Mayo Must Learn from 2004 and 2006 to Challenge Kerry in All-Ireland Final
Conor Mortimer has warned Mayo that the scars of 2004 and 2006 must shape their approach if they are to rip up the script against hot favourites Kerry in Sunday’s All-Ireland final at Croke Park.
The former Mayo sharpshooter knows exactly how ruthless the Kingdom can be on the biggest stage. He lived it.
Haunted by Kerry’s fast starts
Under John Maughan in 2004, Mayo were eight points down to Kerry by the 25th minute. The contest was effectively gone long before the final whistle in a 1-20 to 2-09 defeat.
Two years later, the damage came even quicker. Kerry smashed in 2-04 in the opening 13 minutes of the 2006 final and cruised to a 13-point win over a Mayo side then managed by Mickey Moran. Mortimer, who finished that championship as top scorer and collected an All-Star, could only watch as another final slipped away before it had properly begun.
Those memories are still doing the talking for him.
Speaking on RTÉ Radio 1’s Inside Sport, he pointed straight at the pattern: Kerry killing games early, Mayo chasing ghosts.
He also highlighted last year’s final, when Kerry blitzed Donegal and led 0-13 to 0-04 before the 20-minute mark. Same story. Same ruthless acceleration.
For Mortimer, that is the warning flare.
“Take it to Kerry from the start”
Mortimer believes Mayo cannot afford a cautious opening this time. No feeling their way in. No deference.
He dismissed the idea that the first task is to simply settle.
For Mayo to have any real chance, he argued, they must go straight at Kerry from the throw-in, deny them time on the ball, and refuse to let them dictate the rhythm of the game. Allow Kerry to control possession and shape, and you spend the afternoon trying to prise it back from one of the most composed outfits in the country.
He expects Andy Moran’s side to try to stamp their identity on the contest early: aggressive breaking around midfield, fast delivery inside, and trust in the forwards to finish the job.
The question is whether they can do it against a team hunting a 40th All-Ireland title.
History, odds and a sliver of belief
The numbers underline the scale of Mayo’s task. Kerry start as heavy favourites. Mayo, chasing a first Sam Maguire since 1951 and only a fourth in their history, have beaten Kerry just six times in 30 championship meetings.
There is, however, a recent glimmer. Mayo’s last championship clash with Kerry ended in a 1-19 to 0-17 win for the Connacht men in the 2023 round-robin series. It was not Croke Park in September, but it was proof that this group can stand up to the Kingdom.
Mortimer leans on that, but only to a point. His real hope lies deeper in the game.
Dragging Kerry “down the stretch”
If Mayo can avoid the early ambush, Mortimer wants to see Kerry taken somewhere they rarely go in finals: into a tight, frantic last 10 minutes with questions still to answer.
“I’d like to see Kerry tested in the last 10 minutes,” he said, backing Mayo to have “enough” if the game remains in the balance heading into the closing stages.
He sees two clear paths.
If it’s tight late on, he believes Mayo can edge it, especially if their younger players settle into the occasion and play with freedom. If Kerry find an extra gear, as they did against Dublin in the semi-final, he fears Mayo will be in trouble.
One matchup looms large in his mind. Paudie Clifford, man of the match in that semi-final, cannot be allowed the same space or influence. Mortimer expects Mayo to be “a lot, lot tighter” on him than Dublin managed.
Despite the weight of history and the bookmakers’ view, he pins his colours firmly to the Green and Red mast. He is calling it for Mayo, but only just.
Very tight. A point, maybe two.
For a county that has carried so much All-Ireland heartbreak, the message from one of their own is stark: learn from the Kerry storms of 2004 and 2006, or risk being blown away by another.
