The key tactical battles that will decide Louth v Mayo
The Wee County take on Mayo in the All-Ireland SFC semi-final
Looking ahead to this evening, Louth will go toe to toe with Mayo in a bid to reach their first All Ireland Senior Football Championship final since 1957, a dream scenario which not many would have thought possible a few months ago.
Louth manager Gavin Devlin has already proven more than capable when it comes to setting out his tactical stall and match ups for a big game, and will need to be again, as Mayo carry an abundance of threats which simply cannot be ignored.
With both sides liking to press up on their opponents on kickouts, this should leave a plethora of space in the final third for both teams to thrive in attack.
Louth deserve huge credit for continuing to go after Monaghan in that quarter final win, pressing up on their opponents and backing themselves to win possession in the middle area, considering they were reduced to 14 players following Sean Callaghan’s early red card.
With both sides liking to press up on their opponents and force them to kick the ball long, the winning of this game could come down to who is willing to work that bit harder to win breaking ball in that middle sector on the long kickout, or emerge from those 50/50 jousts, which was famously described by Armagh manager Kieran McGeeney as “piggery” earlier this season.
In Callaghan’s absence, and Paul Matthews struggling with injury, Gavin Devlin is left with several options, with James Maguire possibly asked to return to centre field to partner Conor Early, and Ciaran Keenan introduced to the half forward line. Other centre field options include Tommy Durnin or Conall McCaul.
Despite missing Callaghan, and likely to be without Matthews, Louth still could have the upper hand in the air when it comes to competing for that ball from long kickouts, with Daire McDonnell also in fine form at centre back, having won back-to-back RTÉ player of the match awards in those memorable wins over Armagh and Monaghan.
Battles like Conor Early possibly going up against the hardworking Bob Touhy of Mayo promise to leave all attending Croke Park excited.
However, should Mayo gain the upper hand on kickouts, Andy Moran’s side are capable of causing Louth all kinds of trouble in attack with that early ball kicked in from players like Jack Carney into a forward line boasting former All Star, Ryan O’Donoghue, alongside teenage sensations, Darragh Beirne and Kobe McDonald, a forward line which accounted for 0-18 of their 0-23 against Cork in their quarter final win.
If Mayo work that early ball into that attacking line, the trio who like to operate outside the scoring arc, and pop up anywhere, with their sharp movement, will mean that Louth’s scrambled defence could be key to slowing down Mayo’s attack, and prevent it from getting into a rhythm.
Should O’Donoghue start at full forward, it is likely he will be picked up by Donal McKenny, which promises to be an intriguing battle.
It is also likely that the precocious talent of Kobe McDonald will be marked by Emmet Carolan, with Daire Nally possibly picking up Darragh Beirne.
Both McDonald and Berine have also proven useful further out the field, with Kobe McDonald’s magnificent catch from a kickout in that final quarter, setting them on their way to that five point win over Cork.
McDonald’s catch came when Mayo led by 0-15 to 0-14 and the game in the melting pot, leading to a score for Ryan O’Donoghue, as they eventually won 0-23 to 0-18.
In that game against Cork, Mayo’s Eoin McGreal picked up forward Chris Og Jones. When McGreal went off to a first half injury, half back Enda Hession marked Og Jones, another one v one joust which was interesting, with no quarter given from either player.
It is likely that Hession will have another high profile marking job, with Louth’s Craig Lennon a leading candidate as Mayo seek to combat the menacing pace and poise of the St Mochtas man, who has once again been a joy to watch this season.
Certainly who will Hession mark on Saturday will be another cause of interest. As for the rest, should McGreal come through his injury, it is likely he will be given the task of marking Sam Mulroy of Louth, with Donnacha McHugh taking Ryan Byrns and Jack Coyne marking Kieran McArdle.
David McBrien could pick up Ciaran Downey, but with Sam Callinan possibly deployed in a sweeper role for Mayo, who picks up Conor Grimes is another intriguing one, with Stephen Coen likely to be used in a deeper role for Mayo.
This game promises to be a hugely exciting semi final clash, with both sides feeling they can cause huge problems in the final third. Both teams will feel that if they are able to get that early ball into their lively inside lines and get through their opponent’s initial press, they are capable of creating big scoring chances.
Another key area is the subs’ bench. While Louth have had strong impacts here from players like Tadgh McDonnell and especially Ciaran Byrne, Mayo’s bench boasts players with huge experience, including, Aidan O’Shea, Matthew Ruane, Diarmuid O’Connor, Fergal Boland, while Tommy Conroy made a huge impact following his introduction against Cork.
This bench brings a perfect balance to the youth and vibrancy provided by players like Jack Livingstone, Kobe McDonald and Darragh Beirne in their debut season
While both have already played and flourished in Croke Park this season, Louth do have a slight upper hand in win
ning big games in Croke Park in recent times, with those wins over Monaghan and Dublin in this All Ireland series. While their Leinster triumph last year also shows they know how to win big games there.
Given all they have achieved this season, who is to say that the Wee County supporters will not be left celebrating in a sea of red and white on Saturday night?
Louth: Niall McDonnell; Emmett Carolan, Donal McKenny, Daire Nally; Conall McKeever, Dara McDonnell, Craig Lennon; Conor Early, James Maguire; Ciaran Keenan, Ciaran Downey, Conor Grimes; Kieran McArdle, Sam Mulroy, Ryan Burns.
Mayo: Jack Livingstone; Jack Coyne, Donnacha McHugh, Eoin McGreal; Sam Callinan, David McBrien, Enda Hession; Bob Tuohy, Jack Carney; Stephen Coen, Conor Loftus, Jordan Flynn; Darragh Beirne, Ryan O’Donoghue, Kobe McDonald