How Matthew Ruane went from the shadows to centre stage as Mayo’s midfield general

It took Matthew Ruane some time to break onto the Mayo team but now he’s Brian Fenton’s nearest challenger as the highest-scoring and finest midfielder in the country

BIG TALENT: Mayo midfielder Matthew Ruane with his PwC GAA/GPA Footballer of the Month award for July. For all Mayo’s prowess and athleticism in midfield this past decade, Ruane has brought a dimension they haven’t had there before. Picture: Sam Barnes/Sportsfile

To finally make their breakthrough against Dublin, Mayo will be looking to Matthew Ruane, not least because it’s something he’s literally done against them before.

Back in 2016 the counties met in an All-Ireland U21 semi-final in Tullamore, Dublin managed by Dessie Farrell, Mayo by Michael Solan. With 12 minutes to go, Dublin seemed in complete control; thanks to a goal and a fistful of points from a promising young full-forward called Con O’Callaghan, they’d come from six down at half-time to go ahead by four.