Crossmolina boss praises talented McDonald

Crossmolina and Mayo boss John Maughan has handed star forward Kieran McDonald the biggest of confidence boosters ahead of Sunday's Connacht SFC final by insisting: "He's the best centre-forward in Mayo."

Maughan handed the fiery forward his first Mayo cap against Galway in 1997 and still says he's the best in the west.

Crossmolina face Strokestown of Roscommon on Sunday and Maughan praised: "Kieran's a great team player, an outstanding figure on our team. He doesn¹t like the limelight and he's a man of few words but then again that¹s not a bad thing - there are far too many players with too much to say.

"That's the nature of Kieran. If we have a better centre-forward in Mayo, I haven¹t met him. He¹ll be the first name on my team-sheet as Mayo manager."