Mayo's pre-season preparation took an unexpected hit earlier this month when London claimed a shock victory at the GAA Airdome in the FBD League.
London snatched a one-point win in the quarter-final tie and Kevin McStay's Mayo were left scratching their heads after defeat in their first game of 2024.
Unlike many of the counties that would consider themselves contenders for Sam Maguire at the end of the inter-county season, Mayo fielded a few of their most experienced players in their pre-season efforts.
One of those was Cillian O'Connor, who scored 1-2 of Mayo's 1-8 in that London defeat. He was one of a handful of familiar faces in a largely inexperienced Mayo team, with many prospects getting their first chance in a green and red jersey.
O'Connor spoke to Balls.ie and the Irish media to launch the Allianz Football League on Tuesday, and said that the London game would serve as a useful step on the learning curve for Mayo's youngsters - and said he was more than willing to step up as a leader as the squad evolves.
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Cillian O'Connor reflects on Mayo's FBD League defeat to London
Launch of the 2024 Allianz Football & Hurling Leagues, Glendalough, Wicklow 23/1/2024. Pictured is Mayo footballer, Cillian O’Connor at the launch of the 2024 Allianz Football League. The Allianz Football League provides an opportunity for all players to claim their spot in the county panel for the season ahead. The return of inter-county action, after a five-month break, also affords the teams competing a chance to showcase their strengths and lay down a marker to their county rivals.
Mandatory Credit ©INPHO/Dan Sheridan
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Though he himself could perhaps be content with his contribution from full forward against London, the outcome of Mayo's FBD League quarter-final cannot have been satisfying for Cillian O'Connor.
The two-time All-Star told the Irish media earlier this week that the excitement of getting back to action - and the novelty of playing in the Air Dome - quickly dissipated after the final whistle:
I'd say lads were excited to get back into competitive action. There was a buzz about getting a game so early in January and also the novelty of getting a game in the dome added to it too.
We would have liked to have put up a bigger score and to have kept them out more. Overall, we wanted more games in the FBD and that was the most disappointing.
Nonetheless, nobody will be getting carried away with a pre-season defeat, especially with several of the senior members of Mayo's squad still to return.
Entering his 14th season as an intercounty footballer, Cillian O'Connor will most certainly be one of those senior players expected to step up as a leader for the new generation - a role he says he is sitting nicely into.
7 January 2024; Cillian O'Connor of Mayo reacts after his side's defeat in the Connacht FBD League quarter-final match between Mayo and London at University of Galway Connacht GAA AirDome in Bekan, Mayo. Photo by Tyler Miller/Sportsfile
O'Connor was keen to emphasise that he feels the defeat to London can be a positive experience for the Mayo youth in the long-term, and has driven that point home in conversation with the younger players:
You don't consciously decide that you're going to force conversations with lads, but it probably does happen naturally in the dressing room that you find yourself chatting with younger players. Almost everyone you sit beside is a younger player now!
You do strike up those kind of conversations. If we lose a training game and we're sitting beside each other we're pissed off. Yeah we would have had a few chats after the [London] match. A lot of our players, it might have been their first time representing Mayo... it's all part of a learning curve.
Obviously we were very disappointed not to have won the game but it's the same as anything, we reviewed it, management facilitated a review, went through it and we know certain parts weren't good enough.
I don’t think age necessarily dictates whether you’re a leader or not, there’s guys on the panel of all ages who have those qualities and have developed them over a couple of years...there’s plenty of voices across the squad of different ages. If somebody comes to me for a steer or for a question, I do enjoy helping lads.
The non-stop nature of the split-season has left many heads mangled by the fact that the 2024 Allianz Football League is mere days away - O'Connor included.
Mayo were Division One champions last year, thanks to a narrow victory over arch-rivals Galway in the final last April - and the first round this year brings an enticing reunion between the two Connacht giants.
Week two will see Mayo host All-Ireland champions Dublin in Castlebar, before a trip to Tralee in round three. It is almost as tough an opening as one could have concocted - but O'Connor says that Mayo are relishing getting back to action:
It’s really exciting. If you’re looking at pre-season a couple of months ago and the fixture list comes out…it’s very easy to get back to work and get back to training during the week and get back to your gym programmes when you know those kinds of games are on the horizon.
I think everyone is excited. Regardless of who you got in the first few games, division one is so competitive that any first three games was always going to be those kinds of fixtures. We're looking forward to it now, and it’s going to come thick and fast.
Galway v Mayo gets underway in Salthill on Sunday afternoon at 1:45pm, with live coverage on TG4.
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