Every week, Chris Coady will cast his eye over the main talking points from the weekend’s Allianz Football League fixtures.
In this entry, he discusses Mayo's struggles against Dublin, Waterford's weak form, Cathal McShane's decision to stay in Ireland, and Down's victory over Ulster rivals Derry.
Green and RED of Mayo
The last thing you need when you have the Dubs coming to visit you on your home patch is to be taking them on minus a man.
That was the case for Mayo last weekend after the 14 minutes, when Jordan Flynn tackled with a high shoulder and unfortunately saw red for his efforts, which was somewhat harsh in the moment.
Mayo held on to stay level with the All-Ireland champions but the workload with a man down took its toll in the final quarter as Dessie Farrell claimed his first win as the Dubs manager and many more to come with that.
It leaves Mayo in the relegation zone for the moment and next they face the only team below them in the table, Meath, in Navan next Sunday.
Although it’s as early as game three, this has to go down as a relegation four-pointer.
Déise Vu
Waterford fell to a second straight league defeat of 2020 after a footballing lesson against Wicklow in Aughrim on Sunday.
They managed to be level just once with the Garden county and trailed for long periods of the game, managing a measly seven points in Sunday's match.
Only Longford lie below the men in blue and white after two games, courtesy of score difference.
Paul Galvin’s Wexford come to Dungarvan on Saturday evening with their tails up after a first win over Carlow and I can see them piling more misery on a weak Waterford.
We Want You To Stay
Tyrone have been boosted by the massive news that their star man of 2019, Cathal Mcshane has made a complete u-turn in his decision to play AFL in Australia and its staying at home for 2020.
Their talisman picked up 3-50 along the way in their nine game championship run last summer which saw them reach the semi-finals in Croker, and he also picked up and All-Star for his efforts.
Kerry come to visit this weekend, and while I can’t see McShane making a return that quickly, he will have a big say in the Red Hand’s 2020.
Up Down
Having drawn their opening game of the league campaign, Down went on to record their first win of the year when they travelled to Ulster rivals Derry and took the two points on offer on a score line of 0-14 to 0-12.
Massive confidence will be taken from this victory and it means they’re in a promotion scrap early on with Cork, Longford and Tipperary.
Exciting Times for a Down supporter.