better than Jager in all facets that I’ve seen, scrum, maul and as we’ve all seen, in the lose. Jager, just not seeing it with him especially scrum. Am I missing something???
@Noel Lynn: Bealham is certainly well ahead of Jager and all other TH (Furlong apart) in Ireland, but I think Jager is doing a better job than you’re giving credit for. He’s been very good at scrum time for munster, especially when he came up against Porter, and was solid against Wales. His ruck defense was excellent both clearing and counter rucking and his goal line defense was superb. His lineout work wasn’t up to scratch IMO and he still needs to improve his S&C but he’s certainly got a high ceiling and a great addition to our TH stock.
@Noel Lynn: Short answer – yes
Easily the best TH after Furlong, who seems to have recovered some of his previous form. Great to have several options here between Furlong, Bealham, O’Toole and Jager. The order is not important as they are all playing well at the moment.
Literally no one else is suprised.
@Thesaltyurchin: I’m surprised, arguably pushing Furlong for a starting spot
Bealham is a quality player but I think it’s getting a bit clearer that farrell and his coaches are huge fans of jager. To go from the ‘training squad’ to the verge of the 1st choice 23 over a couple of weeks is pretty phenomenonal
@munsterman: jager has plenty to work on to over take Bealham. He may not have over taken TO’T yet, so 1 step at a time.
@Patrick O’Sullivan: well I’ve never seen farrell move so quickly to promote a player in a meaningful match. Even players like Joe Mccarthy and crowley had to put in their time in camp for a year or so. There’s every chance that bealham will be back-up th v England but you wouldn’t bet on it
@munsterman: There’s every chance that Bealham will start and Jager on the bench if Furlong injured.
@Con Cussed: yea that’d be the most likely scenario I’d imagine. It’s quite tough on otoole who’s been very good for Ireland too
@munsterman: Agreed. It just means the pressure is now on all four to keep the momentum up. It’s a tough position and injuries abound so can see them all getting a chance in the future.
This could mean Furlong has an injury concern… I hope not!
Has anyone authoritative said that Bealham was dropped? As far as I recall the mood music before the Welsh game was that Bealham had proved himself across a number of matches to be no great step down from Furlong; and that Farrell was taking advantage of a game we were almost certain to win to have a look at Jäger off the bench.
Depressing stuff
@Kevin Ryan: when have we ever seen farrell use a competitive game to just have a look at a player? The only time he ever changes up his side much is v the most tier2 of tier2 nations in Nov or else gets A games set up
@munsterman: Giving a guy a debut as a bench prop is not really changing the side much, though. And if he didn’t pick this game, he’d have to wait until the Autumn, assuming SA too strong. Anyways, we’ll see what Farrell does with the selection for the England game.
The story around Bealham is a bit of a head scratcher. Why was he dropped? Some say he needed time off as a new dad. Personally I believe the coaches think Jager is a better prop. When your coach uses faint praise to describe your last performance then you are in trouble. I think Farrell described Bealham’s last outing as “decent enough”. In all these scenarios the public never gets a true picture until someone writes a book.
@Tom Reilly: I seem to have missed him saying that about Bealham – was that in a press conference? I checked the post Italy match press conference again to refresh my memory, and Faz was effusive in his praise of the set piece, calling it excellent and top notch, so I’m surprised he would then be naming Finlay as not being a top performer. A lot of media said that Finlay was doing as much as he could possibly do to challenge Furlong for the starting berth on the back of his performance against Italy, so I don’t think I’m the only one who thought he performed excellent in that match.
@Tom Reilly: ah, I heard it now – it was from the pre-Wales match conference. To be honest, the way I hear it, it seemed more so saying that Oli deserved a chance in spite of Bealham having a decent performance. TBH, I think he couldn’t say “Wales’ scrum is poor so this is the best chance to give Oli a tryout in the six nations window”, so has to justify it on the basis of competition for places. If he said Finlay was excellent, then he would effectively be needing to say that Oli is even better, which would be a huge amount of pressure to put on a debutant. So, he kind of has to nearly qualify Bealham’s performance so as not to put down Wales.
@JoeVlogs: As I said earlier it is hard to know what exactly is going on. I think most people think Bealham did not deserve to be dropped from a playing point of view. Maybe something else is going on.
The euphemism that Alex Ferguson developed to replace “dropped” was “rotated.” The image that most of us have of a “dropped” player is of someone so bad in the last match that they had to be replaced. Sometimes it is about building squad depth, other times you were the Lions captain last week and this week not in the 23 – an utterly unexplainable event.
I suspect that Furlong has twinged his hamstring. If Furlong is out, Bealham absolutely starts ahead of Jager – and we all know that.
@PatN: I meant calf not hamstring
Bealham should be pushing Furlong for a starting position not getting dropped
When was the last v good game from Furlong?
@Derek Casserly: Last week!
There is much debate about the word “dropped” concerning Bealham. Was he or wasn’t he dropped. IMO if a player is available for selection, has been selected everytime he is available and then he is not selected, then he is indeed deemed “dropped”.
Let’s stop using the word “dropped”. To play at elite level you need a squad of 35 players and the ability to get game time into all of them. ( let’s not repeat RWC errors from the past). Rotatated is a much better word.