IN WHAT WILL be the third competitive meeting of Roscommon and Mayo this year, the scorecard currently reads 2-0 in favour of Mayo.
A six-point win in the league followed by another positive outcome when the sides collided in the Connacht semi-final a month later bodes well for Kevin McStay’s side ahead of Volume III.
This time around, chasing qualification for the All-Ireland quarter-finals and preliminary quarter-finals will be the focus for both teams. Mayo are on two points along with Dublin at the top of Group 2 while Roscommon are downstairs with Cavan having lost their opening rounds to Dublin and Mayo respectively.
Roscommon battled admirably against Dessie Farrell’s side but ultimately gassed in the final quarter as Dublin inevitably shifted gears. They need a win this weekend to avoid an arm wrestle with Cavan for third place, and judging by their previous two outings, there are some areas that Roscommon should address to hurt Mayo.
1. More Composure In Scoring Opportunities
In their Connacht semi-final, Davy Burke’s team clocked up 11 wides, five of which occurred in the last 20 minutes when victory was still possible for them. Star forward Diarmuid Murtagh also hit the post during that spell and Daire Cregg dropped a shot into goalkeeper Colm Reape’s hands. They also spurned two goal chances through Enda Smith and Eoin McCormack as Mayo progressed to the final with a three-point victory.
Mayo were comparably more efficient in front of the posts, notching just five wides. They got the only goal of the game in the eighth minute, and were more clinical when presented with the opportunity as Aidan O’Shea kept his shot low into the corner. As Roscommon’s missed chances started to pile up, Mayo took advantage of their deflated state to extend their lead. Fergal Boland got a point after a turnover on substitute Patrick Gavin and Tommy Conroy kicked a score in the 56th minute after some patient build-up play.
Roscommon’s inside forward line of Donie Smith, Cregg and Murtagh had all scored by the 27th minute of that game, and the trio combined for 13 points in last week’s defeat to Dublin. If they can correct the inaccuracies, and get those shooters into position, Roscommon have a great chance of overturning Mayo at the third time of asking.
2. Target Mayo Kickouts
In both the Connacht semi-final and final, Mayo struggled to win their own kickouts in crucial stages of the game. Roscommon claimed two of Reape’s kickouts at the start of the second half in the Connacht semi-final while a third went out over the sideline due to the pressure Roscommon applied to block off options for a pass.
Even in the final minutes, when hope of a win was fading slightly, a Mayo kickout fell into the hands of Ultan Harney. The move ended in a Niall Daly shot at the posts which drifted wide. A score there would have reduced the gap to four with five minutes of normal time remaining, but they were undone by their poor shooting.
Similarly in the Connacht final, when the margins were even tighter, Galway intercepted Mayo’s kickouts three times in the last 20 minutes on the way to completing a provincial three-in-a-row. Two of those led to the equalising score and winning point through two frees, the second of which was a monstrous kick from goalkeeper Connor Gleeson.
Those frailties in the Mayo kickout will be an important area for Roscommon to target again when they host them this weekend.
3. Second-Half Focus
Failing to sustain momentum is something which tripped Roscommon up in both of their defeats to Mayo this year. There was just one point between the sides in both the league and Connacht semi-final fixtures at half-time, only for Mayo to surge ahead in the second half while Roscommon broke their stride.
At the break of the Connacht semi-final, there was an exact 50/50 split in terms of possession between the two teams. Roscommon had an 8/13 return from scoring opportunities while Mayo had converted seven from 11 chances. The O’Shea goal was the main score keeping Mayo in front. But by the 50th minute, Mayo were four points clear following scores from Ryan O’Donoghue, Tommy Conroy, O’Shea and substitute Conor Loftus. Cregg was the only one to contribute a score for Roscommon during that period as the early signs of a Mayo win started to emerge.
It was a similar story in their league clash. Mayo fired seven unanswered points after the restart to put them in the ascendancy. It was Roscommon who had enjoyed the better of the proceedings coming into the final stretch of the first half as Diarmuid Murtagh rattled off three points to send his side into the dressing room in good condition. But when Mayo went on the advance in the second half, Roscommon seemed to wilt.
Their first score of the second half didn’t arrive until the 58th minute, courtesy of Conor Cox. Roscommon could only manage three second-half points in total.
They made a stronger start in the second half of the Connacht semi-final by winning the Mayo kickout and finishing the move with a point for Daire Cregg which could also have been a goal. But Mayo outscored their opponents by 0-5 to 0-1 over the next 15 minutes. Niall Daly briefly reduced the gap to three to suggest a revival was coming but Mayo tugged on the reins to stall their momentum.
Roscommon need a more complete performance throughout 70 minutes on Saturday evening.
