Could Mayo reap rewards of work's new normal?

It would appear a global pandemic — rather than any limited professional ambition — has changed life for Mayo footballers.

Does the pandemic mean Aidan O'Shea and Mayo have a better chance of ending their All-Ireland. drought. Picture: Ray McManus/Sportsfile

After Mayo’s All-Ireland final replay defeat in 2016, former Mayo coach Ed Coughlan put the difference between winning and losing in stark terms — geography.

“Until Mayo’s students settle for courses in NUIG and GMIT, and their bankers, accountants, teachers and engineers move home to make a crust, I can’t see them ever winning the All-Ireland title,” he wrote in this newspaper in October 2016.