After so many bitter disappointments for teams from the county on the big stage, Keith Higgins from Ballyhaunis had the distinction of being the first man in 21 years to captain a Mayo intercounty team to All-Ireland glory. On May 7 2006, the dual player led the Green & Red to a superb 1-13 to 1-11 victory over favourites Cork in the Erin All-Ireland U21 FC final at Cusack Park in Ennis. He was subsequently voted Connacht GAA Writers Personality of the month so, naturally, Hogan Stand decided to have a chat… Mayo took a lot of flak over the years. They had lost 13 All-Ireland finals in all grades since claiming the minor crown way back in 1985 and the U21 class of 2006 was determined to set the record straight. This they achieved in stellar fashion with a series of stunning performances to bring glory back to a traditional gaelic football stronghold. The win could be a catalyst for more glory. With the pressure off, who knows what Mayo are capable of achieving during the months and years ahead? It had been 23 years since the county last scooped the national U21 title, so there were many gaps to be bridged by the heroes who took to the Ennis turf to face Cork on the first Sunday of May, 2006. Cork dominated the first half to take a 0-7 to 0-4 interval lead. They also registered the first point of the second half to assume a double-scores lead. But 1-4 without reply put Mayo in the boss seat. Midfielder Seamus O'Se won a penalty six minutes after the turnaround and finished emphatically to the net at the second attempt after Cork keeper Ken O'Halloran had excellently saved the original effort. Amazingly, a Conroy point then had the westerners level seven minutes into the second half. Cork made a fight of it but, with the bit between their teeth, Mayo were not to be denied. The Connacht champions gradually got on top and were full value for their two-point victory. Unsurprisingly, Mayo captain Keith Higgins was delighted that he and his team-mates managed to lay the so-called hoodoo to rest with their scintillating victory in the national decider: "After all the defeats the county had suffered in finals, it was nice to win one and put the past to rest." Of course, the failings of previous sides representing Mayo on the big day had no bearing on this year's U21 team. The slate was clean and the players didn't feel any burden of ill-fated history weighing them down, despite what the hype merchants in the media would like to have us believe. "No, this was a new team and a new year," the Ballyhaunis clubman confirms. "Noel [Conneely], Pat [Holmes] and Michael [Collins] drilled that into us all year. There was no point dwelling on the past because this team had never contested an All-Ireland, so that was all irrelevant. The selectors told us all year that the ability was there as far as they was concerned and their aim was to get to an All-Ireland - and then to win it." Was there a turning point along the way - a moment when the players thought 'Wait a minute, it's true, we can do this'? "I'm not sure there was an actual turning point but once we got over the Connacht final we definitely started to believe that we could go all the way, especially once we beat Tyrone by a point after extra time. There was a lot of talk about Down this year and when Tyrone beat them a lot of people might have expected Mayo to exit at the semi-final stage. But there was great commitment in this Mayo team and we never knew when to die…" The All-Ireland final wasn't all plain sailing and, as Mayo failed to settle early on, it looked for a while as though the Rebels would carve out a comprehensive win. Reflecting on those dodgy opening exchanges, the corner back and captain of the eventual winners accepts that their backs were to the wall: "Cork ran through us for fun in the first half and we were very lucky to be only three adrift at half time. We knew we were still in with a great chance if we played the way could in the second half. We just wanted to go out and show people how we had played all year, and that's what we did. I don't know if it was nerves or what it was, but we didn't play at all in the first half. But we showed what we were capable of in the second half." There was little or no time to celebrate the historic breakthrough, however, as Keith was straight back to training with the county seniors, who have even bigger fillets of cod to fry this summer. This is the energetic defender's second year on the senior panel and he notes: "At the end of the day, it's all about winning a senior All-Ireland. "With new management in, we are making a fresh start. After the way we went out to Kerry last year, we have a point to prove. We're looking forward to the championship in a big way this year and I see no reason why Mayo can't compete for major honours." In Mickey Moran, Mayo have one of the most astute tacticians in the game. What is their target? What's the word in the camp? "You can't look much further than Connacht, where Galway are going well and we have Leitrim to contend with. All we can do is focus on one game at a time and take it as it comes." And after that, the All-Ireland is there for seven or eight counties. "It's wide open," Keith agrees. "You have the likes of Kerry, Tyrone, Armagh and Dublin as obvious favourites, but there's not a lot in it and other counties can challenge for the All-Ireland too. "Mayo have a lot of new lads in this year, a new style and new tactics. It's a big change from previous Mayo teams and hopefully the past should have no bearing on things. The same applies as with the U21s - this is a new year and the management won't let the past affect us." A dual clubman with Ballyhaunis (his father Pete is secretary of the hurling club), Keith also represents the Mayo hurlers in the company of his brother, Pierce. He believes Mayo are "well capable" of a good run in this year's Christy Ring Cup. Winner of a number of county SHCs already as well as a Sigerson Cup medal with Sligo IT last year, the young Mayo back is developing a happy knack for picking up silverware. Could there be more in the pipeline in 2006? Tweet

Most Read Stories