Once again, Mayo's Allianz League form has been questionable at best. They face Donegal today in a relegation decider with just two points separating the sides.
It has not been an easy campaign for Stephen Rochford. He was without Keith Higgins due to hurling commitments, Lee Keegan missed the opening of the campaign due to injury, returned and suffered another injury. They were over-powered by Galway in a warm-up for May's Championship opener and as far as Marc Ó Sé is concerned, there is no hope for them now.
Writing in his Irish Mail on Sunday column, Ó Sé declares 'Mayo are fraying at the edges; there is no hope left for them at this stage.'
The question is not whether Mayo will survive today, but rather how they will cope with relegation. I am sorry if I am crushing the hopes of Mayo supporters, who will no doubt travel in their big numbers to Ballybofey.
The bulk of Ó Sé's concern is the 'ticking time bomb of a body clock."
They will lose today, but even if somehow the survivor instinct gets them across the line, it won't change the truth that they are living on borrowed time.
He is not the only Kerryman to pose questions about this Mayo team's chances. Last week on the Sunday Game, Pat Spillane criticised the side as "one-dimensional" with several question marks over their future.
It is not the first time Mayo have been in this position. Last season they were also threatened by relegation until pulling it out of the fire with wins in their last two league games. They went on to make an All-Ireland final.
In 2016, they went into the last round in the exact same position with only two wins from the campaign. They beat Down and went on to force Dublin to a replay in the All-Ireland final.
Time will tell if they can go to the well once more.
You can read Marc Ó Sé's piece in today's Irish Mail on Sunday.
