Lee Keegan: This is the best ever Mayo panel

Two-time All-Star defender Lee Keegan believes Mayo are in the best shape ever to end their 64-year wait for Sam Maguire.

Mayo have not landed the All- Ireland SFC title since they beat Meath in 1951. They have lost seven finals, including two in the last three years, since winning their last All-Ireland back in 1951.

Last year they came up short after extra-time in the semi-final against eventual champions Kerry, but Keegan believes they are closer now to ending the famine that ever before.

Noel Connelly and Pat Holmes have continued Mayo’s dominance in Connacht with an unprecedented fifth successive title for the Green and Red.

The 25-year old Westport clubman Keegan, who fisted Mayo’s sixth goal in the 6-25 to 2-11 hammering of Sligo in the Connacht final, says this is the best Mayo team he has been a part of.

“Definitely it is, just the way the professionalism has been brought into it. James Horan set up a good panel of players there and brought a real professionalism in the four years and Pat and Noel have carried that on.

“But definitely the best, five-in-a-row that speaks for itself.

“People always tend to talk about Connacht as a weak province but I always looked at Galway, Roscommon, Sligo. These teams are making quarter-finals and always do well in qualifier runs.

“So Connacht is definitely getting stronger. But in terms of this group of players, they are definitely the best that I have been involved with.

“The whole set-up has been excellent so far and hopefully that can continue now,” Keegan added.

Mayo take on Donegal at Croke Park on Saturday in a repeat of the 2013 All-Ireland quarter-final.

Donegal, who had also lost the Ulster final to Monaghan that year, were trounced 4-17 to 1-10 by Mayo.

That win came less than 12 months after Mayo lost the All-Ireland final to Donegal and Keegan argues the county’s consistency will stand to them eventually.

“The key thing is, we keep coming back every year because we believe there is more in this team than in the previous era.

“I come back because there is an All-Ireland in this team.

“We are just trying to make ourselves better players year in, year out and just progress each year.

“That is the key thing for us. You are looking for different ways to improve yourselves and improve your game as players.

“We have taken a lot of knocks but hopefully there will be a few joys ahead of us.”