Mayo Must Confront Past Scars to Defeat Kerry

Conor Mortimer has warned Mayo that if they are to rip up the script against Kerry on Sunday, they must first confront the scars of 2004 and 2006.

The former Mayo forward lived those bruising All-Ireland final defeats from inside the storm. He knows exactly what happens when you let Kerry settle, when you blink in the opening exchanges and the Kingdom smell blood.

Old wounds, clear warning

Under John Maughan in 2004, Mayo were eight points down by the 25th minute. The contest was effectively gone long before the 1-20 to 2-09 scoreline was inked into the record books.

Two years later it was even more ruthless. Kerry rattled in 2-04 in the first 13 minutes, tore through a Mayo side then managed by Mickey Moran and cruised to a 13-point win. Mortimer, who finished as top scorer in that 2006 championship and collected an All-Star, watched another All-Ireland drift away before it had really begun.

Those memories colour his view of what Mayo must do now.

Speaking on RTÉ Radio 1's Inside Sport, he pointed straight at those early collapses – and at last year’s final, when Kerry blew Donegal away before most people had settled into their seats.

"Ultimately if Mayo are to use anything for this, I mean they look at '04, '06, and what Kerry did to Donegal last year in the first 10 minutes of the All-Ireland, it was over," he said.

Kerry led Donegal 0-13 to 0-04 before the 20th minute in that decider. The pattern was familiar: Kerry out fast, Kerry in control, everyone else chasing shadows.

Hit Kerry first – or chase all day

Mortimer is convinced Mayo cannot afford to tiptoe into this final.

"I know people are saying about settling things down and, you know, being cool in the first period of the game, but I think for Mayo to have a real chance in this game they're going to have to take it to Kerry from the start," he said.

"Don't give Kerry any time to implement their control of the game or the way they play, because if you let them control the ball, you're going to have a job to get it back."

The message is blunt. Mayo must impose themselves early, not react.

"I think Mayo are probably going to try to implement their style early on, breaking around the midfield and getting ball to them guys inside and let them do the job after that."

It is a tactical blueprint rooted in experience. Win the breaks. Get quick ball into the forwards. Ask questions of Kerry before Kerry start dictating the terms.

History and weight of expectation

Kerry arrive at Croke Park as heavy favourites to claim a 40th All-Ireland title. That number alone underlines the scale of the task facing Andy Moran’s side.

Mayo, chasing just a fourth Sam Maguire and a first since 1951, carry a very different history – one of near-misses and heartbreak, many of them at Kerry’s hands.

The Connacht side have won only six of 30 previous championship meetings with the Kingdom. There is at least a recent glimmer of hope: their last clash ended in a Mayo victory, 1-19 to 0-17, in a round-robin tie in 2023.

That result showed Mayo can trouble Kerry. Doing it in a final, with the weight of history pressing down, is another challenge entirely.

Drag Kerry into deep water

Mortimer believes Mayo’s best chance lies in stretching Kerry into the final minutes, forcing them to answer questions they have not had to face often enough on the biggest stage.

"I'd like to see Kerry tested in the last 10 minutes," said the Shrule-Glencorrib man.

"I would expect that Mayo would have enough if it's tight going into the last [stages]."

He sees two clear paths.

"Ultimately, it can go two ways: if it's tight, I'm going for Mayo to obviously win it.

"If, on the other hand, Kerry kind of turn it on, up it a gear from the semi-final they played against Dublin, then Mayo will probably be in trouble."

So much hinges on how Mayo deal with Kerry’s key men, and one name in particular.

"You'd expect Mayo to be a lot, lot tighter on Paudie [Clifford, man of the match] than Dublin were in the semi-final."

Clamp down on Clifford, contest every ball around the middle, stay in the fight until the closing stretch – that is the route Mortimer sees to an upset.

And despite the odds, he is willing to nail his colours to the mast.

"So look, I'm going for a Mayo win. Very, very tight.

"If our young lads settle, we can certainly win the game by a point or two points."

For Mayo, it comes down to this: learn from the pain of 2004 and 2006, or risk reliving it all over again.