O’Connor: Injury woes in the past

Mayo’s press nights under James Horan have always been held in the Breaffy House Hotel just outside Castlebar.

Until this season. This year they’ve been holding them in the meeting room under the stand in Elverys MacHale Park. A miniscule change for most observers but for those who have seen the county develop under Horan it represents a big step.

The Mayo manager and his backroom team created a process-driven routine for the players. Aimed at delivering consistency on and off the pitch, MacHale Park was a place of work while the hotel five minutes away was the venue of the chore of dealing with the press.