A record-breaking scoring contribution by Ryan O’Donoghue helped steer Mayo to an expected comfortable victory over New York in Sunday’s Connacht SFC clash in The Bronx.
O’Donoghue’s 1-13 haul is the biggest by any player in over 20 years of championship fixtures at Gaelic Park and was key to Mayo’s 15 points defeat of the Exiles.
In front of a jam-packed attendance, Mayo got the hard work completed before half-time, at which stage they led 1-11 to 0-2, but great credit must go a New York side that never threw in the towel and who scored two second-half goals having scored just the one in five previous championship meetings with Mayo.
In fact, the Exiles, with 10 homegrown players in the squad of 26, and buoyed by their first-ever Connacht championship win last season, had made a quite steady start to this game, and with a pair of points by London-born Killian Butler they trailed by just three after 21 minutes, 0-5 to 0-2.
But when Ryan O’Donoghue fired home the game’s first goal, it preceded another six Mayo points – five of them by O’Donoghue – to send the visitors into the dressing-room with a 12 points advantage, their other points scored by Jack Carney and Aidan O’Shea, who broke Andy Moran’s all-time appearance record with this his 185th time to play league or championship football.
O’Shea could have marked it with a goal but for one of several excellent second-half saves by New York goalkeeper Joey Grace, who was eventually beaten a second-time when substitute Cillian O’Connor rattled home a 51st minute.
By then, however, Frank O’Reilly and homegrown captain Jamie Boyle had raised New York spirits with excellent goals but Mayo were never in any real danger, with Darren McHale and Paul Towey both making scoring contributions off the bench prior to O’Donoghue kicking Mayo’s final point of a game that will pale in comparison to what they can expect when faced by Roscommon at Dr Hyde Park in a fortnight’s time.
Scorers – Mayo: Ryan O’Donoghue 1-13 (0-8f, 0-1m), Cillian O’Connor 1-1 (1-0pen), Jack Carney 0-2, Aidan O’Shea (f), Paddy Durcan, Fergal Boland, Paul Towey and Darren McHale 0-1 each.
New York: Frank O’Reilly 1-2 (0-1m), Jamie Boyle 1-0, Killian Butler 0-2, Rob Wharton and Mikey Brosnan 0-1 each.
