Five things that Andy Moran must do as he gets the nod to manage Mayo

Irish Daily Mirror

15 hours ago

Mayo's managerial search may have started unceremoniously with the callous removal of Kevin McStay, but at least they've wrapped it up in a more timely fashion this time.
Last year, it was 92 days after their Championship exit before it was confirmed that McStay would be continuing into the third of what was a four-year term.
This time they managed to roughly cut it in half, with Moran announced as the preferred choice some 47 days after McStay was 'relieved' from the role, even if some elements of the process were unwieldy.
Moran, who has had a stint as Leitrim manager and coached Monaghan this year, will be ratified as manager at the next county board meeting, with former teammate Colm Boyle and ex-Derry and Down boss Paddy Tally working under him and more likely to be added in due course.
Here are some of the boxes that he will look to tick over the course of his reign.
Get back on top in Connacht
Mayo's last Connacht title came in 2021, with Galway reigning supreme out west ever since. Their defeat to their near neighbours in this year's Connacht final was particularly hard to take and effectively spelled the end for the management team led by Kevin McStay.
Ultimately, Moran will have his sights set much higher than merely re-establishing provincial supremacy, but if he is to build a Mayo side that is capable of competing at the back end of the Championship then he realistically needs to win locally first.
Failure to win Connacht in 2026 would represent Mayo's longest stretch without the Nestor Cup since the famine of 1969-81.
Turn Castlebar into a fortress
Galway's win over Mayo this year was their fourth in succession in the Championship at Hastings Insurance MacHale Park.
Cavan came to town two weeks later and recorded their first Championship win over them since 1948. It was a result from which Mayo's season ultimately couldn't recover, despite a heroic win over Tyrone subsequently.
Last year, Mayo were pinned back by Derry, who were struggling badly at the time, in a preliminary quarter-final in front of their own fans and eventually lost on penalties.
Two years ago, Roscommon sacked Castlebar the week after Mayo won the League title, a defeat that sent their season into something of a tailspin, even if there were notable victories over Kerry and Galway thereafter.
Their home League form has been patchy at best over the years too.
Although there will be a fresh structure to the All-Ireland series in 2026, by and large, counties are playing more home Championship games these days and a team with serious ambitions cannot sustain the number of home defeats that Mayo have been shipping in recent years.
There seems to be a certain disconnect between the Mayo supporters and the team on the back of the 2021 All-Ireland final defeat to Tyrone, but Moran, one of the county's most heroic figures, will surely have some sort of galvanising effect.
Entice Cillian O'Connor back Cillian O'Connor of Mayo (Image: Mandatory Credit ©INPHO/James Lawlor)
Mayo were down a lot of key players this year, largely due to injury which was unfortunate but should work itself out in time and is largely out of Moran's hands.
Something he can exert control over, however, is getting Cillian O'Connor back on board. It was notable that the 33-year-old, who is the top scorer in Championship history, didn't announce his retirement last year, rather that he was taking a year out.
Successful comebacks at O'Connor's age are the exception but Moran himself played his best football at 33, winning Footballer of the Year in 2017, and the Ballintubber man surely has something to offer still, even if off the bench, where Mayo have lacked impact in recent seasons.
O'Connor is Dublin-based and has an extensive history of injury, so it would be a big ask, but Moran will surely put the question at least and their history as teammates may well be enough to elicit a favourable response.
Get to the bottom of Mayo's inability to see out games
In last year's Championship, Mayo were in winning positions in injury time against Galway, Dublin and Derry, yet failed to win any of those games.
This year, they fought back to draw level with Donegal just before the buzzer with a draw enough to see them into the knockout stages, but the Ulster champions were still able to fashion a winner through Ciaran Moore to put them out. Galway edged them in a tight finish to the Connacht final as well.
A different result in perhaps even one of those games and McStay's reign may be reflected on rather differently. Indeed, he might even still be in the job.
But there have been enough what-ifs around Mayo football for the past number of decades and Moran must develop a ruthless streak in clutch moments to ensure that they finish on the right side of these results more often than has been the case. Andy Moran as Monaghan coach last season (Image: ©INPHO/James Lawlor)
Win the All-Ireland
It's a high bar but, ultimately, isn't that what it's all about?
When going for the job, Moran will have privately entertained the prospect of being the manager that bridges the gap to 1951, no more than all of those that have gone before him.
It's a lofty ambition, but not unrealistic. The playing field is relatively level at the moment in terms of the contenders. Kerry may have romped to the All-Ireland in the end but they don't carry a fearsome reputation akin to the Dublin team of the 2010s just yet.
All of the other quarter-finalists are teams within Mayo's reach and, indeed, they would start as favourites to beat some of them.
This year they were without Paddy Durcan, Tommy Conroy, Eoghan McLaughlin and Diarmuid O'Connor for significant stretches, while Cillian O'Connor, James Carr and Conor Loftus weren't involved for various other reasons.
If Moran has all of those fit and firing, and can tap into the new rules more to his side's advantage than has been the case, then Mayo should be a much sturdier proposition next year.
Nobody should be demanding an All-Ireland in 2026, particularly with Mayo having played only one Championship game at Croke Park in the past three seasons, and a heavy defeat to Dublin in 2023 at that, but getting back there on a more regular basis will be a minimum requirement for Moran.
Once he does that, Mayo are as entitled to dream big as anyone else.