Mayo's Gaelic football team has won the All-Ireland Senior Football Championship for the first time in 75 years, defeating Kerry in the final at Croke Park in Dublin. The victory ends a prolonged period of near-misses and dispels a longstanding myth that a curse had prevented the county from winning the Sam Maguire Cup.
Historic victory ends long drought
Mayo had not won the cup since 1951, despite reaching the final 11 times since 1989. In three of those finals, they lost by a single point. The repeated defeats gave rise to the hopeful mantra “Mayo for SAM,” chanted by supporters including former US President Joe Biden during a visit to his ancestral home county.
The win came as a shock to many fans, who emerged from the stadium in disbelief. Patrick Devaney, 32, from Knock, said: “I can’t believe it, I’ve seen them lose so many times, I just can’t believe it. I’ve been at nearly every other final Mayo were in, so I can’t believe it. Twelve finals they’ve lost in my lifetime. I can’t believe it.” Asked if he thought they would win, he added: “A hail Mary chance, yes. I believed in the curse until about 15 minutes ago.”
The curse that haunted Mayo
The so-called curse dates back to 1951, when it was said that the winning team had not shown respect to a funeral they passed on their homecoming route. A relative of the deceased allegedly placed a curse that Mayo would not win the Sam Maguire until every member of the 1951 team had died. The last surviving member reportedly died in 2021.
The curse has been criticised as disrespectful to the 1951 team, and its factual basis questioned, with some dismissing it as an excuse for poor performance. Nonetheless, many fans believed in it. Rachel Neeson, from Co Antrim but with family from Kilmovee, described the win as a “dream come true.” She said: “I did believe in the curse. I believe in curses, I believe in cures. Today, they got the cure!”
Joy and disbelief among supporters
Paul Murphy, who travelled from Manchester with his sons Feidhlim, 11, and Odhran, 13, said: “I went into the game with quiet confidence. The first 10 minutes was a killer, I just thought, is it 2004 or 2006 all over again? But then Mayo came back, they stuck at it, they were resilient, they never let it go.” Asked what they planned to do next, he replied: “To be honest we don’t know what to do with ourselves. We’re not used to being at the end of a favourable result, frankly.”
Mattie Joe Connolly and his wife Bernie attributed the change in fortunes to youth. Connolly noted that his grand nephew Darragh Beirne scored the goal for Mayo. He said: “They came here to Croke Park, they weren’t afraid to come here and they weren’t awed by the big occasion, those young guys.” Bernie added: “Today was worth waiting for, it was fantastic.”
Captain calls for pride
In the victory speech, captain Jack Coyne told the crowd: “Never stop dreaming. Stick your chest out and be proud to be from Mayo. The wait is over, SAM is home.”
