A crowd of 12,000 greeted the Galway senior football team when they played Mayo in the annual GOAL challenge at Tuam Stadium last night.

The champions started the game with many of their household heroes rested as some have club commitments on Sunday in the senior football championship quarter-final and this gave others in the squad a chance to play.

Mayo had by the third minute scored points from Pat Fallon, Damien Carey and Maurice Sheridan.

The tribesmen had their first point after six minutes by their right half forward for Moycullen, Paul Clancy. The visitors had further points before the interval by John Casey, David Nestor, Kevin O'Neill and Ger Brady, while Pat Fallon and Maurice Sheridan scored again. Galway had two more points before half-time from Padraic Boyce of the Garda Club in Dublin and Tommy Joyce from Killererin, so the interval was Mayo 0-12, Galway 0-3.

The victors kept their challenge up against Galway, who started to put in more and more from the starting 15 of last Sunday.

Galway scored two goals from Shay Walsh and Niall Finnegan.

Mayo, however, had more points and a goal on full time from Kevin McIntyre gave them their 12 points victory. However, the maroon-clad fans of Galway cheered their heroes for long afterwards.

Mayo scorers - K McIntyre 1-2, K O'Neill 04, G Brady 0-3, P Fallon, M Sheridan, D Nestor and J Casey 0-2 each, C McMenamon, D Carey, E McDonagh 0-1 each. Galway scorers - S Walsh 1-1, N Finnegan 1-0, P Boyce, P Clancy, T Joyce, P Joyce 0-1 each

Mayo: P Keane; K Mortimer, P Holmes, F Costello; D Heaney, J Nallen, G Morley; P Fallon, C McMenamon; M Sheridan, K O'Neill, D Nestor; G Brady, J Casey, D Carey.

Galway: P Comer; R Doyle, B Silke, T Mannion; K Fallon, D Mitchell, R Fahey; M Cloherty, P Boyce; P Clancy, F Gavin, D Meehan; T Joyce, S Walsh, T Wilson.

Referee: J Bannon (Longford).