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Andy Moran jokes how jersey gaffe helped Mayo overcome Kerry in final

Published 10:43 27 Jul 2026 BST

Updated 10:47 27 Jul 2026 BST

Colman Stanley
Andy Moran jokes how jersey gaffe helped Mayo overcome Kerry in final

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Brilliant from Andy Moran!

It was written in the stars for Mayo yesterday, so much so that even a huge jersey error worked out in their favour, as boss Andy Moran explained.

During the second half of their All-Ireland final win against Kerry, Mayo substitute Rory Brickenden was forced to change jerseys in the 55th minute.

He had gone on with the No 18 shirt, despite being down as No 19 on the teamsheet, with Paddy Durcan down for the 18 jersey.

However, it worked out surprisingly well for Mayo as it slowed the game down while Kerry were mounting a comeback.

After the game, Andy Moran also joked how they made the mistake on purpose.

He said: "Sure we had a plan, we had Rory wear the wrong jersey. It kind of just slowed it down for us. That’s surely a quiz question 'who was the only person to wear the wrong jersey in an All-Ireland final?'

"He seen the top off on the big screen, and said ‘I’m in good shape’. He might not be in great shape in a couple hours."

"Rory’s a very calm fella. When he went on first, there was a bit of over and back between myself. I’d say he got 10 possessions to get us out over the full back line which really, really helped us coming out of the pitch.

"The little bit of a mistake, it really helped us moving forward to be honest with you. And then his play after that was excellent."

Andy Moran praises youth

After the game, Moran also described how bringing in youth to the squad helped invigorate some of the older players.

He said: "We brought in youth and I think it reinvigorated Ryan (O'Donoghue) and Jack Carney and Jack Coyne and David McBrien," he told The Sunday Game after the match.

"It gave them new life which they probably didn't have. All of a sudden they saw a bit of light and thought 'ok what can we do, we'll go for it'."

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