How do they keep doing it? Every time we write Mayo off, they seem to be able to pull a massive result out of the bag.
It was no different in Castlebar this evening, where they overcame Donegal with four points to spare to book their place in the All-Ireland semi-final. We were surprised by the result, but we really should have known better.
Speaking in the Sky Sports studio after the game, Peter Canavan was incredibly impressed with Mayo's relentlessness and perseverance.
A lot of things went against Mayo for a five or 10 minutes spell at the start of the second half. The breaks went against them, I don't think it was a penalty, O'Shea got emptied, Hugh McFadden could have got sent off and wasn't, Jason Doherty got injured, and Mayo were missing chances.
You thought 'my god, Mayo are going to throw this away'. They had a big lead, and had to win the game a couple of times.
But you can't question their attitude, their fortitude, the way they went about their business. There wasn't one or two things that won it, it was right from the off. It was the tackling and the tenacity.
Mayo will now head into an All-Ireland semi-final a week from today, where they will face either Dublin or Kerry. Those two face off tomorrow, but based on current form and the teams named to start, you would expect The Dubs to get a result.
Unless Tyrone can get the win, Dublin will be Mayo's opponents.
They now have momentum going into the game, but it is a huge ask to turn things around after such a taxing affair in Castlebar.
Canavan believes that while Mayo will be dangerous, there is one thing that will ultimately stop them from reaching the All-Ireland final.
How can you not be worried with Mayo? The amount of people that thought they had no chance, that Donegal were playing the brilliant football. You never know what you're going to get with Mayo. If they can produce that energy and tenacity, then yes.
If they had a two week break, I'd be saying yes they have every chance. But because they have just a week to get over that, it's hard psychologically. Tomorrow, the day after, you're still thinking about today's game, about that atmosphere. That was special there.
They need to be switched on right away. They only have six days, so the turnaround is much too short. For that reason, I think it will go against them and they won't make it to an All-Ireland final.
