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Looked like there was about 60,000 Mayo fans there in Croke Park today. Amazing support.
Mayo were so brave today and their young players really stood up the challenge. They could have won by more tbh. Their age profile for these new rules is on their side it seems. High energy, and plenty of miles left in the legs.
There was a poster on here predicting a statue for Jack - well there could definitively be the possibility of a statue for Andy. Amazing achievement by him to finally get a Mayo team over the line.
Big miss by David Clifford near the end but in truth it would have been an injustice if Mayo didn't win today.
Putting the euphoria of Mayo winning Sam aside for a moment, there will be some amount of soul searching down south after this Final. It won't sit well.
Ok, Mayo winning it won't be begrudged but over the next few months when things settle down, they will be kicking themselves, especially considering their route to the final and Mayo being such massive underdogs.
The reset button hit again in their search to match the Dubs 5 or 6 in a row.
The luck that they had in their last 2 games ran out today or so it would appear. And like all teams they are sure to lose a couple to retirement and some are past their best.
There is definitely another All Ireland in that team but it is sure to be a lot tougher than the chance they had this year. And even after their early 7pt lead. Some turnaround after that for Mayo.
The amount of scores Mayo got from turnovers and 2 pointers was the winning of the game.
As for Kobe - just did his Leaving Cert.
Phenomenal achievement.
Phenomenal talent.
Just saw a stat - Matt Ruane, Conor Loftus, D O'Connor and S Coen have now won a Minor u21 and Senior All Ireland for Mayo.
What a year in the Football Championship.
Ryan O'Donoghue is POTY imo.
Kobe YPOTY hopefully.
It will be interesting to see who steps up next season.
Anything is possible with these new rules tbh.
We now have 3 competitive provinces, but hopefully Cork can close the gap a little down there. Not that provincial titles have any bearing on Sam anymore.
Can Mayo win back2back…? Who knows…. ;o)
Fionn (Dublin) - Posts: 5213 - 26/07/2026 23:34:59
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Replying To Fionn: "Looked like there was about 60,000 Mayo fans there in Croke Park today. Amazing support.
Mayo were so brave today and their young players really stood up the challenge. They could have won by more tbh. Their age profile for these new rules is on their side it seems. High energy, and plenty of miles left in the legs.
There was a poster on here predicting a statue for Jack - well there could definitively be the possibility of a statue for Andy. Amazing achievement by him to finally get a Mayo team over the line.
Big miss by David Clifford near the end but in truth it would have been an injustice if Mayo didn't win today.
Putting the euphoria of Mayo winning Sam aside for a moment, there will be some amount of soul searching down south after this Final. It won't sit well.
Ok, Mayo winning it won't be begrudged but over the next few months when things settle down, they will be kicking themselves, especially considering their route to the final and Mayo being such massive underdogs.
The reset button hit again in their search to match the Dubs 5 or 6 in a row.
The luck that they had in their last 2 games ran out today or so it would appear. And like all teams they are sure to lose a couple to retirement and some are past their best.
There is definitely another All Ireland in that team but it is sure to be a lot tougher than the chance they had this year. And even after their early 7pt lead. Some turnaround after that for Mayo.
The amount of scores Mayo got from turnovers and 2 pointers was the winning of the game.
As for Kobe - just did his Leaving Cert.
Phenomenal achievement.
Phenomenal talent.
Just saw a stat - Matt Ruane, Conor Loftus, D O'Connor and S Coen have now won a Minor u21 and Senior All Ireland for Mayo.
What a year in the Football Championship.
Ryan O'Donoghue is POTY imo.
Kobe YPOTY hopefully.
It will be interesting to see who steps up next season.
Anything is possible with these new rules tbh.
We now have 3 competitive provinces, but hopefully Cork can close the gap a little down there. Not that provincial titles have any bearing on Sam anymore.
Can Mayo win back2back…? Who knows…. ;o)" Last time Mayo won an AI they did 2 in a row.......
Viking66 (Wexford) - Posts: 20355 - 27/07/2026 10:06:29
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Replying To waynoI: "Good teams win all irelands, great ones win it back to back. This kerry team are a good one. Absolutely outfought today unfortunately for them." Good teams win B2B outside of their home league ground. 06-07 were an incredible team.
legendzxix (Kerry) - Posts: 10017 - 27/07/2026 11:35:49
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Replying To Viking66: "Last time Mayo won an AI they did 2 in a row......." I didn't realise that tbh. Fair play.
And who would begrudge them retaining their title.
I wouldn't anyway.
It would put that team right up there with other teams who have been able to win back2back.
Thrilled for Aidan O'Shea tbh.
And Andy Moran also. Top man.
Gonna be sad this see a player who has the potential to be the GOAT, Kobe, head off to Aus soon though.
He deserves the opportunity but what a loss to GAA.
Fionn (Dublin) - Posts: 5213 - 27/07/2026 14:50:09
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Replying To Fionn: "I didn't realise that tbh. Fair play.
And who would begrudge them retaining their title.
I wouldn't anyway.
It would put that team right up there with other teams who have been able to win back2back.
Thrilled for Aidan O'Shea tbh.
And Andy Moran also. Top man.
Gonna be sad this see a player who has the potential to be the GOAT, Kobe, head off to Aus soon though.
He deserves the opportunity but what a loss to GAA." He could go over to Australia, play there for 10 years and come.back and still only be 28.
waynoI (Dublin) - Posts: 13670 - 27/07/2026 15:10:46
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Replying To waynoI: "Good teams win all irelands, great ones win it back to back. This kerry team are a good one. Absolutely outfought today unfortunately for them." Theres no way to scientifically differentiate between a good team and a great team. This craic about great teams winning back to backs is just a hollow soundbite parrotted by people.
Things like quality of opponent,refereeing decisions,luck,injuries,financial doping, favourable venue etc should be taken into account when discussing a teams achievements.
Seniorleague (Galway) - Posts: 226 - 27/07/2026 15:17:59
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Replying To legendzxix: "Good teams win B2B outside of their home league ground. 06-07 were an incredible team." You are becoming tiresome now. The Dublin six in a row team would have walloped this Kerry team.
Mayo now, as indeed Mayo 2012 - 21, would be different proposition and will get better.
BarneyGrant (Dublin) - Posts: 4518 - 27/07/2026 15:27:39
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Congratulations to Mayo who were worthy winners and scoreline flattered kerry. Jack O'connor who seems to be immune from criticism got it badly wrong on them line and did not react to what was happening on the field, Jim McGuinness was rightly criticised for not man marking paudie Clifford last year in the final? Wtf were kerry doing with ryan o odonoghue who was given the freedom of croke once he moved out tonthe 40! Tom OSullivan may have had a few misses but he was getting on the ball and had settled into the game and then scored a point and got hooked.
Credit to moran and his back room team who got the match ups right on the day eclipses anything O'connor has done with kerry. Easy to win all irelands coming through munster and having the generational players like Gooch and Clifford. Never pulled it any trees with kildare or wouldn't get success managing the likes of leitrim like moran did.
totalrecall (Leitrim) - Posts: 1258 - 27/07/2026 15:28:29
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Not a great year for kerry in hindsight.
Hammered twice by Donegal and lucky enough to win their games against Tyrone and Dublin,and well beaten yesterday,albeit its a measure of Kerry football that getting to an all Ireland final and a disappointing year can be said in the same sentence.
As much as Kerry folk will wax lyrical about the rivalry with Cork,we all know its not a rivalry anymore, and is frankly barely worth watching. Kerry are unquestionably the masters in that dynamic and their victory over them wasnt anything to write home about.
Seniorleague (Galway) - Posts: 226 - 27/07/2026 15:48:00
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I'm glad that it was Kerry that Mayo beat, or Dublin if it hadn't been Kerry. That's no negative take on either Kerry or Dublin but a reflection that both are the best in the business and that it has been at the hands of both (mostly) that Mayo has had its days of suffering on AI final day in Croke Park. Nobody can undervalue that win yesterday. No AI win should ever be undervalued but you know the way some people are.
It wasn't just that Mayo won or that it was after 75 years. It was how they won. As someone on the Sunday Game said: this is the new blueprint for how football should be played. It was total energy, total press from the get-go to the final whistle. I'm trying to think of a fitter more energetic team and I cannot think of one (perhaps Limerick hurlers, but hurling is for me, less physically taxing on the body over 70+ minutes). Mayo were probably 7-8 points the better side on the day.
Kerry will be back. That's the Kerry way. But when? The great Maurice Fitzgerald ended up with two AI medals at the end of his great career. David Clifford has two now. If he ends up with "only" two, I, for one, would not classify that as a bad innings at all.
foreveryoung (USA) - Posts: 2622 - 27/07/2026 17:47:29
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Replying To foreveryoung: "I'm glad that it was Kerry that Mayo beat, or Dublin if it hadn't been Kerry. That's no negative take on either Kerry or Dublin but a reflection that both are the best in the business and that it has been at the hands of both (mostly) that Mayo has had its days of suffering on AI final day in Croke Park. Nobody can undervalue that win yesterday. No AI win should ever be undervalued but you know the way some people are.
It wasn't just that Mayo won or that it was after 75 years. It was how they won. As someone on the Sunday Game said: this is the new blueprint for how football should be played. It was total energy, total press from the get-go to the final whistle. I'm trying to think of a fitter more energetic team and I cannot think of one (perhaps Limerick hurlers, but hurling is for me, less physically taxing on the body over 70+ minutes). Mayo were probably 7-8 points the better side on the day.
Kerry will be back. That's the Kerry way. But when? The great Maurice Fitzgerald ended up with two AI medals at the end of his great career. David Clifford has two now. If he ends up with "only" two, I, for one, would not classify that as a bad innings at all." He may have to settle for two. Competition will be fierce next year and for a few years after.
Seniorleague (Galway) - Posts: 226 - 27/07/2026 19:18:13
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Replying To Seniorleague: "Theres no way to scientifically differentiate between a good team and a great team. This craic about great teams winning back to backs is just a hollow soundbite parrotted by people.
Things like quality of opponent,refereeing decisions,luck,injuries,financial doping, favourable venue etc should be taken into account when discussing a teams achievements." Fair point, Seniorleague. The Tyrone team 2003-2008 was a great team by any standards. They won three All-Irelands and the fact that they didn't do back to back shouldn't devalue their achievements.
midlands (Westmeath) - Posts: 643 - 27/07/2026 19:29:33
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Kerry didn't do back to back. How awesome was that Dublin team that did 6 in a row in the modern era. Their likes may never be seen again.
endgame (Roscommon) - Posts: 2765 - 27/07/2026 21:29:10
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Replying To midlands: "Fair point, Seniorleague. The Tyrone team 2003-2008 was a great team by any standards. They won three All-Irelands and the fact that they didn't do back to back shouldn't devalue their achievements." Exactly, Kerry who DID win back to back titles in that era were never able to beat Tyrone,who NEVER won back to back titles.
So how does this "good teams win all Irelands but great teams win back to back titles " theory fit into that :)
Seniorleague (Galway) - Posts: 226 - 27/07/2026 21:33:57
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Replying To endgame: "Kerry didn't do back to back. How awesome was that Dublin team that did 6 in a row in the modern era. Their likes may never be seen again." An interesting few stats on this final.
Kerry I think had 10 of their starting 15, aged 28 or over (DC will be 28 in Jan). Four were 30 or over.
Average age was 28
Mayo had only one player in their starting 15 over 28.
D O'Connor 31.
Average age was 23
I am open to correction…
With these new rules, is this the blueprint for future All Ireland Football Champions.???
Also, as Marc O'Se stated- has an 18 year old ever had such an influence in an All Ireland winning team, in his debut season.???
As much as I think JOC is a good manager, surely going for 2 pointers in the closing couple of minutes instead of 2x 1 point scores was not a wise decision.
Did panic set in.?
Great scenes of celebration in Mayo tonight.
Perhaps they can do back2back next year.?
This win will surely have given them massive confidence for next season anyway.
Fionn (Dublin) - Posts: 5213 - 27/07/2026 23:01:42
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Replying To Seniorleague: "Exactly, Kerry who DID win back to back titles in that era were never able to beat Tyrone,who NEVER won back to back titles.
So how does this "good teams win all Irelands but great teams win back to back titles " theory fit into that :)" I don't subscribe that any particular achievement separates a great team from a good team. A bit of luck can get in the way of successive titles and of course a really good/great team might be unlucky that their era coincides with the presence of an even better team.
However that is not to take away from the unique challenges involved (especially at amateur level) of defending a title. Those GAA teams that have backed it up, whether they are great or good, certainly deserve special kudos.
sligo joe (Dublin) - Posts: 1161 - 27/07/2026 23:10:03
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Replying To endgame: "Kerry didn't do back to back. How awesome was that Dublin team that did 6 in a row in the modern era. Their likes may never be seen again." Hopefully not.
Much better having a good few teams around the same standard rather than 1 superteam winning everything.
Seanfan (Roscommon) - Posts: 793 - 27/07/2026 23:28:35
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Looking at the words Jack O'Connor said earlier when interviewed (read this on RTE) it looks as though he wants another crack at Sam. He said they will double down on it now.
Say Kerry is sick and this defeat will drive them on. Can't see Mayo winning back to back. I think we are going through a phase in Gaelic football where nobody will win back to back for a long time.
RoyalStalwart24 (Meath) - Posts: 61 - 27/07/2026 23:51:04
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Replying To midlands: "Fair point, Seniorleague. The Tyrone team 2003-2008 was a great team by any standards. They won three All-Irelands and the fact that they didn't do back to back shouldn't devalue their achievements." The Tyrone team in the noughties were just super.I was nt around in the 60s but they were fab.Its a facy one cant judge eras as one has to factor in opposition etc.
The Dubs under Gavin were super but the opposition were nt that strong.
Tyrone imo played against better teams.Kerry were strong as were Cork and Armagh .
The Dublin team that went on to great things were destroyed by both Kerry and Tyrone in 08 and 09.Now Im aware that it was all their players but in Dubs era Kerry were weak and Mayo should have beatrn them twice at least but decisions went against them.This was a Mayo team that lost to Kerry Kildare Galway and Roscommon.
No doubt the Dubs were the best team in their era.No arguement but one cant say best ever.In fact If I had to bet then the Tyrone team of the noughties would beat them hands down.
The Dubs were super but only in their own ets.Tyrone had a much better ceiling imo but came up against much tougher teams.
CiarraiMick (Dublin) - Posts: 4221 - 28/07/2026 01:07:24
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Replying To midlands: "Fair point, Seniorleague. The Tyrone team 2003-2008 was a great team by any standards. They won three All-Irelands and the fact that they didn't do back to back shouldn't devalue their achievements." As a Kerryman we got hurt by Tyrone but IMO ( you should t or cant judge eras) they would beat any team in their pomp.Super super players.
CiarraiMick (Dublin) - Posts: 4221 - 28/07/2026 01:18:01
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