It’s only fitting that Mayo were the ones to tumble the Dublin empire

When the Dublin football empire finally tumbled, it was only fitting that Mayo were the ones cutting it down to size. No county had been persecuted more during a decade of unprecedented dominance or, conversely, came closest to derailing the Dubs juggernaut.

Over the past nine years, Mayo have gone toe to toe with Dublin in a series of compelling championship matches without recording a single victory. Despite taking gallantry, defiance and resilience to exceptional levels, the Connacht champions were never able to close the deal.

Mayo repeatedly died with their boots on, but own goals, controversial positional selections, bad breaks, and a lack of ruthlessness conspired against them when coming up against the greatest Gaelic football force ever known. Yet, they never backed away from the challenge.

Their own people worship them, and the neutrals greatly admire them, but Mayo’s search for a first All-Ireland title since 1951 has left our hearts broken for them. Imagine, they have lost every one of their last 12 appearances on football’s biggest day, including replays in 1996 and 2016. That appalling record would break most teams, but not Mayo.

Yet, another wretched afternoon for them at Croke Park appeared inevitable at half-time in Sunday’s All-Ireland semi-final. Not playing well, too defensively orientated and only registering four points in over 35 minutes of football, Mayo were in dire straits. They trailed by six at the break and it was difficult to see a way back for them.

Former Meath great and respected TV pundit Colm O’Rourke probably summed up the mood of the viewing public: “The game is over. We might as well all go home.” It was hard to disagree. There was a bounce back in Dublin’s step, almost if they had taken umbrage over the widespread perception that they were slipping after not running up their usual cricket scores when coming through Leinster.

For more, read this week’s Connacht Tribune.

Connacht Tribune Digital Edition App

Download the Connacht Tribune Digital Edition App to access to Galway’s best-selling newspaper.

Click HERE to download it for iPhone and iPad from Apple’s App Store, or HERE to get the Android Version from Google Play.

Or purchase the Digital Edition for PC, Mac or Laptop from Pagesuite  HERE.

Get the Connacht Tribune Live app The Connacht Tribune Live app is the home of everything that is happening in Galway City and county. It’s completely FREE and features all the latest news, sport and information on what’s on in your area. Click HERE to download it for iPhone and iPad from Apple’s App Store, or HERE to get the Android Version from Google Play.