Ian O'Riordan talks to the Galway and Mayo bosses ahead of the Connacht final

So here's the scene ahead of Sunday's Connacht football final.

Mickey Moran and Peter Ford sit down next to each other at the Bank of Ireland press conference in Dublin. They have probably one thing on their mind, and their body language at least suggests it. Maybe life isn't too short to hold a grudge.

The last time Mayo played Galway was in the league semi-final in April, after which the Mayo trainer John Morrison accused Galway of "destroying skill" and said they "won't win the All-Ireland playing like that".

Ford, whose team won easily, then accused Mayo of "whinging" and suggested they were "ill-advised to talk like that". So they meet again in Castlebar on Sunday for the fifth championship in succession (three wins to Galway, one to Mayo) and, as if the rivalry weren't heated enough, all this is added to the mix.

Moran and Ford avoided eye contact during the formalities. Nor did they refer to these past differences. It was only when speaking separately later that they loosened up and actually joked about the apparent tension.

"Look, someone asked me after that game if I thought it was good, hard, tough football," says Moran. "And I said no, that it was a spoiling kind of a game. And that was just a genuine comment. But we certainly learnt from that. If we didn't we shouldn't be in the job. Sunday, though, will tell how much we've learnt.

"And John Morrison is just so passionate and truthful and says things as they are. Maybe sometimes he shouldn't. He's a very colourful character, but he's the most innovative coach I've ever met. Say I ask him about something, to devise some training idea for, say, a forward, he'll come back with 200 ideas. He's way ahead of his time. But look, keep away from him."

Moran is far too dedicated to football to let grudges take precedence. When he took over as Mayo manager last November he had 39,000 on his mileometer. He's lost count of how many trips he's made from his native Derry, but that mileage now reads 88,570.

And he's not there to do a hit-and-run job, maybe deliver that All-Ireland title Mayo so crave.

"John and myself aren't those kind of people. You can't go in and bankrupt the thing just for a quick success. We love working with young players and bringing them on, and do want to leave the county in a stronger position, no matter we actually win.

"But I have to be honest and say there is some psychological thing with Mayo about winning the All-Ireland. All I can say is that the team have adapted to our way of training. There are two ways of coaching: you can do everything by the book or do it with feeling, by getting to know the players, and almost get a telepathy thing going. And that's what we try to do.

"But I can't put into words how fanatical the Mayo supporters are. They are very, very passionate. I think it's unrivalled. Football is the main talking point, all you hear. Forget about religion. So a provincial final like this is a tremendous occasion to be involved with, and it would be a real honour to win it."

Ford was also quick to distance himself from past differences: "I wasn't annoyed about it. I was just asked to comment and I did. I didn't take John Morrison's comments too seriously. Sometimes after matches you say things off the cuff, and maybe he regretted it afterwards.

"I'm still reading about it in the Mayo papers this week, but I know the Mayo supporters are over it. It wasn't a dirty game. Mayo are just like Galway in that they go out to play good football."

As a native of Mayo and a teacher in Galway, Ford is well used to the hype surrounding Connacht football finals. He regained the title for Galway last year in his first season as manager, and based on semi-final performances (Galway eventually eased past Roscommon, Mayo struggled past Leitrim by a point), they will start as marginal favourites this time.

"We played Leitrim last year and only beat them by three points in Pearse Stadium. So we were in a similar position to where Mayo are now. But semi-finals are just about winning."