NUIG make hay as Mayo live it up in Cape Town

FBD Connacht League - NUI, Galway 1-21 Mayo 2-16: The record books will show NUI, Galway came out on top in this fixture for the first time in eight years at MacHale Park, Castlebar yesterday. But the students’ manager Maurice Sheridan was the first to admit there were mitigating circumstances. 

Practically the entire Mayo squad were taking in a tour of Table Mountain in Cape Town, South Africa as Stephen Rochford’s third-string outfit were trying to keep the flag flying back at home. Another half-a-dozen of Rochford’s panel were either unavailable or injured, leaving Mayo’s management to cobble together a team as best they could.

Midfielder Shane Nally and Brian Reape were the only member of last year’s championship squad to feature, while 10 of Mayo’s first XV were representing the county seniors for the first time. However, NUI, Galway were still made to earn this win and it took eye-catching performances from a few of their key men to get the job done in front of 2,300.