Mayo off the mark to leave faltering Kerry facing a battle
They are hardly in the doldrums of 12 months ago. For one, the nature of this defeat was hardly as damning as last February’s loss here in Castlebar, when they failed to score in the second half.
Yet the table will show they have just as much to show for almost halfway through the campaign as they had last season.
After mustering just three points in the second half against Dublin last month, their tally of 1-2 after the break yesterday was only marginally better.
Jack O’Connor’s era might seem a long time ago — Kerry finishing the last 10 minutes of the game with no All-Ireland winning starters — but they haven’t managed to shrug off a habit of playing their best football before the interval. Although rattled by Mayo goals inside the first and last 30 seconds of the opening half, they did go ahead four minutes after the restart when Stephen O’Brien placed a beautiful shot to the top left corner of the net past Rob Hennelly.
Yet O’Brien’s next score, a point in the 50th minute to restore Kerry’s lead, was their last of the game, and Mayo grinded them down with a collection of frees.
“We struggled to score in the second half again,” rued Eamonn Fitzmaurice. “It’s becoming a bit of a worrying pattern. We only got 1-2. We got chances in the last 10 minutes that, if you’re going to be winning, you have to convert. We had a goal chance and James (O’Donoghue) had a free, Conor Cox had a chance, Fionn Fitzgerald had a chance. We needed to convert them and we didn’t.
“We’re staring down the barrel of a gun again and we’re in a situation where we’re nought from three and we need points on the board.”
Mayo went into yesterday’s game in the same position after missing a host of goal opportunities in away defeats at Kildare and Tyrone.
They instantly went to work on making amends for those defeats with Alan Freeman, making his first start of the campaign, finding the net after just 26 seconds. Andy Moran looped a handpass to Jason Doherty running through the middle and he laid off to Freeman for a neat finish.
“We got a great start,” agreed James Horan, “and we’ve been creating seven or eight goal chances every game we’ve played, so we know we’ve been creating chances.
“It’s about taking them and taking the right shot when they come along. Alan Freeman got a great goal starting off and that was key to our momentum.”
Kerry, albeit aided by the wind, recovered well though and all but three of their 11 first-half points came from play. Daithi Casey was also denied a goal in the 26th minute by the crossbar but good use of the advantage rule by referee Ciarán Brannigan provided Kerry with a free on the Dr Crokes man for consolation.
In front of an 8,693 crowd, they were one point ahead when Doherty was on the end of a lightning Mayo move involving Aidan O’Shea, Lee Keegan and Shane McHale.
Much of Mayo’s success in this game involved restoring players to more accustomed positions.
Colm Boyle, who had been operating in the full-back line in previous games, was back on the 40 and all the better for it. Kevin McLoughlin too looked more comfortable at wing forward than inside.
A clear-up of injuries also helped their cause. Keegan, who had suffered an early leg problem against Tyrone last day out, was excellent in turning defence into attack.
In all, the teams were level on eight occasions and on another day Mayo could have regretted Rob Hennelly’s four wides from long-range kicks.
In a moment of levity and with the home team leading by two points in the 62nd minute, the partisan crowd encouraged the goalkeeper to return to his position and allow Freeman to take on a free from distance.
Freeman pointed it and the remainder of the action was predominantly processional. Substitute Enda Varley and Freeman, again from a free, extended Mayo’s lead while Conor Cox and Johnny Buckley got in each other’s way as a half goal chance for Kerry was spurned.
In the final minute of normal time, Mark Griffin was black carded for Freeman’s free after he held back the full-forward and Freeman fell to ground. Although clearly cynical according to the rule, it wasn’t such an offence and Kerry could appeal as three black cards over league and Championship equates to a one-match ban for Griffin.
Scorers for Mayo: A Freeman (1-5, 0-3f); J Doherty (1-1); K McLoughlin (0-4, 3fs); A Gallagher (0-2, 2f); M Conroy, L Keegan, E Varley (0-1).
Scorers for Kerry: S O’Brien (1-2); C Cox (0-4, 3f); J O’Donoghue (0-3, 1f); BJ Keane (0-2); D Moran, D Walsh (0-1).
Subs for Mayo: E Varley for A Gallagher (42); D Vaughan for S McHale (52); S O’Shea for J Gibbons (59); C Carolan for M Conroy (65); D O’Connor for A Moran (70).
Subs for Kerry: F Fitzgerald for A O’Mahony (h-t); P Kilkenny for S Enright (42, black); M Geaney for D Casey (55); J Sherwood for M Ó Sé (56); J Buckley for D Walsh (59); B McGuire for P Crowley (64); M Griffin (70, black, no rep allowed).
Referee: C Brannigan (Down).
In the 62nd minute, after kicking four long-range frees wide, Rob Hennelly was ordered back by Alan Freeman, who duly fired over the free to give Mayo a three-point cushion.
Another Kerry second-half fadeout and general problems for the black card.
Kerry became the first inter-county team to see a black card become a red as they had nobody to replace Mark Griffin at the death.
roughout most of the game.
Two for Kerry. Shane Enright’s was a blatantly obvious one but Griffin’s, by rule, did not constitute a black card.
Eamonn Fitzmaurice’s switches on the half-forward line worked to a certain extent. James Horan was able to call on better replacements.
Iffy afternoon for Conor Brannigan. Andy Moran deserved more than a ticking for pulling back Daithi Casey and the Griffin black card was wrongly issued. Played the advantage rule well, though.
Kerry host Tyrone in Killarney next Sunday at the same time as Mayo face Westmeath in Mullingar.
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