It’s win or bust for the Mayo minors on Sunday at high noon when the ball is thrown in on Sunday for their Connacht Championship semi-final against Roscommon. Tony Duffy is in his second year in charge of the side and despite being the current Connacht Champions there are no guarantees at this grade. A win would put Mayo into the Connacht final against either Sligo or Galway, who square up tomorrow evening in their semi-final in the shadow of Benbulben in Sligo; a win will guarantee them a place in the All Ireland quarter finals at the least. The team on Sunday will be captained by Breaffy’s Conor O’Shea on a big day for his family with his brothers, Aidan and Seamus, lining out in midfield for the senior team later that day against Galway. Duffy will be able to call upon four of the squad from last years Connacht title win with O’Shea being joined by fellow alumni from 2010 Conor Horan, Ryan Quirke, and James Shaughnessy to backbone the side. However such is the nature of underage competitions, getting a new side to gel each year is not an exact science and on Sunday Duffy and his management team will be hoping that all the hard work through the Connacht league in the spring will come to fruition and set the team up for another crack at a Connacht title.
Ladies get championship underway
The curtain will come down on a hectic day of action for Mayo GAA followers on Sunday evening in Charlestown at 7.30pm when the Mayo senior ladies’ side start their championship season. After a disastrous league campaign which saw Mayo finish rock bottom of division one, Jason Taniane will be hoping to see his side pull the pieces together for a crack at a Connacht title and more on Sunday evening. A win on Sunday would put Mayo into a Connacht final against Galway, while defeat would see them trying to navigate their way through the back door of the competition.