Inside Track with John McIntyre

Galway are understandably strong favourites to capture a fourth consecutive Connacht senior football title at MacHale Park on Sunday and through some observers think they are ten points a better team than arch-rivals Mayo, the record books suggest its fanciful to be thinking of a Tribesmen romp.

In their four final triumphs over Mayo over the past 25 years, Galway never won by more than four points (1-14 to 0-13 in 2003), while they carried the day two years later on a 0-10 to 0-8 scoreline. In 2008 and 12 months ago, only a solitary point separated Connacht’s dominant forces.

When you also factor in that when Mayo came out on top by the minimum margin in the provincial finals of 2006 and 2009, it shows the margins between these two teams is more often than not wafer thin on Connacht football’s biggest occasion. Will the 2025 decider be any different?

In the build up to the final, a lot is being made of Mayo’s league final trimming by Kerry before unconvincing championship wins over Sligo and Leitrim. Rewind to 12 months ago and Galway’s lucky escape against the Yeats County in Markievicz Park and yet the men in maroon were kicking themselves 13 weeks later for not winning the All-Ireland title.

It just underlines the risk involved in summing up a team’s worth based on a couple of their previous displays. Sure, Mayo are not playing well and remain far too dependent on Ryan O’Donoghue and an admittedly rejuvenated Aidan O’Shea for forward inspiration, but they will relish having a cut at the auld enemy on Sunday.

If Matthew Ruane is on a going day around midfield and defenders Sam Callinan, Enda Hession and David McBrien are at their vigilant best as well, Kevin McStay’s team are well capable of rising to the occasion in front of their own supporters, but there remains a suspicion that they are there for the taking on Sunday.

We had assumed that Galway were breaking new ground by reaching a tenth successive Connacht final, but they have gone one better twice before (from 1933 to ’43 and from 1956 to ’66) and I guess in a province where you have only three realistic contenders, it’s not a huge deal.

Pictured: Galway defender TJ Brennan picking off one of his three second half points against Offaly in the Leinster senior hurling championship in Tullamore on Saturday evening. Photo: Joe O’Shaughnessy.