By Cian O'Connell

During an eventful Mayo SFC there has been no shortage of storylines.

Lee Keegan’s enduring excellence and Westport’s emergence as a serious force will always be acknowledged, but Ballina Stephenites development is worthy of the utmost respect too.

Ultimately that is why so much intrigue surrounds Sunday’s Hastings Insurance MacHale Park decider between two in form teams.

Niall Heffernan, Ballina’s manager has spent more than 30 years living in Claremorris, but is delighted with the progress made by his hometown outfit.

“A big club like Ballina, with a great tradition should be in finals more often than we have been, of late - it is 2007 since the last final, so obviously there is a nice buzz there with all of the players and the whole club,” Heffernan says.

“A lot of work has gone in at underage to try to improve the quality of players, and a lot of work went in at senior level before we came along to try to get the players to a level. Hopefully we can perform well on Sunday.”

Heffernan, a former Mayo U21 manager, highlights the relevance of the work that has been carried out in the juvenile ranks by Ballina.

“Without really good underage structures and really good underage coaching and all the infrastructure that goes into it - that costs a lot of time and money - you are going nowhere,” he says.

“You cannot produce players when they are 16, 17, or 18, they have to be groomed and taught the real skills and basics really well from a young age, to have the right attitude too.

“We were lucky when we came in that there was a group of 17 or 18 year old lads, who just absolutely had all of those characteristics and all of those skills at a very, vert high level. There is another group that we brought in this year also at a high level.”

Inevitably challenges exist when in charge of a progressive senior side, but Heffernan is adamant about the importance of building solid foundations for the future.

“Every manager is different, but I have always tried to take a long term view whether that means success comes in my time or not, I'd be happy if I felt I improved the structures, improved the players, improved the ethos to set things up even if it was for somebody else to come along to bring it another step,” he says.

“That is the view I took when I was with the Mayo U21s at the time. There was a lot of stuff we had to change when we were there, but we felt we did make a difference and an improvement.

"We didn't get the success we wanted then, but I was quite happy to do what we did.

“It was the same when I went back in with Ballina. I said that while I was there I would do whatever I can to improve things, if that is three, four or five years down the line, that is what will happen.

“Other managers would take the view that they want to get instant success. They are entitled to that. I just feel you cannot get instant success unless everything is 100 per cent right when you come in. You have to try to build it, grow it, then leave a legacy for other players to see this is how you have to perform if you want to get into this panel and team.”

How strange was it for Heffernan returning to manage Ballina? “I've only really worked with the Mayo U21s and Claremorris where I have been living for in excess of 30 years,” Heffernan responds.

“I enjoyed my time with Claremorris, I'm Ballina born and bred. My family is still there, I'm in Ballina at least once a week. That connection was always there.

"When I finished up with Claremorris the opportunity to work with Ballina again seemed like completing the circle for me.

“I started at a very young age coaching the senior team in Ballina. Noel O'Dowd was a great manager for Ballina - I learned a lot from Noel. I just feel like I was completing that circle, going back to my roots, I'm enjoying it.”

It has been a rewarding stint for Heffernan with Ballina as an adaptable approach has served them well.

“It was challenging,” Heffernan says about being involved with a team during the Covid 19 pandemic. “Our first year was the start of Covid, you had zoom meetings, all that type of stuff which was very different.

“It made you look at different ways of doing things, it made you be a little bit more inventive, thinking outside the box.”

The value of sport, though, was underlined. “I think sport in life is huge, I love to see people involved in sport - whatever type it is - a team sport or an individual sport,” Heffernan adds. “I think it is brilliant for kids, it gives them a discipline, a camaraderie, it gives them social skills, and it gives them responsibility.

“With adults it gives them different sports that they can play for life - tennis and golf, it is brilliant to have. Every sport should be encouraged and supported by the Government.”

In a keenly contested Mayo SFC in 2022 Ballina have gleaned plenty of admirers. Matches have arrived thick and fast with the impending encounter against Westport capturing the imagination.

“I love the championship, I think the set-up of the Mayo championship, having the group stage first where there is always something riding on every game and then the knockouts, it is the best combination,” Heffernan says.

“It can be a bit tight time wise the way it is now with injuries. We've had a lot of injuries, but we are lucky that we have a good, big squad of players so we have been able to replace very good players with other very good players. It can be very challenging for teams.

“The championship is the be all and end all, it is what we are all looking forward to. The league is preparation for it, so are some of the other tournaments played, but the championship is what it is all about, that is how you gauge whether you are doing the right things or the wrong things.”

Recent evidence suggests Ballina and Westport are moving swiftly forward. Heffernan has occupied a central role in Ballina’s rejuvenation.