GAA: Mayo record 22-point victory over New York in Connacht Championship quarter-final
Mayo opened their Connacht Championship defence with a facile 4-18 to 0-8 victory over New York in Gaelic Park.
Last Updated: 14/05/14 10:23am
The Westerners led by nine points at the interval and cut loose in the second-half, rattling in four goals as they eventually wore down a resolute Exiles outfit.
Diarmuid O'Connor bagged a maximum on his debut, with brother Cillian slotting two penalties and substitute Enda Varley adding a fourth late on.
New York frustrated their opponents for large spells during the first half, piling bodies behind the ball, but the disparity in both sides' preparations was evident after the restart as Mayo romped home.
James Horan's side signalled their intent with three points in the opening four minutes, and although Brendan Quigley and Jason Kelly replied for the hosts, they then went scoreless for 35 minutes.
Aidan O'Shea rattled the crossbar with a powerful shot as Mayo began to dominate, and by the 23rd minute they had extended their lead to seven points.
With the result already beyond doubt, Mayo's performance dipped as they managed just two more points in the first half, Lee Keegan and Cillian O'Connor scoring late on to give them a 0-11 to 0-2 lead at the change of ends.
But Mayo raised their game after the restart and the second-half was less than a minute old when Diarmuid O'Connor played a one-two with Andy Moran and lashed a shot past New York goalkeeper Gavin Joyce.
Kelly ended New York's scoreless streak, with Johnny McGeeney, Alan Raftery and Ross Wherity also registering points from play, but they conceded a second goal on 55 minutes when Varley was taken out inside the area following a lung-busting run from Keith Higgins.
Cillian O'Connor confidently converted the spot kick and the Ballintubber forward repeated the trick seven minutes later after Brendan Harrison was pushed over.
Varley put the gloss on a routine victory for the back-to-back All-Ireland finalists with a fourth goal in injury time.
Mayo will face either Roscommon or Leitrim in the Connacht semi-final on June 8.
Scorers
Mayo: C O'Connor 2-5 (2-0pen, 4f), E Varley 1-1, A Moran 0-3, D O'Connor 1-0, D Vaughan, K McLoughlin, A O'Shea 0-2 each, J Gibbons, L Keegan, D Coen 0-1 each.
New York: J Kelly 0-3 (2f), B Quigley, J McGeeney, A Raftery, R Wherity, G O'Driscoll 0-1 each.
