Moran’s regret at hounding referee Deegan

Moran ready to lead Mayo into Tribe battle

ANDY MORAN admits that he was ‘disappointed’ by how he angrily confronted referee Maurice Deegan during Mayo’s clash with Tyrone last month. The footballer of the year was shown a black card by Deegan after he appeared to square up to the referee during Mayo’s 12-point defeat in Castlebar, and he remains at a loss to understand his reaction. ‘I’m very disappointed with the way I remonstrated with Maurice at the time,’ Moran said, before trying to explain the reasons for losing his head. ‘I got my punishment and I took it. I can’t really do much more about it. But the way I gave out to him, it’s not me. I had a lot going on in my life at the time but I was still disappointed. ‘People have been watching me play for a long time and I have never reacted to anything like that. I have never been sent off in my life.’ The forward did confirm that Mayo’s injury crisis has eased ahead of their mouthwatering Connacht Championship clash with Galway on May 13. Lee Keegan, currently recovering from shoulder surgery, is the only likely absentee from that game.

OUT west, anticipation is growing with each passing day as to what will happen when Mayo and Galway clash in a mouth-watering Connacht Championship match next month.

Mayo’s mediocre Allianz League campaign was in stark contrast to how the Tribesmen blossomed in the top flight. But there were plenty of caveats, not least the lengthy injury list which Stephen Rochford had to deal with.

However, Andy Moran insists that crisis is easing as attention turns to MacHale Park. Brendan Harrison, Chris Barrett, Donal Vaughan and Evan Regan have all returned to training in recent weeks while Keith Higgins has also rejoined the panel after spending the spring with the hurlers.

Cillian O’Connor, who suffered a hamstring injury against Tyrone last month, is also expected back. The only player who will definitely miss the early summer blockbuster in Castlebar is Lee Keegan, who dislocated his shoulder against Tyrone.

‘I think we’re fairly positive in terms of the injury layout,’ Moran said. ‘We’re hoping to have Cillian back, hope to have Brendan Harrison back. Lee just needs the time that a shoulder operation needs. You can’t rush anything with a bone injury. So, all bar Cillian and Lee are back doing full sessions and training fully.’

One of the advantages of all those injuries is that plenty of untested players got an opportunity to play against the likes of Dublin and Kerry. One of the criticisms aimed at Mayo over the past couple of years is that they lack the strength in depth of the other sides contending for the All-Ireland title.

Despite being plunged in at the deep end, Eoin O’Donoghue and Conor Loftus both shone as Mayo salvaged a draw in Ballybofey to preserve their record as the longest residents in the top-flight, while Moran also points out that Stephen Coen and Caolan Crowe have also developed and grown over the spring.

‘Before the Donegal game, I said that even if it did happen that we went down, we would look at what we are trying to do for the championship and say that we did gain some serious players. All of a sudden, because of the injuries, we got two new corner-backs in Caolan Crowe and Eoin O’Donoghue.

‘And Conor Loftus stood up in a huge moment for us and took the frees. That’s massive. Even if Cillian is fit and playing, he is not going to be around forever, so it is great that Conor did what he did, gives us another option for frees. And Stephen Coen had a huge National League, think he played every minute, so that is four players that really broke through for us during the League.’

Mayo’s resilience once again came to the fore in Ballybofey when Kevin McLoughlin struck a wonder-score in the dying moments to get the draw which they needed. It simply served to show that no matter what Mayo are battling against, they almost always find a way to get what they need.

Moran reckons that comes with the experience of all the big games they have played in recent years but the players also had a mantra before that game. That no matter what happened, they would find a way to remain in the game.

‘We went up to Donegal and we had no Chris Barrett, no Brendan Harrison, no Keith Higgins, no Cillian O’Connor or Lee Keegan. They are all huge players for us but our mantra was that we just had to keep in the game,’ Moran recalled.

‘It is fair to say that Donegal shouldn’t be in Division 2, they were trying out a lot of young players and trying a new style. And we knew they would be hard to beat in Ballybofey.

‘It is eight years since they have been beaten up there. We knew that we just had to keep in the game and we would get the chances at the end.

‘To be honest, we were very lucky. Kevin McLoughlin produced a bit of magic and that got us over the line, but we had a mantra to stay in the game and that’s the way it transpired. That comes with experience and a bit of confidence within the group that we were always going to be there.’

Given that many are expecting a powder-keg in Castlebar, it is interesting that opposition teams, including Galway, have had men sent off against Mayo during the League campaign. Moran doesn’t believe there is anything to those numbers though, and that it had more to do with the awful weather that the country experienced over the spring.

‘It’s not something that we have really looked at. I think this year’s League, with the weather we got throughout the country, there was probably more red cards. When you have conditions like that, the ball slows down and there is much more physical contact.

‘If the ball is on the ground at all in those conditions, you have to bend and stoop to get it and someone’s coming in hitting you. It leads to more aggression. Two lads come together and all of a sudden, there could be half-amelee. That leads to red cards. Do I think it’s malicious towards us? I don’t.’

Still, Moran might feel a little malice in the air come May 13 when Mayo and Galway are expected to get this year’s Championship off with an almighty bang in MacHale Park.