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Andy Moran says he’s concerned that some of Mayo’s most experienced players didn’t see enough playing time before the start of the Connacht SFC on Sunday.
James Horan on Friday named a team showing seven championship debutants for the clash with Leitrim at Avantcard Páirc Seán Mac Diarmada.
The Greens over the Reds were relegated from Division 1 of the Allianz League last Sunday, despite two good performances in their matches since the restart.
Moran, who made 182 appearances for the Westerners in a 17-season inter-county race, expects Mayo to overcome Sunday’s hurdle, but has his concerns heading into the possible provincial semifinal with Roscommon the following weekend.
“Usually after a game like the one we’re having on Sunday, if you win that, you’ll have three or four weeks until your next game,” he said on RTÉ’s Game On.
“It’s just that it’s so fast now, I’m a little scared. When you’re trying to prepare for a really important game … you know yourself, no matter what sport you’re in.
“Sometimes you need one game, maybe two, to get it right. But if you look at players like Donal Vaughan, Chris Barrett, Seamus O’Se, Tom Parsons, they literally haven’t played a minute since we came back from lockdown.
“With the youth, it’s absolutely brilliant, such a joyful experience for them. It’s great for May football to produce players like Tommy Conroy and Ryan O’Donoghue, really good players.
“I would worry that in a week these guys are not well cooked to get into a really big game.”
Speaking on the same show, Kildare’s great Johnny Doyle said that for Horan, it’s about making his team as competitive as possible, with bigger trials to come.
“I am not ruling out Leitrim because it is a two-horse race,” he said.
“As we all know, anything can happen. I think James Horan will probably look to create a bit of competition within May within that team.
“He’ll be saying to new players, ‘I know we have the All-Stars on the bench … they already have the jersey, hold on. Make sure Tom Parsons, or whoever, doesn’t have it.” Just come and take it off. ‘
“If you can create that competition, it is also a very strong place to be.”
Follow Leitrim v Mayo through our blog live or watch it live on the RTÉ News channel, Sunday, 1:15 p.m.
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