Gaelic Games

James Horan accepts that Mayo were well below par when it mattered most

'Today is very disappointing but there was a lot of development this year'

Mayo’s Aidan O’Shea watches as Tyrone players lift the Sam Maguire following the All-Ireland final. Photo: James Crombie/Inpho

Malachy Clerkin's face
Malachy Clerkin at Croke Park
Sat Sep 11 2021 - 21:15

This doesn’t get any easier for Mayo. James Horan has come to face the press four times now after All-Ireland finals and has always worn the same face. Stony of eye, tight of lip, stern of bearing. There’s no such thing as a good All-Ireland defeat. But they don’t get much worse than this one.

It’s one thing getting beaten by a better team. It’s another missing four goal chances and wasting a world of possession, never really getting your legs under you. Mayo left this All-Ireland final without really leaving an imprint on it. Of all the things that will hurt through the winter, that’s going to sting the most.

“We’re disappointed,” Horan said afterwards. “We’re disappointed with how we played today. Very disappointed that way. Look, we’re very proud of the guys and the effort and commitment they put in this year, and the development and growth that we’ve made this year. Today is very disappointing but, in the overall context, there was a lot of development this year.

“We set up to play a way and picked a team, and it didn’t work out so we made in-game changes. But just as a general we seemed to be a bit off today. The tackle count was quite low … but overall it’s disappointing.”

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The difference, in the end, was the goals. Tyrone had three good chances and took two. Mayo had four good chances and took none. Worse, they missed them at crucial times - two in the first half when they were hanging onto Tyrone’s coat-tails, two in the third quarter when they were starting to really crank up the pressure.

Tyrone only managed two scores in the first 25 minutes of the second half - both of them were goals. Had Mayo managed that kind of economy, they’d be champions. They didn’t and they aren’t.

“I think we gave away a lot of turnovers in the first half that weren’t good decisions or good skills,” Horan said. “But having said that we were still in the game, we were only two points down at half-time. The penalty was a big turning point as well, we could have gone one up, but overall we started to snatch at shots then. So, we just didn’t play like we could today.”

In the end, they gave their best to a team that were better dressed when opportunity came knocking. Mayo have had days in Croke Park where they had bad luck or where they pushed all the way to the mountaintop but couldn’t find the last yard. This wasn’t one of those days. They were beaten by a team who came with a plan and saw it through.

“Tyrone were very good today,” said Horan. “They were very strong. They were strong in their kickouts and made great gains there. Tyrone were good and deserved their win for sure. The performance wasn’t what we can give, I suppose. That’s the disappointing thing.”