Those of you on Facebook and Twitter over the past few days will have seen us sharing various videos from the olden days of Mayo GAA, but just in case you’ve missed them, head on over to our video gallery to see (for the first time online) highlights of Mayo’s Connacht Championship of 1989, the famed Tyrone game of the same year, and the 2006 All-Ireland U21 final victory against Cork. Our most recent addition is the Galway-Mayo Connacht Final of ’99 in Tuam Stadium. Some of us are still drying out after that one.
Thanks to Ronan McHale for putting in the graft and converting these from VHS for us – a time-consuming process but one I’m sure you’ll agree was worth it. Check out our video gallery here for a wander down memory lane and keep an eye out for more videos coming soon.
It’s starting to feel like the summer is truly upon us, what with all these trips to Croke Park so early in the year. The weekend is just around the corner too and with it comes the anticipation of another cracking day of football in the capital as Mayo take on Derry in the first of the Allianz National Football League semi-finals.
Mayo v Derry throws in at 2pm and it’s set to be a very different game from the lacklustre occasion we witnessed in MacHale Park last Sunday, given that Derry will most likely bring their first team this time. For those of you who are truly insatiable, Dublin take on Cork in the second semi which throws in at 4pm – a fixture that will hold all the more interest for us should the first game go our way.
In what is fast becoming a familiar pre-match tradition, Club ’51 will be convening across the road in the Jury’s Croke Park Hotel from 12pm. Come join us, say hello and have a cupán tae or a pint before the game. If the day is fine, look for us out the back where you’ll see the flags!
This is the first knockout game of the year, so we’re expecting a high turnout and a good atmosphere, and Club ’51 will be continuing our quest to turn Croke Park into a Sea of Green and Red – but we need your help! If you’re making the trip, be sure and bring a flag and let’s get some colour into those stands.
And most important of all, let’s stand tall and get behind our team on Sunday. It’s up to us, in the crowd to create the atmosphere, so let’s play our part and make ourselves heard – especially if things aren’t going our way. So stock up on the honey and lemon, raise your voices and let’s bring back the Mayo Roar.
The weekend ahead holds a veritable feast of sport, with one of the biggest days in the GAA club calendar, the AIB Club Championship Finals taking place in Croke Park on Monday (we’ll have lots more to say about that between now and then).
But before Castlebar Mitchels embark on proving themselves to be The Toughest, let’s turn our attention to the county scene, and what’s sure to be another memorable encounter. Sunday 16th March sees our first home double-header of the year with Mayo taking on Cork in the fifth round of Division 1 of the Allianz National Football League in McHale Park. Throw-in is at 2.30pm, and the game is preceded by the fourth round of Division 2B of the Allianz National Hurling League, which sees Mayo take on Wicklow at 12.45pm. We can happily confirm that the hurling clash has been moved back to McHale Park, after a decision made on Monday to move it to Tooreen (based on the weather and pitch conditions) was reversed yesterday morning.
Our position in both tables is roughly similar – mid-table, with an uncertain future – so it’s all to play for on Sunday.
In light of this, there will be no Club ’51 pre-match meet-up this weekend. We have a good excuse though – instead, we’ll be getting in early to cheer on our hurlers. We’d encourage everyone to come along and join us at 12.45pm to get behind this tremendous bunch of lads, who put a huge amount of time and effort into representing their county and are just as proud to wear the green and red as our footballers, but don’t often get a chance to play in front of a big home crowd.
So once the flags and banners have been hung, Club ’51 will be gathering in the stand (a stand which, incidentally, will be regarded with a new reverence and appreciation by anyone who spent two hours last Sunday sitting on a plank in the rain in Mullingar) to the right of the tunnel, in the now legendary area known as the Black Rectangle (see illustration). Come and join us, bring your hats, flags, scarves, headbands onesies and whatever else you’re into, and let’s start transforming McHale Park into a sea of green and red to cheer our boys onto a double victory.
Here’s also wishing our U21s the very best of luck tonight vs. Roscommon in what’s sure to be another lively encounter. See you on Sunday!
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