11 years later and Mayo are still wondering how they can counteract the threat posed by Kieran Donaghy. The Tralee man scored 1-2 as Kerry easily won the 2006 All-Ireland final against Mayo.
Three years ago, he came off the bench - previously thought a spent force - in what looked like a final throw of the dice from Eamon Fitzmaurice in the All-Ireland semi-final. Donaghy plucked several balls from the air, the most vital of which led to a crucial James O'Donoghue goal as Kerry came from five points down with five minutes remaining to take the game to a replay.
Despite seeing the damage Donaghy's cameo caused in the drawn game, Mayo failed to develop an effective plan for him starting the replay. The partnership of Donaghy and James O'Donoghue in the Kerry full forward line caused chaos in an all-time great game at the Gaelic Grounds in Limerick, one which Kerry won after extra time.
As Kerry once again head into a major game against Mayo, Donaghy looks more dangerous than ever. Against Galway, his goal showed an unexpected mobility. It's not just Donaghy's ability to fetch the ball Mayo will have to worry about but also his goal threat.
Speaking on Newstalk's Off The Ball this week, former Mayo footballer David Brady reiterated an opinion he had first expressed over the weekend. His idea to counteract Donaghy: have Aidan O'Shea mark him.
If Mayo win the game and Aidan O'Shea marked Donaghy, would they have any complaints? No.
In every single game we've lost against them, Kieran Donaghy has caused Mayo untold damage because we haven't fought fire with fire.
As with suggestions that Lee Keegan should man mark Donaghy, having Aidan O'Shea stuck in the fullback line would be viewed as a boon to hopes in the Kingdom - two of Mayo's most potent weapons as far from the Kerry goal as possible.
On Off The Ball last night, Billy Joe Padden said that Brady's idea was not the worst but that it did not give Mayo the best chance of winning. He added that Donie Vaughan would likely be the man Mayo will deploy in an attempt to nullify Donaghy.
It's the worst idea in terms of Aidan O'Shea probably has as close a skill set as a player would need in terms of keeping Donaghy quiet because he's such a good ball winner. I don't think it's the right thing to do; I don't think it gives Mayo the best chance of winning the game by playing him in that area of the field. I think we need Aidan O'Shea on the ball as often as possible in around that middle third.
That's not saying you don't need to put a specific plan together for Donaghy, you do. I think they will have something.
While Padden could see some merit in Brady's suggestion, former Kerry midfielder Mike Quirke could not.
I think playing Aidan O'Shea at fullback is the craziest thing I've heard in a long time from a Mayo perspective. Kerry would be absolutely ecstatic to sees the likes of Aidan O'Shea wasted at fullback. If ten balls are kicked in between O'Shea and Donaghy, they're probably still going to get five each. You're still going to get scores while Mayo are after losing their most effective attacking weapon in [having] Aidan O'Shea further up the field.
Picture credit: Sportsfile
