Anthony Flaherty’s proudest days came draped in the primrose and blue of Roscommon, not least the 1984 Centenary Cup victory over Wexford.

Over the course of almost half a century, Liam Sammon has been in service to Galway football. Now he hopes a new generation can restore county pride.

A leader, a fearless operator and a gentleman — those were just some of the themes running through the tributes to Sligo great Eamonn O’Hara who called time on his inter-county career yesterday after almost 19 seasons.

For 100 years Galway’s senior footballers have only had four barren spells when they went more than five years without a Connacht title.

The 114th Connacht senior final won’t live particularly long in the memory, especially for the purists, but that won’t unduly concern Mayo as they make plans for their return to Croke Park as provincial champions next month.

With all the hullabaloo and drama about Conor Mortimer’s acrimonious departure from the Mayo panel over the past few days, the focus has shifted considerably from any real analysis of the match itself.

If former Mayo footballer Peter Ford is to win the Connacht SFC title in his first season in charge of Galway, his youthful selection for Sunday will be championed.