Horan gets the call right as McQuillan to referee decider

As Mayo manager James Horan anticipated, Joe McQuillan has been appointed to referee Sunday week’s All-Ireland football final.

The Cavan man was in charge of Dublin and Mayo’s previous Championship clash, last year’s All-Ireland semi-final as well as their Division 1 semi-final in April.

Asked last week if he expected McQuillan to be handed the whistle for the decider as he was from a neutral province, Horan said: “There might be more pressure on the referee than any of the teams. More than likely it will be Joe if you look at the data.”

Prior to last year’s meeting, Horan highlighted Kerry were unhappy with McQuillan’s refereeing when Dublin were victorious in the 2011 All-Ireland final. He also mentioned the referee had taken charge of in-house Dublin games, a point later denied by referees’ chief Pat McEnaney. In the week leading up to Mayo’s final with Donegal, pundit Joe Brolly claimed McQuillan failed to pick up on 27 fouls made by Horan’s side, which drew ire in Mayo.

McQuillan has taken charge of one Championship game for each county already this year — Dublin’s Leinster semi-final against Kildare as well as Mayo’s All-Ireland quarter-final with Donegal.

It is the ninth time in five senior football championship seasons he will be involved in a Dublin game and a fourth with Mayo over the same period.

In July, McQuillan was heckled and accosted by supporters in Newbridge following Kildare’s round three qualifier defeat to Tyrone.

Having officiated in the heated Division 1 game between Donegal and April earlier in the year, he was given the same role when the neighbours met in May’s Ulster quarter-final in Ballybofey.

Meath’s Cormac Reilly is one of McQuillan’s linesman and also standby referee with Padraig O’Sullivan from Kerry operating on the other side of the pitch. Michael Duffy (Sligo) will be the sideline official.

The referee’s umpires are Tommy O’Reilly, Ciarán Brady and TP Gray, who are all from his own club, and Killygarry’s Jimmy Galligan.

Cork’s Conor Lane has been given the job of refereeing the All-Ireland minor final between Mayo and Tyrone. The Lyre/Banteer man previously refereed the Connacht final between Mayo and London as well as the Clare-Laois qualifier, the Leinster quarter-final involving Wicklow and Meath and the quarter-final in Munster between Kerry and Tipperary.

Lane’s assistants on the sidelines will be Fergal Kelly (Longford, standby referee), Anthony Nolan and sideline official Derek O’Mahoney. His umpires are John Joe Lane, Joe Fleming, DJ O’Sullivan (all Lyre/Banteer) and Pat Kelly (Kilshannig).