ANALYSIS: Ryan O'Donoghue shines in new-look Mayo position

Our columnist, Ger Flnagan, gives his take on Mayo's star forward after a solid start in the National League

Ryan O'Donoghue has shone for Mayo in Division One of the National Football League against Dublin and Galway. Pic: Sportsfile

THERE has been plenty to digest about this new-look Mayo after only two outings in the 2026 National League.

Two wins from two. A fresh, more exciting and front-footed style of play. David McBrien, Sam Callinan and Bob Tuohy have impressed.

Rob Hennelly has settled back in smoothly and Darragh Beirne has hit the ground running, to name a few.

But arguably the most exciting piece on the board has been Ryan O'Donoghue at centre forward.

The move to number 11 has been touted about him for a long time.

His game suits it, and he played a lot of his football at under-20 level there for Mayo too.

What prevented it was the feeling he was too important inside. He was our main scorer, our free taker.

Taking him out of the full forward line felt like robbing Peter to pay Paul.

Andy Moran has made the call and two games in, the evidence says he has got it right. Against Galway in Salthill, O'Donoghue hit 0-7, including a two-pointer from play and a two-point free.

Against Dublin in MacHale Park, he scored 0-5 with a two-pointer from play and a free, and was named man of the match. That's 0-12 across two games from centre forward.

The overall feeling around his move centres on Mayo's ability to get scores from the full forward line without him.

That if they struggle, he will have to be moved back inside to pick up the slack.

When you look at the numbers, that argument doesn't hold up the way people think it does.

O'Donoghue's scoring record in 2025 painted a picture of a man whose headline tallies were often inflated by placed balls. In the league, he had games of 0-3 (two frees), 0-3 (all frees),........

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