There's no question that Cillian O'Connor is a key man for Mayo senior footballers, underlined by his 9 points for the Connacht champions of the past 4 seasons in their Salthill victory over arch rivals Galway.
Mayo senior footballers now march on towards a history making fifth Connacht title shot in a row on July 19.
The 4 in a row champions in the west had 4 points to spare over Galway at Peaese stadium where they emerged 1-15 to 2-8 winners in front of an attendance of 20,254.
Goals from Gary Sice and Danny Cummins weren't enough for the Tribesmen as Aidan O'Shea's goal at the start of the second half proved vital.
Both sides were reduced to 14 men after red cards for Lee Keegan and Finian Hanley in the second half in Salthill but it's Mayo who advance to face either Sligo or Roscommon next month now.
The location of Aidan O'Shea on the full forward line will cause a fair few problems for defenders tasked with marking him. Just ask Finian Hanley. The Breaffy man caused as much damage as the proverbial bull in a china shop in Salthill, but is that at the expense of his influence in midfield? Is it too high a price to pay to lose him from i lar na pairce? Or is this the Mayo response to the Kieran Donaghy missile that's in the Kerry arsenal? After all, the Star made his name in midfield.
O'Shea's move towards goal is obviously aimed at providing more Mayo firepower up front and a response to easing the scoring contributions expected of Cillian O Connor who is a virtual one man full forward unit given the averages of his personal tallies.
Whether mayo have enough in the squad to push into the September promised land this year is a question for later in the year but for now the question they must be asking themselves is, do we have enough options across the park for a plan B if plan A doesn't work? Take for example last year's All Ireland Final when Kerry boss Eamonn Fitzmaurice took out a blank page and tried completely new tactics for the clash with Donegal. We have yet to see who the new leaders are in the Mayo squad to bolster their claims on silverware and enhance the options provided by the team regulars. Plenty time for that this summer. One things for sure the fitness of Cillian O Connor will be key. Interesting insights provided by the man himself here.
