James Laffey

Ballina

Editor at Western People

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Articles

Too good to be feeling sorry for ourselves

4 weeks ago | westernpeople.ie | James Laffey

Four-in-a-row doesn’t quite have the same ring as five-in-a-row but it is consequential nonetheless, especially in Connacht where just seven teams had accomplished it up to last Sunday. Galway only managed it twice – their great three-in-a-row All-Ireland-winning side in the mid-1960s and a decade earlier when the legendary Seán Purcell inspired the Tribesmen to a five-in-a-row.
Middle third will decide Mayo's fate

1 month ago | westernpeople.ie | James Laffey

If Mayo’s senior footballers are going to defeat red-hot favourites Galway next Sunday they will have to do something they haven’t done in the Connacht championship to date: kick a two-pointer. Or, preferably, a few of them. It is somewhat astonishing to learn that of the seven teams who have contested the provincial championship in Connacht only Mayo have failed to score a two-pointer, either from a placed ball or open play.
Only championship will reveal our true standing - GAA - Western People

2 months ago | westernpeople.ie | James Laffey

The clocks may have gone forward by an hour on Sunday morning but Kerry looked like the only team in summertime mode in the National League Division One Final at Croke Park later in the day. While the Kingdom’s performance was far from perfect, they had the appearance of a side with one eye on the championship whereas Mayo regressed to the worst of their winter form, and the two teams might as well have been in different time zones in the final quarter such was the gulf in class.
Surreal final day leaves Mayo in bonus territory

2 months ago | westernpeople.ie | James Laffey

Mayo GAA fans are well used to rollercoaster rides but last Sunday’s topsy-turvy events in the National League were of the most extreme white-knuckle variety… even by Mayo standards. In the final ten minutes of a hitherto low-octane encounter against Donegal at MacHale Park, the fortunes of the home side swung wildly between relegation and a place in the Division One final, and ultimately the width of a crossbar decided Mayo’s fate.
League campaign is a tale of two halves

2 months ago | westernpeople.ie | James Laffey

If the Mayo senior footballers go on to enjoy a successful 2025, the half-time team-talk against Armagh on February 22nd will be viewed as the decisive turning point. The change in Mayo’s fortunes since that blistering second-half display against the All-Ireland champions is quite remarkable, propelling the team from relegation fodder to title contenders.
Green shoots at last as attacking verve returns - GAA - Western People

Mar 1, 2025 | westernpeople.ie | James Laffey

A point lost or a point gained? That was the question on the lips of most Mayo supporters at the end of the fourth-round National League tie against Armagh last Saturday evening. The draw was arguably the fairest outcome after a game in which the pendulum swung wildly between both teams but Mayo were out in front in the home straight and somehow allowed Armagh to sneak up the inside rail and grab a point at the death.
Mayo's scoring statistics paint a sorry picture

Feb 22, 2025 | westernpeople.ie | James Laffey

Things are bad when the most exciting moment in a half of football is the arrival of an ice-cream vendor. The cheery tune from the van momentarily lifted the prevailing gloom at MacHale Park on Sunday afternoon but it was a brief respite from the grim spectacle unfolding out on the pitch. The new rules were supposed to make Gaelic football more entertaining but nobody told Mayo and Tyrone as they served up a game so bad it is impossible to forget.
McStay’s team looks on a very slow learning curve - GAA - Western People

Feb 9, 2025 | westernpeople.ie | James Laffey

Long before the hooter sounded at MacHale Park, there were large pockets of blue in the stand as Mayo supporters opted to leave early, having correctly concluded that a drubbing at the hands of their oldest rivals was all that awaited them. I suspect some of these supporters still don’t have heat or electricity in their homes so it says something about their state of disillusionment that they opted to leave early.
Fortune favours Crossmolina in richly deserved victory - sport - Western People

Feb 1, 2025 | westernpeople.ie | James Laffey

The former Liverpool manager Jurgen Klopp once observed that football was ‘the most important of the least important things’. Klopp’s comment sprang to mind as we watched Conor Loftus bolting for the Croke Park tunnel having just kicked the winning penalty for his club in the All-Ireland Intermediate Football Final on Sunday.
Election 2024: Fianna Fáil poised to regain seat in Mayo

Nov 27, 2024 | westernpeople.ie | James Laffey

Constituency: Mayo No of seats: 5 Candidates (16): Dara Calleary (Fianna Fáil), Lisa Chambers (Fianna Fáil), Rose Conway-Walsh (Sinn Féin), Joe Daly (People Before Profit), Alan Dillon (Fine Gael), Mark Duffy (Fine Gael), Seán Forkin (Independent), Keira Keogh (Fine Gael), Martina Jennings (Fine Gael), Stephen Kerr (Independent), Paul Lawless (Aontú), Gerry Loftus (Independent), Chris Maxwell (Independent Ireland), Gerry Murray (Sinn Féin), Patsy O’Brien (Independent), Micheál ‘Boxty’...