Lee Keegan Calls Out Mayo Players For Annoying Habit That Is Driving Him 'Cracked'

Having come into this year's championship with high hopes on the back of a decent league campaign, it's fair to say that the last couple of games have been fairly sobering for Mayo.

They blew a chance to reclaim the Connacht title in the final against Galway, coming out on the losing side despite being in a strong position to win the game in the closing quarter. In the process, they would allow their old rivals to claim a fourth successive provincial title.

Their loss to Cavan last weekend was even more damaging. Already in a difficult group with the likes of Donegal and Tyrone, they would have seen the meeting with the Breffni county as a must win.

Instead, they produced a dismal performance and were fortunate to lose by only three points. They are now in serious danger of failing to reach the knockout stages of the All-Ireland series.

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Mayo fans are quickly growing disillusioned with the performances of the team, with many questioning the future of manager Kevin McStay as a result.

However, some also feel that the players need to take some responsibility for their recent dip in form.

Writing for RTÉ, Lee Keegan said that the slow pace of their play has caused major issues for Mayo. He also singled out one habit that their players have as particularly frustrating to watch.

People are calling for Kevin McStay to walk but the players also have to take responsibility here. The energy they brought to the contest wasn't acceptable.

Definitely, the football Mayo are playing now is far too slow and lateral and monotonous and I don't think is suited to the playing group. It's a deviation from what Mayo have been when they've played their best football.

If I see one more lad sticking his hand up in the air to slow down an attack, I think I'll go cracked.

We're going slow enough as it is. On most of these attacks, if we went any slower, we'd be walking. Put your hand down!

Raising your hand in order to slow down the pace of play and rest was a tactic that was pioneered by the all-conquering Dublin team of the 2010s and has since been replicated by teams throughout the country.

The recent rule changes in Gaelic football have attempted to discourage such moves, although Mayo and many other counties continue to use it regularly.

Clearly, it is not something that is proving all that popular out west.