Mayo Men Making Their Mark in Kildare and Dublin
There is a strong Mayo influence running through the Kildare and Dublin club championships this year, with a number of familiar faces taking on important roles outside the county.
From managers to players, Alan Costello, James Burke and Vinny Walsh are involved in Kildare, while Enda Varley, Seamus O’Shea, Jon Vahey, Rob Hennelly , Ryan Baines and Sharoize Akram are flying the Mayo flag in Dublin.
Alan Costello – Celbridge
Hollymount Carramore native Alan Costello has taken charge of Celbridge, who began their Kildare Senior Championship campaign against 2026 Division 2 champions Allenwood.
Celbridge have been knocking on the door in recent years, losing county finals in 2023 and 2024 before suffering further semi-final disappointment. Their Division 1 campaign offered plenty of encouragement, with nine wins from 11 games seeing them finish top before Moorefield ended their run in the semi-final.
They made an emphatic start to the championship, however, defeating Allenwood 6-21 to 1-11.
Costello was delighted with the performance.
“I’m very pleased with the lads’ performance. I felt it was a very polished display,” he said.
“We played well, gave ourselves a strong platform in the first half and were strong in all facets of the game.”
The contribution from the bench was another positive, while the opening victory puts two valuable points on the board.
“We’re very happy to get the opening win and get two points on the board. We’re up and running now, and very proud of the display.”
Johnstownbridge are next, presenting a much tougher challenge. Celbridge suffered a heavy league defeat to them earlier this year, but Costello is hoping for a different outcome.
“They have a lot of quality and former inter-county players, so they’ll be very tough opposition. They beat us comprehensively in the league, and we’re hoping to address the balance this time.”
James Burke – Naas
Former Mayo coach James Burke is also involved in Kildare, with the Ardnaree native part of the Naas management team.
Naas entered the championship in strong form after winning the Leader Cup and Division 1 league, edging Moorefield in the league final.
Their championship opener was another meeting with Moorefield and Naas again came out on top, winning 0-18 to 1-13.
For Burke, securing the opening points was crucial.
“It was really important to get the win on the board,” he said.
“Moorefield are traditionally a very strong team in Kildare, and we knew they would provide a serious test. They have plenty of quality throughout their team, so to come away with the victory is a very positive start.”
Naas now turn their attention to Eadestown, with the new championship structure making every result increasingly important.
Vinny Walsh – Sarsfields
Claremorris man Vinny Walsh is the third Mayo connection in the Kildare championship, having joined the Sarsfields management team.
Sarsfields reached last year's county semi-final, where they lost a thrilling contest to eventual champions Athy by a single point.
They began this year's campaign with a convincing 1-21 to 1-12 victory over Carbury, although Walsh felt there was plenty to improve.
“It was nice to start the championship with a win,” he said. “We had a slow start. I think we had eight shots before we eventually got one over the bar, so that’s something we’ll have to work on.”
Once Sarsfields settled, they took control around midfield.
“We took over at midfield and kind of controlled the game,” Walsh explained. “We got a goal in the first half which helped us stay in control.”
The nine-point win provides an excellent foundation, but Walsh knows greater accuracy will be needed as the championship progresses.
Enda Varley – Raheny
In Dublin, Garrymore man Enda Varley is now in charge of Raheny, with former Mayo goalkeeper Rob Hennelly also part of the club's set-up.
Raheny lost their opening game to Skerries before facing last year's county finalists Na Fianna under lights at the weekend.
Na Fianna prevailed 0-11 to 0-16, despite Raheny enjoying plenty of possession.
“We dominated possession in the first half,” Varley said.
Hennelly's kick-outs were a particular positive, with Raheny retaining around 80 per cent. They also disrupted the Na Fianna kick-out, but poor shooting ultimately proved costly.
Raheny had six wides and five shots dropping short in the opening half.
Na Fianna's quality told in the second half as they controlled the game and kept Raheny at arm's length. Conor McHugh, O'Leary and Smith provided much of their scoring, while Hennelly was Raheny's top scorer with 0-4.
It was another frustrating result for Varley's side, but there were positives to take from their performance.
“We will learn from this and bring it forward into our final game in two weeks time.”
Seamus O’Shea – Ballymun
Breaffy and former Mayo midfielder Seamus O’Shea has taken on a new challenge with Ballymun this year.
The Dublin championship has already demonstrated its competitive nature, with Ballymun drawing with Cuala before securing a two-point win over Lucan Sarsfields.
The Cuala draw was particularly frustrating after Ballymun led by two points late on before Con O'Callaghan's three-pointer rescued a draw.
“We put ourselves in a position to win,” O’Shea said.
“We were two points up with a couple of minutes to go and, in fairness, O’Callaghan kicked the three to level it.”
Against Lucan, Ballymun showed considerable character. They trailed by a point heading into injury time but produced the scores required to win, with Fiach Andrews kicking the decisive left-footed score.
“We were a point down heading into injury time. I thought we closed the game out really well to get a couple of excellent scores.”
St Jude's are next, with O’Shea describing it as “essentially a knockout championship game now.”
The Breaffy man believes the opening rounds have highlighted just how open the Dublin championship is.
Jon Vahey – Castleknock
Another Breaffy goalkeeper making his mark in Dublin is Jon Vahey, who joined Castleknock earlier this year and has established himself as their number one.
Castleknock opened with victory over Oliver Plunkett's before facing last year's county finalists Ballyboden.
Ballyboden eventually won by ten points, although Vahey felt the margin was harsh on his side.
“I thought we’d done all right in the first half. I thought we played quite well.”
The game turned when Ballyboden hit six or seven unanswered points.
“When you go up against a team like Ballyboden and you give them six or seven points on the trot and you’re chasing, it’s hard to chase them,” he said.
Vahey acknowledged that turnovers and shooting efficiency had cost Castleknock, but believes there are positives to take.
“There’s a few positives to take from it. We’ll take our learnings from it and try to learn from our mistakes.”
Templeogue are next, with Castleknock still in contention for a quarter-final place.
Rob Hennelly – Raheny
It has been a significant year of change for Rob Hennelly after 14 years travelling between Dublin and Mayo to play for Breaffy.
The long-serving Mayo goalkeeper joined Raheny this year, with former Mayo teammate Enda Varley now in charge.
Hennelly has already made an impact, particularly in the recent clash with Na Fianna.
His kick-out statistics were impressive, with Raheny retaining around 80 per cent, while he also contributed four points to finish as their top scorer.
Despite the defeat, the performance showed that Hennelly remains a significant asset to his new club.
With Costello, Burke and Walsh in Kildare, and Varley, O’Shea, Vahey and Hennelly in Dublin, Mayo's club influence is clearly being felt well beyond the county boundaries.
The championship road will get tougher, but the Mayo contingent will have plenty more opportunities to make their mark in the weeks ahead.
