National Forum

Mayo V Donegal. Winner Takes All

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Replying To Donegalman:  "Nope. Lots of interest and enthusiasm. Hype? A la 2012, u must be joking. That was hype. This is hope mixed up with expectation based on good performances. I still believe we can win this, but the 2 week break is more likely to suit mayo than us. Time will tell. Injuries will effect us both so it will be crucial to go into the game with as many big performances from the new lads as is possible."
I dont really agree. i think there's plenty of hype around them and they seem fairly confident themselves. lots of people were already talking about how donegal will handle the dubs, even before this game came into view. donegal being talked up a lot in the national media and mayo being written off. you'd nearly be led to believe donegal were already through and this weekend was a dead rubber with the way some are going on. sure you have the usual "you never know with mayo" stuff in order to slightly mitigate the hype around donegal, but make no mistake, there are plenty who really believe mayo are finished and that donegal will win it handily.

mayo have done well to keep the head down the last couple of weeks while the independent and the times and all the rest plan for the donegal dublin semi final. mayo will have something to say about it before the weekend is over

gloryof1982 (Offaly) - Posts: 8 - 31/07/2019 20:44:38    2219226

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Replying To Donegal_abroad:  "Oh now, you have full faith in a Mayo win, talking to enough lads down there this week who can't wait for Mayo to tear into us!"
I fully believe Mayo will tear into Donegal...will it be enough though? Our performances so far this year don't show it will be enough however IF and that's a big IF Mayo bring a big performance then it will be very close.

yew_tree (Mayo) - Posts: 11236 - 31/07/2019 21:05:11    2219232

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Was spending a few days in Donegal there with the kiddies! Wow! The expectation and confidence up there is unbelievable! Fair play to them. They will be bringing a big crowd to castlebar. Looking forward to a great game!

Tizcold (Galway) - Posts: 239 - 31/07/2019 21:06:33    2219233

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Replying To gloryof1982:  "I dont really agree. i think there's plenty of hype around them and they seem fairly confident themselves. lots of people were already talking about how donegal will handle the dubs, even before this game came into view. donegal being talked up a lot in the national media and mayo being written off. you'd nearly be led to believe donegal were already through and this weekend was a dead rubber with the way some are going on. sure you have the usual "you never know with mayo" stuff in order to slightly mitigate the hype around donegal, but make no mistake, there are plenty who really believe mayo are finished and that donegal will win it handily.

mayo have done well to keep the head down the last couple of weeks while the independent and the times and all the rest plan for the donegal dublin semi final. mayo will have something to say about it before the weekend is over"
You're almost implying that Donegal (the team and management) haven't kept the head down this past few weeks. I haven't heard a peep from them. If the national media fancy Donegal to win then there's not much we can do about that. It's based on form. No Donegal fan with an ounce of sense thinks we will saunter into Mayo and walk away with a handy win. If we win it'll be hard earned and by the minimum. I also fancy us to win but to suggest we are looking past this game up here is nonsense. Maybe the sports columns are but that's not our concern or the squad's either.

Donegal_abroad (Donegal) - Posts: 1321 - 31/07/2019 21:27:03    2219238

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50 50 game. This over confident Donegal supporter is a myth being pedalled, mostly by Beal bocht merchants. Not going to pretend we are going down to castlebar to make up the numbers but no way going to say the money is in the bank either. Honestly, either way the craic will be mighty after the game in castlebar. High summer.

Donegalman (None) - Posts: 3830 - 31/07/2019 21:28:46    2219239

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Replying To gloryof1982:  "I dont really agree. i think there's plenty of hype around them and they seem fairly confident themselves. lots of people were already talking about how donegal will handle the dubs, even before this game came into view. donegal being talked up a lot in the national media and mayo being written off. you'd nearly be led to believe donegal were already through and this weekend was a dead rubber with the way some are going on. sure you have the usual "you never know with mayo" stuff in order to slightly mitigate the hype around donegal, but make no mistake, there are plenty who really believe mayo are finished and that donegal will win it handily.

mayo have done well to keep the head down the last couple of weeks while the independent and the times and all the rest plan for the donegal dublin semi final. mayo will have something to say about it before the weekend is over"
If u are talking about the media hyping donegal that's out of our control. I don't hear or see hype up here if u discount flags outside houses. As for hype or over confidence from our management or team, can u send links for us to read as I haven't heard a whisper all summer from the camp before games.

Donegalman (None) - Posts: 3830 - 31/07/2019 21:34:42    2219243

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Replying To yew_tree:  "I fully believe Mayo will tear into Donegal...will it be enough though? Our performances so far this year don't show it will be enough however IF and that's a big IF Mayo bring a big performance then it will be very close."
Mayo are a unique team in many ways though and one thing stands out; their continued appetite throughout some awful hard luck and experiences. They're insatiable and don't know when they're meant to depart the stage, so that makes them dangerous and with their experience as well they're ready to rock.

Donegal_abroad (Donegal) - Posts: 1321 - 31/07/2019 21:49:38    2219249

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Sure Declan Bonner is already complaining about the short turnaround to the semi-final!

MayoDan (Mayo) - Posts: 420 - 31/07/2019 22:16:36    2219259

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Replying To MayoDan:  "Sure Declan Bonner is already complaining about the short turnaround to the semi-final!"
Well we do hope to win like.. and Mayo aren't happy about it either I'm sure

Donegal_abroad (Donegal) - Posts: 1321 - 31/07/2019 22:39:14    2219268

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Replying To Tizcold:  "Was spending a few days in Donegal there with the kiddies! Wow! The expectation and confidence up there is unbelievable! Fair play to them. They will be bringing a big crowd to castlebar. Looking forward to a great game!"
Jes I dunno where you are in Donegal but there is hardly any buzz about at all, I remember 2012 well, we were playing great stuff and by this stage the place was starting to buzz alright, I don't know what's wrong this year, there's a few flags here and there but there is no chat about the game at all,
I think some of it could be because everybody thinks the Dubs won't be beaten this year and our team needs another year or 2 to be serious contenders when the young lads have got a bit battle hardened and streetwise,
beating Mayo at home this weekend is going to be a hell of a battle I have no doubt, nobody with any sense is underestimating Mayo and Declan and the boys sure as hell aren't.

Tirchonaill1 (Donegal) - Posts: 2757 - 31/07/2019 22:47:19    2219273

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I do get sick of being told you're overconfident when you just call it as it is. Ulster final we were very cocky going in. Meath at home jesus weren't we getting ahead of ourselves. Kerry in Croke Park ah now who have you beat so far really? This team all year has answered every single question thrown at them, and suddenly you're cocky for believing they can continue to do so against a team that has been out of sorts all summer.

I said it already but the only reason I'm not as confident and getting more nervous is because of facing Mayo. They're probably the team I'd want to face least in this situation. But all things being equal and following the form, we should win. The wildcard is Mayo and what kind of performance they'll bring.

Will be a great occasion regardless and in fairness I'm not seeing many Mayo posters getting too riled up by supposed cockiness on our part. Looking forward to a big ol' session in Castlebar before ending up in Westport!

JoeSoap (Donegal) - Posts: 1432 - 01/08/2019 00:38:49    2219300

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It's hard to see how anyone could be super confident about this game, especially considering the fact that we have no idea as to the fitness of up to 8 players on both sides.

Add in the fact that the forecast is dicey and that so many strange things can happen in a game and we have the potential for anything to happen. The one thing that gives me hope is that we have Murphy & McHugh in the form of their lives. I also think that Patton's kickouts are an advantage.

Does this mean I think the game is won? Far from it. I am now starting to reach that stage before a game where nervousness leads me to get snappy with both wife & dog which is never a good sign as while the dog just hides, Mrs MuckrossHead does not respond at all well to snappiness.

Roll on Mon morning one way or the other.

MuckrossHead (Donegal) - Posts: 5028 - 01/08/2019 09:24:55    2219320

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Replying To MayoDan:  "Sure Declan Bonner is already complaining about the short turnaround to the semi-final!"
Won or lose on Saturday I think it's something Bonner will bring up in interviews later in the year. It effects team selection this weekend because if you do win there is such a quick turnaround to the semi final. Both teams may decide not to risk players from the start this weekend who are carrying knocks that they might of if they had more time to prepare for a potential semi final afterwards. Because there is so much at stake this week then the likelihood is that risks on team selection will be taken that will have a negative effect on the victor and leave them up against v Dublin/Tyrone. Do you think Bonner has a point?

Mobot (Donegal) - Posts: 459 - 01/08/2019 10:10:45    2219333

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Replying To gloryof1982:  "I dont really agree. i think there's plenty of hype around them and they seem fairly confident themselves. lots of people were already talking about how donegal will handle the dubs, even before this game came into view. donegal being talked up a lot in the national media and mayo being written off. you'd nearly be led to believe donegal were already through and this weekend was a dead rubber with the way some are going on. sure you have the usual "you never know with mayo" stuff in order to slightly mitigate the hype around donegal, but make no mistake, there are plenty who really believe mayo are finished and that donegal will win it handily.

mayo have done well to keep the head down the last couple of weeks while the independent and the times and all the rest plan for the donegal dublin semi final. mayo will have something to say about it before the weekend is over"
Not sure what previews you have listened to this week but the majority of pundits have tipped Mayo to win. The bookies have Donegal favs and that's probably based on what both teams have produced so far this year. It's a difficult one to predict. The nervous Donegal supporter in me is worried about past games between the 2 counties. Apart from 2012 Mayo always seemed to have the upper hand and you do feel that there could be one massive performance left in the older Mayo players. Lose and there will probably be some retirements and I don't think they are ready for that just yet.

On the other hand, if I try to take fear and nervousness out of this I think Donegal have been playing a level or two above what Mayo have produced this year. Mayo played well in the league but the league is not championship. Mayo haven't put in a top performance in the championship since 2017 and I think a lot of pundits are predicting a Mayo win based on reputation from a few years ago. Are Mayo still at that level? Donegal also put in a massive performance v Kerry which I think will give them huge confidence for this game considering they were lost so many players before and during the game to injury. Donegal have shown that they have a strong panel so if we are down a few I don't think it will change our style of play or how we approach the match. This Donegal team is very good in possession, have excellent kickouts through Patton and will put Mayo under pressure on their own kickout.

So to sum up the nervous supporter in me has Mayo winning by 2 and the logical confident supporter in me has Donegal winning by 4. I'll take a draw now....haha

Mobot (Donegal) - Posts: 459 - 01/08/2019 10:25:20    2219339

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All the experts I have listened too or read this week are all backing Mayo.
Kevin McStay - Mayo
Dara o Se - Mayo
Kieran Donaghy - Mayo
Tony McEntee - Mayo
Peter Canavan - Mayo

ryan (Donegal) - Posts: 725 - 01/08/2019 11:21:03    2219367

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Replying To Mobot:  "Not sure what previews you have listened to this week but the majority of pundits have tipped Mayo to win. The bookies have Donegal favs and that's probably based on what both teams have produced so far this year. It's a difficult one to predict. The nervous Donegal supporter in me is worried about past games between the 2 counties. Apart from 2012 Mayo always seemed to have the upper hand and you do feel that there could be one massive performance left in the older Mayo players. Lose and there will probably be some retirements and I don't think they are ready for that just yet.

On the other hand, if I try to take fear and nervousness out of this I think Donegal have been playing a level or two above what Mayo have produced this year. Mayo played well in the league but the league is not championship. Mayo haven't put in a top performance in the championship since 2017 and I think a lot of pundits are predicting a Mayo win based on reputation from a few years ago. Are Mayo still at that level? Donegal also put in a massive performance v Kerry which I think will give them huge confidence for this game considering they were lost so many players before and during the game to injury. Donegal have shown that they have a strong panel so if we are down a few I don't think it will change our style of play or how we approach the match. This Donegal team is very good in possession, have excellent kickouts through Patton and will put Mayo under pressure on their own kickout.

So to sum up the nervous supporter in me has Mayo winning by 2 and the logical confident supporter in me has Donegal winning by 4. I'll take a draw now....haha"
What pundits have tipped Mayo?

TheFlaker (Mayo) - Posts: 7907 - 01/08/2019 11:23:08    2219369

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Capacity increased to 27k with gates opening around 3:30pm according to the Donegal GAA facebook

JoeSoap (Donegal) - Posts: 1432 - 01/08/2019 11:28:51    2219372

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Replying To ryan:  "All the experts I have listened too or read this week are all backing Mayo.
Kevin McStay - Mayo
Dara o Se - Mayo
Kieran Donaghy - Mayo
Tony McEntee - Mayo
Peter Canavan - Mayo"
Oisin McConville as well.

Mobot (Donegal) - Posts: 459 - 01/08/2019 11:34:03    2219374

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I get that pundits have to take a punt & pick one side or the other, that's what they get paid for doing. The truth is however is that this game is impossible to call, mainly because we have no idea how many of the walking wounded are available on either side.

If McBrearty & McGee are both out then that makes a huge difference to Donegal likewise Higgins & Durcan for Mayo.

The pundits can say what they like but they have no more of a clue than anyone else at this stage.

MuckrossHead (Donegal) - Posts: 5028 - 01/08/2019 11:34:37    2219376

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All the papers pundits are nearly all going for mayo. Huge task ahead on Saturday for this young team. Wundt mind what canavan says he wudnt have much time for donegal anyway. It's a back to the wall job but we'll travel in numbers to support the lads.

rorysboys (Donegal) - Posts: 2410 - 01/08/2019 11:38:21    2219377

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