Former Mayo football manager James Horan has criticised the Mayo County Board for not forcefully objecting to the choice of the Gaelic Grounds as the venue for the All-Ireland SFC semi-final replay against Kerry.

In his first interview since stepping down, Horan told the Western People: "I couldn't believe it at first.

"Croke Park is the place where everyone wants to play - it's the place where the big games should be played and suddenly we were packed off to Limerick.

"Kerry had played there regularly and were well used to the place and we, rightly, questioned why it hadn't been scheduled for Thurles or another venue if it had to be taken out of Croke Park.

"But the most unbelievable part of the whole matter was the fact that our own county board didn't come out and say something when the President of the GAA told Mayo to stop complaining and concentrate on the game if they knew what was good for them.

"I can't understand how they didn't stand up for the team at that stage. They should have, but there was no comment whatsoever and that was very disappointing."

Horan admitted his relationship with the top table was often strained during his four years at the helm.

"Resources are a number of different things and I mentioned that at the end of the 2012 and 2013 seasons.

"Having proper resources isn't just about money - it's about set-up, it's about having people working together and it's about having the right people that you need.

"Of course money is a big part of it but mainly people need to work together for the betterment of Mayo football and it's fairly clear that this didn't always happen.

"Is it possible that the county board and the structures could be better aligned to give the team a better chance of success? The answer to that would be yes. That's something that needs to be looked at. We don't have the resources of other teams and there were many debates to ensure that the team had everything that they needed."

The Ballintubber clubman also voiced his annoyance with the local media and accused certain elements of hoping that Mayo would fail rather than succeed.

"I think there's a massive difference between national and local media. Overall the national media are balanced, fair and consistent, but I think the local media, particularly in 2014, have been determined to tear things down.

"Sometimes I felt that there were people who would rather see us fail than succeed and I can't for the life of me figure out why that is, but you just have to deal with it, refocus and get on with it.

"We had been on the road for four years at that stage and it's laughable to suggest that we had no plan to deal with a situation, but those kind of comments don't bother me.

"I've heard suggestions that we should have put the two O'Sheas or David Clarke on (Donaghy) with Barry (Moran) in goal and Jason Gibbons sweeping in front of him. Mad stuff.

"Look, forget all this talk. We had numerous plans to deal with all situations and Ger Cafferkey is a superb full-back, end of story. The supply of ball into their full-forward line was the problem.

"However it's time to let that go and move on."

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