Old master or hot hand: O’Connor gives Mayo free choice

McStay wouldn’t even be considering who takes the frees, except O’Connor is one of the all-time great Mayo players and one of the most reliable freetakers of his generation

O’Connor has now started back-to-back matches for the first time in 25 Mayo games stretching back to the 2022 All-Ireland quarter-final, and aside from that championship campaign his last consecutive starts came just over three years ago.

Mayo have had to start without him for 35 of the 43 league and championship games since his Achilles tendon rupture during the 2021 league semi-final against Clare.

Nevertheless, over that three-year period, he has still scored 4-44. With 2-32 coming in his eight starts, 1-10 of which from play, and 2-12 off the bench including 0-10 from play or marks. Across 15 appearances as a substitute.

This year, despite his limited involvement – he’s started just three of 12 games – O’Connor is Mayo’s second top scorer with 3-12 (0-09 from play) across league and championship. And he is their second top scoring forward from play in the 2024 championship with 0-07. Stats which highlight how sharp and clinical O’Connor has been despite his lack of minutes and momentum, but furthermore the low scoring impact of Mayo’s forward unit as a whole.

Aside from O’Donoghue’s 1-15, which is 25% of Mayo’s total from play, the Mayo forwards have scored 1-23 from play so far this championship. The midfielders and backs have accounted for 1-24. Across league and championship six of Mayo’s top 10 scorers from play have not been forwards, including two of their top five with Matthew Ruane fourth on 1-09.

Mayo need more scoring impact from their forward line to keep in touch with the likes of Dublin as the game progresses, and to lift the pressure off O’Donoghue.

In his two starts this championship, O’Connor has hit the ground running with 0-05 from play as well as assisting 0-03. He had 27 possessions against Cavan and before coming off after 53 minutes against Roscommon – shortly after kicking a rare point for Mayo from beyond the 45m line – he had 19 possessions.

The two-time Young Footballer of the Year provides so much leadership and experience in general play, but along with his scoring he is also a brilliant tackler. And in each game secured a turnover/interception in the full-forward line. A key aspect of Mayo’s play over the past 10 years, thanks in no small part to him.

Of his eight shots across the two matches, six were from outside the scoring zone, which for a team who so typically struggle to create straightforward scoring chances, having a forward who can make his own by shooting from distance is a valuable addition.

This goes for frees too. While O’Donoghue has been 22 from 22, none of his frees have been any further out than 35m (his extra quick run-up also buys him an extra few yards and a kinder angle). The Belmullet man kicks a lot of the frees from the right side as well as the left, but aside from him O’Connor scored a penalty against New York, Aidan O’Shea has kicked a free from out by the right wing and goalkeeper Colm Reape has missed a free from distance.