US president Joe Biden has expressed support to the football team representing his Irish ancestral home county of Mayo.
Speaking in the Mayo town of Ballina at the end of his four-day trip of Ireland, Mr Biden concluded with a familiar chant for fans of the team: “Mayo for Sam.”
The comments at the end of his speech were met with raucous applause by the long-suffering fans of the Mayo team.
Earlier, a former Mayo footballer and current TD said he asked Mr Biden to say a prayer for the county's success.
Alan Dillon, from Mayo, met the US president ahead of a prayer in Knock: “Yeah, I asked him in his quiet moment of reflection, maybe to talk to the man above and ask him to do us some good this year on the football field.
“He smiled, he’s well aware of the famine we have in this county,” he said, referring to the team’s lack of success.
Fine Gael TD for Mayo Michael Ring also appealed personally to Mr Biden to mention the Mayo football team.
Asked if Mr Biden would mention the team in the speech, Mr Ring said: “He certainly is because I put it into his ear today.
“So I hope that when he gives that message tonight, that’d be the last message.
“We’re waiting for the Sam Maguire. We’ve had everybody here now, we’ve had the president of the United States, we’ve had the Pope, and we’ve had many, many distinguished visitors over the years.
”To me, there’s only one guy we’re missing it and you’ll know who that fella is, it’s Uncle Sam – Sam Maguire.”
The Mayo team could well be in contention to finally lift the trophy this year, after winning the separate National Football League competition earlier this year.
However, in the typical highs-and-lows nature of the game, that major victory was quickly followed by a decisive defeat in the first round of the regional Connacht championship.
That defeat does not rule them out for winning the overall competition and fans will be hoping Mr Biden’s comments might spell a new, more positive omen for the team.
