NATIONAL FOOTBALL LEAGUE DIVISION ONE/Galway 2-9 Mayo 1-11:THE BIG, sprawling All-Ireland football championship could take a leaf or two from what has been an absorbing and lean league story.
Galway's terrific spring march continues after a late victory here in Castlebar but they will still require a victory over Kerry next weekend to make certain of a place in the league final.
Against that, Mayo battled against driving wind, a burst of light snow, youthful naivety and another masterful display from Pádraic Joyce to do everything but win this match and now face a nerve-wracking encounter against Tyrone to ensure their survival.
With every passing week, this league has had a knife-edge feel about it and, when you throw the intimate history of these two counties into the mix, it made for a significant afternoon of football.
"That was as near as you will get to a championship encounter without being in one," nodded John O'Mahony afterwards.
The Mayo manager stood outside his dressingroom, collecting his thoughts when Joyce, leaving the stadium to get on the visitors' bus, stopped to shake hands and say hello to his former mentor. Such is the remorseless nature of sport - of life - that it is easy to forget about the magical days that these concocted when the pair were in cahoots. Had he not been busy marshalling Mayo yesterday, O'Mahony would probably have enjoyed another sublime display by the Killererin man.
Joyce's radiant return to form has been the most eloquent endorsement of what Liam Sammon has brought to Galway in his maiden season. Yet again, he hit Michael Meehan with a series of bullet passes without, it seemed, even needing to look and see where the Caltra man was located.
He never tried to take too much out of the ball and delivered the winner for Galway in the 70th minute, punishing the decision of Mayo goalkeeper David Clarke to direct a kick-out in his vicinity.
Despite the treacherous wind, Joyce nailed the left-foot shot as though he was on the training field on a flawless July afternoon.
Afterwards, it was put to Sammon that Joyce was handsomely answering the suggestions that his best days are behind him.
"Ah, he had a wonderful game today. Any time he got that ball he was a threat. And his leadership, everything about his game, he played wonderful football. And age does not come into it really."
The league has not been kind to Mayo. They took a rotten punch when victory looked assured against Donegal and were a point up with three minutes left here after fullback Ciarán Conroy popped up to fist a score into the gale. That score typified Mayo's attitude. They were bursting to win this match and refused to allow two Galway goals either side of half-time to deflate them. Keith Higgins and Andy Moran led what was a brave response to Galway's second goal four minutes after half-time.
Predictably, it emanated from the Joyce-Meehan axis but when Clarke made a fine save on Meehan's shot, the ever-busy Matthew Clancy was on hand to volley home the equaliser. Just before half-time, the Mayo back line had allowed Fiachra Breathnach to sneak into dangerous country and he received a perfect ball from Meehan to nail Galway's first goal.
So it was a demoralising 10 minutes for the Mayo defence and they responded courageously. Colm Boyle and David Heaney sneaked upfield for valuable second half scores on a day when both sets of forwards found the going tough and Ronan McGarrity, as well as engaging in a relentless battle for supremacy with Barry Cullinane, took on the role of team boss when it was required.
At times they lacked imagination in attack but the first-half goal, finished on a slide-rule shot from Moran, was beautifully worked. With a bit more craft and cuteness, Mayo could have fashioned a result here.
"We had the winning of it," agrees O'Mahony. "And I felt we showed tremendous character in the second half. What will be reflected on probably is the actual events in the last two minutes - which is fair enough. We had a chance or two, a couple of attacks broke down, we gave away a short kick-out.
"But the period just before half-time was as crucial to us in that we had a five-point lead. . . I would give a hands up to our fellas for that effort."
The big blight on Galway's afternoon was the dismaying sight of Joe Bergin being carried across the dressing-rooms at half-time. The rangy Mountbellew man was felled by an Achilles injury and goes back on the sick list. A big championship run by Galway will surely require Bergin operating at full tilt. And it is Galway's ability to translate this persuasive league form into summer threat that is the most intriguing question.
Here, Damien Dunleavy made massive claims for summer inclusion with a workhorse of a performance at wing forward, Cullinane put himself about and last year's minor captain Paul Conroy kicked a huge point to level the scores in the 70th minute. But with Nickey Joyce jumping on and then off the carousel here and Seán Armstrong yet to fire, the question remains as to whether Galway can engineer the kind of scoring power required in the choked fields of summer. Going toe-to-toe with Kerry will be another perfect test for Galway and another chance to showcase the attractions of league football.
GALWAY:P Doherty; K Fitzgerald, F Hanley, D Burke; G Sice (0-1), N Coyne, D Mullahy; D Dunleavy, B Cullinane; J Bergin, P Joyce (0-2), D Meehan; M Clancy (1-0), M Meehan (0-4, three frees), F Breathnach (1-0). Subs: C Bane (0-1) for N Coyne (7 mins inj), P Conroy (0-1) for J Bergin (36 mins inj), N Joyce for C Bane (47 mins), E Hoare for N Joyce (63 mins).
MAYO:D Clare; T Cuniffe, K Conroy (0-1), C Boyle (0-1); D Heaney (0-1), Howley, K Higgins; R McGarrity, T Parsons (0-1); J Gill (0-1), A Dillon (0-1 free), P Harte; C Mortimer (0-2, one free), A O'Malley (0-3 frees), A Moran (1-0). Subs: B Moran for P Harte (44 mins), P Kelly for T Cuniffe (46 mins), M Ronaldson for B Moran (64 mins).
Referee:D Fahy (Longford).
