GAA: Story of Kerry v Mayo - history, head-to-heads and curses
By Michael Cantillon
Last Updated: 24/08/17 6:19pm
Kerry face Mayo on Saturday in their All-Ireland semi-final replay following Sunday's enthralling draw, live on Sky Sports, but what do the archives say about the pair in the championship?
The histories of Kerry and Mayo at All-Ireland senior football level are wildly contrasting, both from an individual perspective and in their head-to-head records.
The two sides played out a thrilling draw at the weekend with an end scoreline of 2-14 to 2-14 at Croke Park meaning they will renew acquaintances once again on Saturday.
Can Mayo, who according to Sky Sports columnist Peter Canavan missed an opportunity on Sunday, buck the trend this Saturday or will Kerry beat them again...?
History and the Curse of '51
Kerry, as Ireland's most successful football team, have known little other than success. A total of 37 All-Ireland Championship titles is more than anyone in history, and 11 titles more than Dublin in second.
Mayo, conversely, have suffered a world of heartache and pain during the same period. Since 1951, they have made the final on no fewer than eight occasions without ever winning, with two going to replays.
To put the gulf in success between the sides in perspective, Kerry have won 21 All-Ireland titles since Mayo won their last one.
Having only ever won three All-Ireland's in their history, the legend goes that the Mayo team of 1951 celebrated boisterously on their way back from Dublin, and when passing through the village of Foxford in County Mayo, failed to properly pay their respects towards an ongoing funeral.
The presiding priest is said to have put a curse on Mayo as a result, saying they would never win another All-Ireland title until every member of the 1951 team were dead.
The 'Curse of '51', as it has come to be known, has seemingly rung true ever since, even against all odds on some occasions.
Having lost the 1989 final to Cork, Mayo returned to Croke Park in 1996 to face Meath, only to concede an unlikely point in the very last second as the game finished a draw. Another late score in the replay would hand Meath victory.
Sunday's opponents Kerry would defeat them the next three times they made the final in 1997, 2004 and 2006.
Six years later Mayo lost another final, this time to Donegal, despite the northerners having not won an All-Ireland for 20 years. A year later in 2013, they lost by a single point to Dublin, while last year two own goals saw them pass up a great chance to beat the Dubs. The replay once again saw them lose by a single point.
Peter Quinn's death in January 2016 means there are now just two living members of the 1951 All-Ireland winning team left in Padraig Carney and Paddy Prendergast. Will Mayo break the 'curse'?
Head-to-head record
In addition to beating them in three All-Ireland finals, Kerry have a remarkable record against the Westerners.
In their 23 All-Ireland meetings, Kerry have won an astonishing 18 of them. Mayo's only win in meetings over the last 66 years came at the semi-final stage in 1996 when John Maughan led them to a six-point victory.
Since then, Kerry have knocked them out on a further five occasions, with an average winning margin of eight points.
The finals of 2004 and 2006 saw them start so poorly against Kerry the games were over by half-time. They ultimately lost the matches by eight and 13 points respectively in complete washouts.
In the 2011 championship, Mayo beat defending All-Ireland champions Cork in the quarter-final, but proceeded to collapse against Kerry in the semi-final, losing by nine points.
Such a trend is not uncommon for Mayo though, as in recent years they have beaten the defending champions in three successive years: 2011 (Cork), 2012 (Dublin) and 2013 (Donegal), without once going on to win the Sam Maguire Cup.
The mental hurdle is as difficult as the physical or tactical one for Mayo.
Last All-Ireland Meeting
Prior to Sunday's draw the last time the sides met was the semi-final stage of the 2014 championship, as two exhausting games saw Mayo succumb to an agonising extra-time defeat.
Having had Lee Keegan sent off in the opening half of the first game, Mayo appeared down and out at half-time as they trailed by four points.
James Horan's side embarked on a magnificent second-half comeback, however, as Cillian O'Connor, Alan Dillon and Andy Moran each stepped up, and with 15 minutes to go, astonishingly, they were level with the Kingdom at 0-13 each.
O'Connor then dispatched a penalty and two further points to put Mayo in dreamland at five to the good, but somehow Kerry came back.
Bryan Sheehan cut the gap to four via a free with just five minutes left on the clock, before Kieran Donaghy set up a James O'Donoghue goal with a minute to go, to put them within one point.
Kieran O'Leary then dramatically kicked a superb point in injury time to force a draw, as Mayo were finally reeled in.
The replay in Limerick was equally as dramatic. Mayo led 2-3 to 0-2 after 25 minutes and were still a goal to the good at the break, but Donaghy and O'Donoghue wrestled Kerry into the lead and this time it was Mayo who struck in added time to force a draw.
Donal Vaughan popped up in the second minute of injury time, fisting over a point to level things, and there was still time for goalkeeper Robert Hennelly to win it for Mayo from a free, but his effort dropped short.
Mayo led again by two points after the first period of extra-time, but a spell in the last 10 minutes saw Kerry score the next five points and book their place in the final. Horan resigned as Mayo boss thereafter.
If ever two games summed up the excruciating nature of Mayo's relationship with the All-Ireland championship, these were it. Can Mayo overcome the weight of history and their demons on Saturday?
Sky Sports live GAA coverage continues on Saturday with the All-Ireland SFC semi-final clash between Kerry and Mayo, live on Sky Sports Arena from 2pm. Tyrone and Dublin slug it out on Sunday, live on Sky Sports Arena from 2.30pm.
For those on the move you can get updates via our live blog at www.skysports.com/GAA or @SkySportsGAA
