WHAT a strange and weird game that was. Mayo threw off the wet blanket they’ve been playing under up to now and threw it over the Dubs and totally nullified them.
The Dubs were awful in the basics of the game, and their tactics didn’t help. I’ve said it a number of times when you see Dublin defenders carrying the ball at half pace across midfield you know they are in trouble. When McCaffrey or McCarthy did this at least it was at pace.
The reluctance of the Dubs to play the ball in early cost them as Mayo’s fullback line is poor, hence the double sweeper.
I’ve also said before that a few of the Dubs are in the dying embers of their careers and I just sensed that some of these great players have gone to the well once too often and are now running on empty. Mayo simply dismantled all the hype and shut down nearly all of Dublin’s key players.
How Dublin got a second chance is down to Mayo’s misfortune rather than Dublin’s performance as Mayo were six points a better team in this game, but they still couldn’t win. Maybe the Mayo curse is real.
Replays rarely resemble the drawn games as teams change tactics and alter formations. Usually the team with the greater scope for improvement and the team that learns the most normally wins.
The replay should give us another game to enjoy. So will Mayo get it right again and finish Dublin off?
I think that is stretching it as I’ve always felt Mayo don’t learn lessons well and they may well have another year to complain and moan about things not going their way.
Their moment of truth will be this replay and if they put their egos to one side and LEARN, they can win it as Dublin are very vulnerable now with four to five players off the pace or not performing.
I think the Dubs will win because they misfired badly the last day; have more room for improvement than Mayo have; Mayo’s old failing of thinking they are the best may dampen their approach next time; and surely the Dubs’ front six can’t be as poor again.
I still think that it’s this group of Dublin players’ destiny to do a back-to-back. They were poor the last day but they never gave up and weren’t beaten.
I feel if it was just an off day the Dubs can win out fairly comfortably but only if Gavin gets the match-ups right.
The Dublin management team was given a masterclass in getting match-ups correct by their Mayo counterparts.
For me, I’d put Connolly at 14 and leave him there as Keegan has his number out further. Gavin also needs more from Ciaran Kilkenny as he needs to move the ball forward faster and be a scoring threat. I think teams have sussed him out in his deep lying role and his man is now deployed as a sweeper.
Gavin has big calls to make to earn the accolades that have come his way.
I would drop Brogan and Flynn (two absolute greats) and bring in Mannion and Andrews, and I’d move Rock to the half forwards.
My front six would be: Andrews, Kilkenny, Rock, Kevin McMenamon, Connolly and Mannion.
Dublin didn’t have a scoring threat in the half forwards the last day and need to shoot from distance a bit more to entice Mayo out of their sweeper system.
That full forward line bristles with speed and intent and the half forwards work hard and can score from distance.
Then have a fuming Flynn and Brogan to help with the final quarter push.
I feel the Dubs will win with a bit to spare unless that feeling I sensed about some of the best players ever having gone to the well once too often proves true. In that case all bets are off, as it will come down to a kick of the ball or maybe even another OG to decide it.
The real Dublin team needs to show up and play and play HARD. I can’t wait for the replay. COYBIB.
•Vinnie Murphy won a senior All-Ireland medal with Dublin in 1995.
