Murtt Connolly’s Mayo senior hurling side are looking to keep up their 100 per cent record in division 3B of the National Hurling League this Sunday. Mayo will host Donegal in McHale Park on Sunday at 2.30pm. So far this season wins over Roscommon, Fingal, and Louth have Mayo sitting pretty at the top of the table with three wins from three. Sunday’s opponents Donegal have one win from their three outings in the league, with their solitary win coming away to Monaghan in their second round game. Mayo’s last outing was a fortnight ago when they ground out a hard fought win over Louth in Dundalk. Connolly’s men will also have the services of dual player Keith Higgins back in harness for the game on Sunday after he returned from a holiday recently. In their last outing Kenny Feeney was the main man for Mayo, clipping over seven points, keeping up the good form he showed against Fingal in Mayo’s previous encounter. The goals came from Niall Murphy, Derek McDonnell, and Darren McTigue with Eoin Maddigan also prominent for Mayo. After Sunday’s game Mayo will have two games left in the league against Sligo and then away to Monaghan in a double header with the football team on the last day of action in the league stages of the competition. Mayo have their first outing in the Christy Ring Cup pencilled in for Saturday April 23 at home to Wicklow, and if they can keep up their good form of the early season through the latter stages of the league it will set them up nicely for their main competition of the year.
Ladies look to shake off rock bottom position
With only two games to go, the Mayo ladies are firmly rooted to the bottom of the National Football League division one table. Having failed to pick up a solitary point in their five games so far Mayo are four points away from their two nearest rivals in the basement battle, Tyrone and Kildare. It is those same two sides that Mayo will face in their final two games of the league, their penultimate game this weekend will see them travel to Eskra to take on Tyrone on Sunday at 2.30pm. Mayo will have to take maximum points from their remaining two games if they are to have any chance of surviving in division one for next season. In their last outing against Donegal, Mayo lost by two points in a game they only managed to score 1-1 in for the entire second half. A win is a must on Sunday and in their final game against Kildare, and even then safety is not guaranteed as they will be hoping that other teams do them a favour against Kildare this week and Tyrone the following week to give them a fighting chance of survival.
Mayo senior leagues throw in this week
There will be plenty of action all over the county this weekend to distract Mayo football followers from the woes of the senior inter-county team when the Mayo senior leagues throw in for the first time in 2011. Last year’s senior championship winners Ballintubber will host Westport in their opening game in Clogher, while defeated finalists in last year’s senior championship Castlebar Mitchels will make a trip to Crossmolina to take on the Deel Rovers. Other mouth watering games this weekend sees the clash of Charlestown and Ballina and Burrishoole and Shurle Glencorrib in division 1A. In division 1b Breaffy and Kiltaine will get to grips with each other in a warm up match for a championship meeting between the sides later on in the summer. Claremorris and Davitts will come face to face in a south Mayo tussle, while Islandeady and Tourmakeady will battle it out in an all west challenge. Other games of note see the meeting of Hollymount and Moy Davitts in south Mayo and Kiltimagh and Garrymore going toe to toe. There will be action in all seven divisions of the senior football league in Mayo over Saturday and Sunday. Most of the top level action has been pencilled in for Saturday at 5pm in divisions 1A, 1B and 1C but there are sure to be a few changes of times and days from the fixture list released this weekend, so it is best advised to check with your local club for throw in times.
Mayo GAA launches strength and conditioning programme
Last week the Mayo GAA Coaching and Games Committee launched its underage development programme. The programme will follow all the proper principals of training. The players are screened by qualified strength and conditioners to assess their training history, injury history, and functional ability (mobility and stability ). James Mitchell, Paul Ginty, and Tony Duffy are the three coaches involved in the programme. Any functional compensation will be corrected in the training programme provided to the player. Most importantly the programme will be regularly supervised by competent qualified strength and conditioning coaches. Following long term player development principles, the players will complete body weight, Swiss ball, and med ball corrective exercises, and will also be focusing on learning technique in this train to train stage. It is an excellent step forward for Mayo football and a healthy development for young players that will help prevent injuries and improve performance.
Gaelic 4 Girls mania hits Claremorris
Gaelic 4 Girls has hit Claremorris by storm. The programme commenced on Sunday March 6 when a phenomenal 96 girls from Claremorris descended on Claremorris GAA pitch to be treated to an hour of great fun and coaching in ladies’ Gaelic football. It is proving to be a phenomenal success, which now has more than 100 girls in attendance every Sunday from 10.30am and 11.30am. This programme is supported by Mayo Sports Partnership.
Gaelic 4 Girls is an eight-week programme (each session lasts one hour ) aimed at increasing participation in ladies’ football and is being rolled out nationally in various areas. The programme targets girls aged from nine to 13 who would like to try out ladies’ football and are interested in learning the skills of the game in a fun environment. The girls are taught the basic skills of Gaelic football on a fun basis and will then demonstrate their new skills on the final day through a mini blitz of games. At the end of the programme all girls will be presented with a Gaelic 4 Girls’ T-shirt, medal, and certificate. A major bonus from the programme is that all participants will get the chance to participate in a fun major regional Gaelic 4 Girls blitz on May 28.
