Staunton and ten more Mayo ladies reported to have walked out on welfare issue

Just three days before their first round of the All-Ireland championship.

Last year's All-Ireland finalists Mayo have been dealt an atrocious blow just three days before they begin their 2018 championship campaign. According to Tuesday morning's Mayo News, up to ten of Peter Leahy's panelists have walked away from the squad in the last week on the back of a player welfare issue. The team have been catapulted into disarray on the week of their first round qualifier clash with Cavan this weekend with ten of their finest opting out. They haven't just lost ten normal players, they've lost their captain Sarah Tierney, their vice captain Fiona McHale and the best ladies footballer in the country in Cora Staunton. Losing such experienced heads will be some detrimental blow for the Yew County's ladies. They're not losing disgruntled panelists struggling to get a run on the team, they're losing leaders, key players and the members that the whole of the team look to for inspiration, and look to for a lead to follow. When woman of the calibre of Staunton, McHale and Tierney are walking out, you know there's something seriously wrong. After missing out on the majority of her county's National League campaign due to a move to the AFL, there's no doubting that Staunton would have been hungry coming back into the fold for her 24th championship campaign. In her first competitive game back, Mayo were defeated by arch rivals Galway in the Connacht final. This isn't a good way to start the All-Ireland series. Player welfare has long been an issue in the ladies game, with little progress being made even since the establishment of the WGPA. It's a sad state of affairs when the players feel they're being treated with such disrespect that they feel the need for such a course of action.