Kerry are struggling but Dubs seem bored

I was freed of Sunday Game duties last weekend - Tomás Ó Sé was omnipresent across all platforms in any case! - so took a spin into MacHale Park for Mayo-Louth.

My daughter was particularly excited to be catching a glimpse of the green and red in Castlebar. Although, given the game that played out, I don't think she was too sorry when it ended.

The Mayo players, management and supporters will also be relieved it ended when it did, given the fright they got deep in injury-time.

Louth's defensive approach was entirely understandable from Mickey Harte's point of view, given what happened when they left themselves open in the Leinster final.

The weekend again showcased Mayo's issues unlocking blanket defences - and on Sunday, it was more than a mere blanket. It was the duvet, the sheet the whole lot thrown over them.

The big concern for Mayo is if they come up against a team who adopt the same approach but with more quality in their ranks, will they be able to handle it?

You only have to look back at the last two Connacht championship losses - to Roscommon this year and Galway last year - to see them coming unstuck against well-organised defences.

So they've work to do. Although, they're far from alone. In truth, there's plenty of listlessness around the place and no one is really pulling up trees.

As the round robin has progressed, it has felt like we're stuck in a holding pattern, where teams are merely jockeying for position.

I had hoped last week might kick-start it and we did get a couple of decent games in Clones and Ballybofey. Otherwise, however, lethargy reigned.

It's hard to get a read on things and there's a suspicion that some teams are pacing themselves in order to peak come the knockout phase. We're still waiting for the