FORMER MAYO STAR Billy Joe Padden has backed the controversial player heave that ousted joint managers Pat Holmes and Noel Connelly.
Writing in his Mayo News column, Padden insists that the players have ‘nothing personal’ against the pair but believes they ‘have shown amazing unity in what they’ve done.’
Mayo are on the hunt for a new boss following the departure of Holmes and Connelly, with Stephen Rochford the hot favourite for the vacant post.
Padden, son of Mayo great Billy Joe, stated that it would have been very easy for the current stars to ‘go with the flow’ for another year under the previous regime.
“It was evident from the ‘no confidence’ vote and the subsequent show of strength at last week’s meeting with County Board officials in Castlebar that the joint managers had lost the dressing-room,” Padden wrote.
“Once that happens, there is no going back.
“I would give Pat and Noel huge credit for doing what was in the best interests of Mayo football, and standing aside last Friday night. It was the honourable thing to do.
“I also think the players took the right approach by not speaking to the media. I would commend them for not making any of the specific issues with management public.
“The players have shown amazing unity in what they’ve done. They’ve stuck together, been respectful of each other and the different views in terms of how individual players voted, and still been united in terms of what they felt was best for the group.”
“Will they win the All-Ireland in 2016? Who knows?
“But they have shown that they were prepared to do whatever it takes to try and achieve that aim.
“Of course they know that this will be thrown back at them if they come up short next year, but that’s not something that concerns them.
“They are in this together.
“I think it’s a very positive thing for Mayo supporters that these players are willing to leave no stone unturned to try and win an All-Ireland in the next few years.
“The easy thing for them to do would have been to ‘go with the flow’ for another year.”