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Post by Attacking Wing Back on Jul 31, 2017 21:29:58 GMT
Bernie is an absolute idiot. Spouts nonsensical drivel. It was he who sparked the whole nonsense with Aidan O Se and the selfies. Can't analyse a game to save his life.
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Post by Mickmack on Jul 31, 2017 21:38:21 GMT
James Horan buried Flynn on that issue. He said that Flynn being a small man was suffering from "small mans syndrome" and jealous of the big guy Aiden OShea. Good enough for Flynn. He made a fool of himself that time.
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Post by southward on Jul 31, 2017 22:03:19 GMT
Having been an advocate of Brendan Kealy for the No 1 jersey over the years, it's only fair to say that Brian Kelly was excellent yesterday and was very good against Cork as well. If anyone's tech-savvy enough to put it up here, the reverse camera angle of Sean Armstrong's second half goal chance shows a great study in concentration and nerve - keeper stood up, eyes on the ball and great reflexes at just the right moment. Well done, Brian.
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Post by thirdson on Jul 31, 2017 22:13:16 GMT
I do think its desirable that he be unbiased, but he has to be from somewhere, unless we parachute in a non native. A bit like Croke Park having to be in some county I suppose. I also don't think he's too bad re pro Dublin, but only my opinion. Agree Spillane didn't write the report, but I think we can surmise the incident was highlighted, by Spillane especially, and a multitude of other outlets. So the ref began at a position of not deeming the incident worthy of intervention in real time, and finished by writing about it in his report. Really all I'm saying is that there is an inference on here that TSG (Dessie particularly) are going after Donaghy, and folk are not taking to kindly to it. Understandable. But you cannot have it both ways by saying that Spillane was correct to highlight DC incident, and threw in chapter and verse of the rulebook for good measure, and then say that TSG are wrong to highlight Donaghy incident. I have no issue with KD escaping the rap, but McGuigans "excuse" for it was watery as fcuk. ok. I will ask you an easier one. Do you think Dessie is a Dub fan and is his position untenable after last night Ffs do you think that's a reasonable reply. Of course we know Dessie is a Dublin fan and a chairman of cuala. Perhaps we could show Spillane in his Kerry heyday to show he had a pro Kerry agenda while he was correctly pointing out Connolly s transgression.The point is the disciplinary process is a shambles. Players punished for transgressions of minor actions while others get away with murder. Both players fortunate to escape yesterday. Time for consistency and rational punishments.
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Post by Mickmack on Jul 31, 2017 22:25:03 GMT
I am happy enough with the situation whereby the ref deals with it or doesn't deal with it. The CCCC should act on the refs report and let that be the end of it.
Once the CCCC starts cherry picking certain incidents for sanction , while ignoring others, its a total shambles.
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fitz
Fanatical Member
Red sky at night get off my land
Posts: 1,719
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Post by fitz on Jul 31, 2017 22:47:53 GMT
Bullets flying everywhere.Bernie needs to relieved of his firearm. He can't hit a barn door
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Post by kerrybhoy06 on Aug 1, 2017 7:56:52 GMT
Sure refs hardly wait till after the Sunday Game the following night to write and submit their reports do they? If Donaghy gets and trouble over this (not sure what rule it would be exactly but anyway) it won't be because Des Cahill said 'but what about Diarmo' ffs. It's not that I'm worried about- it's this pointless, hostile Dublin v Kerry narrative that's being built and its starting to become nasty.
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Post by kerrygold on Aug 1, 2017 8:22:02 GMT
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Post by kerrygold on Aug 1, 2017 8:23:46 GMT
I am happy enough with the situation whereby the ref deals with it or doesn't deal with it. The CCCC should act on the refs report and let that be the end of it. Once the CCCC starts cherry picking certain incidents for sanction , while ignoring others, its a total shambles. The cherry picking by the CCCC after TSG was vile stuff in the past.
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Deleted
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Post by Deleted on Aug 1, 2017 9:35:41 GMT
The hypocrisy is staggering...
Forget TSG and all past incidents... do you think that Donaghy should be punished for what he did?
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Post by onlykerry on Aug 1, 2017 9:57:07 GMT
Core issue is that the "pundits" are not even attempting to be neutral and TV competition is turning RTE into a redtop tabloid where ratings are the only concern and therefore controversy is an essential element of what they do. I have not watched the highlights program in a couple of years as I have found it diatripe in the extreme and I end up shouting at the inanimate object suspended on the wall to the amusement of my family (initially amusement and more latterly concern).
This type of TV is an extension of reality TV and little to do with sport.
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Post by kerrybhoy06 on Aug 1, 2017 9:57:11 GMT
The hypocrisy is staggering... Forget TSG and all past incidents... do you think that Donaghy should be punished for what he did? No- he didnt strike anyone, he was grabbed by the throat also and this happens regularly in matches. Theres a thred on boards.ie on the championship showing that this happens every game. The only reason that this is being overly highligthed is to pander to the poor, victimised Dubs who are demanding justice for Dermo. Look back over every match and you will see these kind of handbags going on- if he had punched a lad then fine but this is storm in a teacup nonsense.
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Post by veteran on Aug 1, 2017 10:14:23 GMT
No matter from what perspective one analyses this match it was a poor performance against a moderate, mercurial Galway team. The question is would a replica of that performance be good enough to win the All-Ireland? Clearly not. It is very easy to dismiss it as good enough on the day, only a q-final etc. That conclusion implies that this team can always or will always lift it when the occasion demands. Past performances suggest otherwise. In other words this team is too inconsistent to engender too much hope about lies ahead.
Some of our backs had their poorest performance for a long time, David Moran had one of those days which infuriates his huge number of followers and only three of our starting forwards displayed the level of expertise and sulphuric menace that you need as the championship comes a to a climax. An enduring memory from the game was the deployment of KD. Being at the canal end I had a bird's eye of this warrior in the first half. I am sure it was prearranged that high balls would pour in on top of a suspect Galway full back line. Those high balls did indeed fall from the sky and KD duly laid to waste that Galway full back line. What happened that tactic in the second half? Abandoned for no apparent reason. It is ironic that it was abandoned on a day when KD was toying with his opponents and while often in the past it was slavishly adhered to when it was not making a return. Whose decision was it not to pursue this tactic? The players or maanagement? That is one aspect that disturbs me, an apparent lack of game management on occasions. Bringing it down to individual players, why was Fionn, who was being riddled by young Burke, not shifted or replaced? There is no point waiting until the horse has bolted before attending to the stable door.
Brian Kelly was a revelation. He has never convinced me in the past and ,given a choice, I would have had Brendan Kealy as number one. Well, Brian silenced me on Sunday. Not alone did he make some terrific saves but his kicks out improved immeasurably.
Mark Griffin and Shane Enright were moderate. Mark did improve in the second half and one must remember that Damian Comer is a top class player and it seemed to me that Mark had his measure in the second half. On one occasion Damian tried to be a little too physical, he is a very physical player, but he went away holding his puss. Fionn is a very neat, compact player but I do not think he is a competent inter county corner back. A fully fit Killian must come in for the next game. Whatever happened Ronan Shanahan who was one of our most consistent players in the NFL? Perhaps, he is not doing it training on which EF puts enormous significance. That is fair enough up to a point but one must also take into account the ability of a player to transpose training form to the big stage. Some players are consumed by stage fright on the big occasion. Dr. Sean Murphy rarely performed in lesser matches and indeed I frequently saw him being riddled by tricky wing forwards in club games e.g. Thorny O'Shea but when the big day arrived he simply took ownership of his acre.
Peter Crowley was feeble enough but he has been a star all along. Typically, he put in two shuddering shoulder tackles at the Canal End in the second half. Tadgh Morley has had better days while Paul Murphy reminded people to tell us if there is better wing back about.
David Moran is one of our main players . He was moderate on Sunday but when he is that level he is ponderous on the ball and kicks carelessly. And of course he did his 45 trick again. Clearly we do not have a long range free taker without Bryan so why do we persist with these Hail Mary efforts when playing it short would be the prudent option. I watched the ladies Munster final recently and witnessed one of the Waterford players effortlessly stroke over a 45! I felt Jack Barry did well, Anthony Maher less so when he came on.
Contrary to modern thinking, I would always start with your best team. Following on from that , I would start Stephen O'Brien every day of the week before Michael Geaney. It is total nonsense having Michael on the field twice as long as Stephen. Johnny Buckley was one of our giants. There is no doubting if Johnny had more pace he would be top drawer. He is a magnificent fielder, kicks very well and is as strong as a horse. Remaining injury free, he could be a vital figure for us before the year is over. Like many of his colleagues, Doncha just about kept his head above water. He has had a poor year and I suppose the likelihood is that 2017 will be his farewell.
I have never seen James play as poorly. Perhaps, it was due to any injury. He seemed to have no appetite for the action and maddeningly he spent a lot of time behind his man pointing to an outfield player where he wanted the ball played. James you should know it is very difficult to find a forward when you allow your man to be in front of you. Paul Geaney , without ever breaking sweat, exhibited some exquisite touches. Being at the Canal End, I had a close up view of KD's goal. It was a throw back to another age. Kieran is rightly credited with having great hands but the nimbleness of his feet is frequently overlooked. After one of his fetches the red haired Galway defender decided to rough him up. Foolish man. I am being told there maybe a steward's inquiry!
I am a big fan of Jack Savage. He is one of these cerebral players who seems to be always contemplating the best option without rushing matters, making space for himself in the tightest of corners. he kicks well and is a classy package. Could there be a vacancy for him in our sometimes non functioning half forward line. Perhaps, any Srand road supporters on here might give us there assessment, what his best position is etc.
Returning to our defence. I feel Kevin Walsh made a very salient point in the build up. He said being a defender is very difficult in the modern game. It is very difficult to defend against the hand pass and against so many players, including opposing backs, running at you from all angles. It is said our full back line are weak in the air and too open when run at. How many full back lines are comfortable in the air? How many defences are happy when being run at? I feel Kevin is right and perhaps we should not be too critical of our defence as a collective. But of course there is always room for improvement.
PS. The mark was introduced to encourage high fielding and it has been a relative success. In that context, I was very angry when KD sailed to the clouds in the first half and on descending was surrounded by several Galway players who proceeded to tackle fairly and unfairly. Referee gave a free out for "overholding". Another referee on another day would give a free the other way. Surely, if we are serious about encouraging high fielding the benefit of the doubt,and doubt there often is, should be given to the man who has performed the spectacular feat rather than to those who perform what passes for tackling.
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kot
Fanatical Member
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Post by kot on Aug 1, 2017 10:18:16 GMT
The hypocrisy is staggering... Forget TSG and all past incidents... do you think that Donaghy should be punished for what he did? No- he didnt strike anyone, he was grabbed by the throat also and this happens regularly in matches. Theres a thred on boards.ie on the championship showing that this happens every game. The only reason that this is being overly highligthed is to pander to the poor, victimised Dubs who are demanding justice for Dermo. Look back over every match and you will see these kind of handbags going on- if he had punched a lad then fine but this is storm in a teacup nonsense. The comparison of Donaghy & Connolly is apples & freaking bowling balls. To answer Dessie's question "What if Connolly did it?" Well he has, and far worse. Did he not ring a Westmeath's man neck in a headlock and drop to the ground after he got patted on the head last year? Is that not a better comparison rather than his infringement with the linesman? He got nothing. Case closed. Donaghy would need to be careful about where he places his hands in relation to his opponent for sure but there are literally hundreds of incidents in all the games we see with these handbags.
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Post by beantownfan on Aug 1, 2017 10:46:44 GMT
I can't see any further action being taken against Donaghy.. When I was watching it I thought it was a foolish move on his part, as I was sure it would be highlighted, but I think any honest GAA person would know that a player doesn't generally get into such a scuffle after getting his own score without some sort of provocation. There is a picture on sportsfile which shows part of the lead up.. www.sportsfile.com/id/1362309/Even watching it on TV when the camera panned to the neck holding, you knew well something else had happened in the lead up to that! Donaghy is a big man, and I am sure in most cases could walk away from a lot of this, but at the same time, if you have two lads grabbing at you, sometimes a little show of force is required to dispatch with the nonsense. As for the game itself it is hard to tell.. I thought the forward play was very poor at times. I can't say how many times we worked the ball up towards the Galway 45, and then recycled it backwards with hand passes. For periods (10 min either side of half time particularly) where we couldn't seem to make any headway. I think part of it was down to conditions, lads were slipping all over the place, part of it was poor play and then Kerry always seem to be in a bit of a lull at the quarter final stage due to the long layoff, and the general knowledge that they most likely have enough to get past the opposition even playing poorly. I think the good news is Fitzy will have plenty to work on with them for the semi final, they are far from the finished product, but I am delighted to see Donaghy in such good form. If the two boys beside him can get into form for late Aug & Sept they will take some stopping.
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Post by Mickmack on Aug 1, 2017 12:09:29 GMT
Jim McGuinness in today's paper says Kerry finished with a better team than it started with.... Says Savage, SoB, Killian, Maher and Bjk improved things.
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Post by Mickmack on Aug 1, 2017 12:15:50 GMT
The hypocrisy is staggering... Forget TSG and all past incidents... do you think that Donaghy should be punished for what he did? Yes if it's in the refs report. No if it isnt
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Post by kerrygold on Aug 1, 2017 12:32:15 GMT
The ref was right on top of the play and waved play on immediately so it seems to have been dealt with by the ref at the point of play. He saw nothing in it.
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Post by kerrygold on Aug 1, 2017 12:34:17 GMT
Core issue is that the "pundits" are not even attempting to be neutral and TV competition is turning RTE into a redtop tabloid where ratings are the only concern and therefore controversy is an essential element of what they do. I have not watched the highlights program in a couple of years as I have found it diatripe in the extreme and I end up shouting at the inanimate object suspended on the wall to the amusement of my family (initially amusement and more latterly concern). This type of TV is an extension of reality TV and little to do with sport. The evening Sunday Game show has become trailer trash now.
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Post by greengold35 on Aug 1, 2017 12:35:06 GMT
No matter from what perspective one analyses this match it was a poor performance against a moderate, mercurial Galway team. The question is would a replica of that performance be good enough to win the All-Ireland? Clearly not. It is very easy to dismiss it as good enough on the day, only a q-final etc. That conclusion implies that this team can always or will always lift it when the occasion demands. Past performances suggest otherwise. In other words this team is too inconsistent to engender too much hope about lies ahead. Some of our backs had their poorest performance for a long time, David Moran had one of those days which infuriates his huge number of followers and only three of our starting forwards displayed the level of expertise and sulphuric menace that you need as the championship comes a to a climax. An enduring memory from the game was the deployment of KD. Being at the canal end I had a bird's eye of this warrior in the first half. I am sure it was prearranged that high balls would pour in on top of a suspect Galway full back line. Those high balls did indeed fall from the sky and KD duly laid to waste that Galway full back line. What happened that tactic in the second half? Abandoned for no apparent reason. It is ironic that it was abandoned on a day when KD was toying with his opponents and while often in the past it was slavishly adhered to when it was not making a return. Whose decision was it not to pursue this tactic? The players or maanagement? That is one aspect that disturbs me, an apparent lack of game management on occasions. Bringing it down to individual players, why was Fionn, who was being riddled by young Burke, not shifted or replaced? There is no point waiting until the horse has bolted before attending to the stable door. Brian Kelly was a revelation. He has never convinced me in the past and ,given a choice, I would have had Brendan Kealy as number one. Well, Brian silenced me on Sunday. Not alone did he make some terrific saves but his kicks out improved immeasurably. Mark Griffin and Shane Enright were moderate. Mark did improve in the second half and one must remember that Damian Comer is a top class player and it seemed to me that Mark had his measure in the second half. On one occasion Damian tried to be a little too physical, he is a very physical player, but he went away holding his puss. Fionn is a very neat, compact player but I do not think he is a competent inter county corner back. A fully fit Killian must come in for the next game. Whatever happened Ronan Shanahan who was one of our most consistent players in the NFL? Perhaps, he is not doing it training on which EF puts enormous significance. That is fair enough up to a point but one must also take into account the ability of a player to transpose training form to the big stage. Some players are consumed by stage fright on the big occasion. Dr. Sean Murphy rarely performed in lesser matches and indeed I frequently saw him being riddled by tricky wing forwards in club games e.g. Thorny O'Shea but when the big day arrived he simply took ownership of his acre. Peter Crowley was feeble enough but he has been a star all along. Typically, he put in two shuddering shoulder tackles at the Canal End in the second half. Tadgh Morley has had better days while Paul Murphy reminded people to tell us if there is better wing back about. David Moran is one of our main players . He was moderate on Sunday but when he is that level he is ponderous on the ball and kicks carelessly. And of course he did his 45 trick again. Clearly we do not have a long range free taker without Bryan so why do we persist with these Hail Mary efforts when playing it short would be the prudent option. I watched the ladies Munster final recently and witnessed one of the Waterford players effortlessly stroke over a 45! I felt Jack Barry did well, Anthony Maher less so when he came on. Contrary to modern thinking, I would always start with your best team. Following on from that , I would start Stephen O'Brien every day of the week before Michael Geaney. It is total nonsense having Michael on the field twice as long as Stephen. Johnny Buckley was one of our giants. There is no doubting if Johnny had more pace he would be top drawer. He is a magnificent fielder, kicks very well and is as strong as a horse. Remaining injury free, he could be a vital figure for us before the year is over. Like many of his colleagues, Doncha just about kept his head above water. He has had a poor year and I suppose the likelihood is that 2017 will be his farewell. I have never seen James play as poorly. Perhaps, it was due to any injury. He seemed to have no appetite for the action and maddeningly he spent a lot of time behind his man pointing to an outfield player where he wanted the ball played. James you should know it is very difficult to find a forward when you allow your man to be in front of you. Paul Geaney , without ever breaking sweat, exhibited some exquisite touches. Being at the Canal End, I had a close up view of KD's goal. It was a throw back to another age. Kieran is rightly credited with having great hands but the nimbleness of his feet is frequently overlooked. After one of his fetches the red haired Galway defender decided to rough him up. Foolish man. I am being told there maybe a steward's inquiry! I am a big fan of Jack Savage. He is one of these cerebral players who seems to be always contemplating the best option without rushing matters, making space for himself in the tightest of corners. he kicks well and is a classy package. Could there be a vacancy for him in our sometimes non functioning half forward line. Perhaps, any Srand road supporters on here might give us there assessment, what his best position is etc. Returning to our defence. I feel Kevin Walsh made a very salient point in the build up. He said being a defender is very difficult in the modern game. It is very difficult to defend against the hand pass and against so many players, including opposing backs, running at you from all angles. It is said our full back line are weak in the air and too open when run at. How many full back lines are comfortable in the air? How many defences are happy when being run at? I feel Kevin is right and perhaps we should not be too critical of our defence as a collective. But of course there is always room for improvement. PS. The mark was introduced to encourage high fielding and it has been a relative success. In that context, I was very angry when KD sailed to the clouds in the first half and on descending was surrounded by several Galway players who proceeded to tackle fairly and unfairly. Referee gave a free out for "overholding". Another referee on another day would give a free the other way. Surely, if we are serious about encouraging high fielding the benefit of the doubt,and doubt there often is, should be given to the man who has performed the spectacular feat rather than to those who perform what passes for tackling. I have watched Jack for a couple of years with Strand Rd and honestly feel that his best position is on the "40"; he may lack a bit of pace for the half forward line, particularly the wings but at centre forward his football brain more than makes up for this drawback - he has quick hands, two good feet and rarely gives the ball away - accurate too from distance, notwithstanding his attempt on Sunday but we must bear in mind that he is only a couple of weeks back in training after his appendicitis. That he was on the bench on Sunday last and the second forward in, gives some indication of the regard the selectors hold him in.
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Post by kerrygold on Aug 1, 2017 12:37:12 GMT
I'd agree with that. He seems to have loads of time on the ball when he gains possession on the forty. I still think he will become a Kerry regular over the next year or two.
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Post by onlykerry on Aug 1, 2017 12:54:07 GMT
I'd agree with that. He seems to have loads of time on the ball when he gains possession on the forty. I still think he will become a Kerry regular over the next year or two. He needs to speed up his play - takes too long deciding what to do and allows a defence prepare. Good to win the ball and can use it well - for me his achiles heel is the pace at which he operates (ie. uses the ball). Needs to bring this to his game to take it to the next level.
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Post by Kingdomson on Aug 1, 2017 12:59:31 GMT
Some interesting observations from Jim McGuinness. www.irishtimes.com/sport/gaelic-games/jim-mcguinness-kerry-not-quite-yet-the-complete-package-1.3172685Jim McGuinness: Kerry not quite yet the complete packageSince the league final the consensus has been that Dublin and Kerry have moved away from the pack and that the All-Ireland is a matter of waiting for them to get to September. Of all the weekend’s games I was interested in particular in Kerry’s quarter-final with Galway. As things stand I’m not entirely sure about Kerry. I sat down to unravel their credentials as the race for Sam enters its last weeks. The first thing I noticed was Galway gave them the first kick-out, which I thought was a mistake. In order to beat the big guns you have to disrupt their aim and their routine and have to ask serious questions – force them to think. For me, you have to take them on on every level if you’re going to jolt them off target. That’s why I felt it was a bad idea to give them the first kick-out. Galway also seemed to give up the first and middle third by setting up defensively and overloading the 45 with a lot of bodies to get pressure on there. Then they went plus-one at the back with a sweeper, depending how many forwards were up. There was a lot of attention on the decision to play David Walsh on Kieran Donaghy. I think they’d have been better served by a natural, aggressive defender with the likes of a big man like Walsh in front to double up naturally. In Donegal we would always have used Neil McGee, our hardest and tightest marker, to do the job of picking up the key man, no matter who he was. You’d also have a taller player to provide height for the aerial battle. David Walsh got caught trying to do two jobs. That said, that isn’t where the problem lay. For me, the problem lay in there being no pressure out the pitch and the ball going into the full-forward line came from players able to lift their head, look up and play the pass they were looking to play. The game was 0-3 to 0-2, good and lively, when Paul Geaney gets a score to make it 0-4 to 0-2. If you look back at that score there’s zero pressure on Kerry in the middle third of the pitch. They’re allowed to build the play and for a player of Geaney’s quality it ends up being a handy score. A few moments later Galway concede a goal – again, no pressure in the middle third. David Moran is for me the best long passer in the game and probably the best midfielder. He picks out Donaghy over the defender and the ball ends up in the back of the net. Shortly afterwards Peter Crowley is in the same position: middle third, looks up, gets the ball in and when he kicks the ball there wasn’t a Galway player within 20 metres. Again Donaghy gets a well-measured pass and now it’s 1-5 to 0-3 and the game is over. The question is, would those scores have come if the intensity had been there in the middle of the pitch? Defensive structuresPeople talk about defensive structures but they count for nothing without that intensity. Dessie Dolan said on commentary that it’s almost an innate thing for Kerry players to slide the ball into the net. I would suggest it’s innate for most players at this level and stage of competition to do the same under little or no pressure. You have to ask would it be the same dynamic if two or three players had been diving on David Moran’s boot, as he was getting ready to play the ball inside? And if there were defenders inside hungry and aggressive and fired-up, looking Kerry players in the eye and ready to contest every ball – are we saying then that it would be ‘innate’ for the ball to end up in the back of the net? Would it have moved from 0-3 to 0-2 to 1-5 to 0-3 in the blink of an eye? I don’t think so. It was just so easy for Kerry to move up the pitch. The game was framed as being between two traditional counties but is that true? If let play, Kerry will be Kerry but they’re also ready to match any team in the country with different tactical formations and indeed, the black arts. If teams want to go there, they’ll follow. For Shane Enright’s yellow card, the ball was in Seán Armstrong’s hands when Enright decided to go through the player, Johnny Heaney. It was a stonewall black card and the same thing happened the night before to an Armagh player and there was no black card there, either. We’re living a lie with the black card, pretending that everything’s okay. Everything is not okay because in those two situations – at the business end of the championship – either the officials don’t know the rule or they don’t know how to detect and enforce it. Either way, it’s a very bad situation. If you look at the Enright foul, Peter Crowley comes over and taps referee David Coldrick on the back, a wee bit of moral support. Enright gets the yellow and he taps the ref on the back because both the players knew it was a black card but the referee didn’t? It’s incredible! Eamonn Fitzmaurice is a very good manager and a thinking manager, who can analyse a game and set his team up accordingly. They are very good and have some excellent players at the top end of the pitch but I feel in their overall game there are chinks in the armour. If you look at Kerry on Sunday they dropped off time and again to squeeze the pitch into 100 metres rather than 145. In the eighth minute they forced a turnover along their own 45 with 13 men behind the ball. They pushed up consistently on the Galway kick-out, forcing them to go long and picking up a huge amount of breaking ball. This is coaching: a game plan for every phase of play. These are details that make sense to the players because a coach gives them instruction on the training pitch in terms of how to execute. That’s what I mean about him being a thinking manager. Competitive provinceDo they suffer from not having a competitive province and a recent history of undemanding All-Ireland quarter-finals? For me, that’s an absolute gift! You’re walking into a quarter-final and getting to work in training every single night without the black cloud of Tyrone coming down the track in six weeks and tapering preparations and making sure players are in the right place and that you don’t overcook them. Without that you can just go hammer and tongs: Tuesday, Thursday, Saturday and Sunday – go and go and go, refine your processes over and again in training. Then you get the chance to run that out on game day. People say, ‘oh, they haven’t had a proper game’, but if you get that opportunity in training, your internal games can supersede that. You can train for an hour or an hour-and-a-half and then play a 70-minute game with 30 or 40 players, who should be ravenous to play. So you’ve situations two or three times a week where your sessions are two-and-a-half to three hours long and they’re tearing strips off each other to get the jersey. There’s no taper and no black cloud hanging over you. It would be like the constant building of a pre-season and then, boom! You’re saying to the fellas that we have a quarter-final that’s maybe not that difficult and then a semi-final – two games to get to an All-Ireland. That’s a far cry from a preliminary round and thinking, ‘we’ve got to win seven games to win the All-Ireland’. I still feel there are areas where Kerry can be challenged. Question marks remain over their full-back line. Mark Griffin is probably one of the best full backs in the country at the moment in terms of the transition to attack but he hasn’t been tested going in the other direction. Same with Tadhg Morley. Teams with hard, aggressive runners going in straight lines hasn’t happened to them on a sustained basis and I think that can cause problems. Galway managed to make incisions but we’ve yet to see Kerry deal with top-quality forwards consistently over 70 minutes. The half-forward line is very hard-working but maybe slightly lacking in intensity – I’m thinking of Mayo, Tyrone and Dublin. Donnchadh Walsh is the most honest player in the country and he’ll run all day for you but I felt at times the intensity wasn’t there. I know it wasn’t that kind of match but you’d wonder is the intensity still there – I’m not so sure. Johnny Buckley is a brilliant player, a great man to field, pick out a pass and kick a score but you get the feeling that the open expanses aren’t his favourite battleground. So if you get a team that’s aerobically very strong and very powerful and using the breadth of the pitch to play with a high tempo, for me there are questions to be answered. There is undoubtedly a lot of quality in the full-forward line but the half forwards? It doesn’t jump out at you. Lateral passesAre managers fretting about how to handle the Kerry half forwards? If you go back a few years it was an incredible line: Declan and Darran O’Sullivan and Paul Galvin. David Moran is a top player, probably the best there is in the position, but I thought Jack Barry played very conservatively. There was a lot of lateral passes, not taking the ball to the gainline. It was very safe. Fitzmaurice has built a good squad, though. Looking at the game you’d have to say the team that finished – Jack Savage, Stephen O’Brien, Killian Young, Anthony Maher and Barry John Keane – was debatably stronger than the team that started. When you weigh it all up, how far are they ahead of the chasing pack? Looking at the personnel, how do you assess them: inside attack, yes; half forwards, not sure; middle of the park, one of them; half backs, untested against consistently direct attacks; full-back line, question marks? That’s not a complete package where you’d say there are no gaps. They were worthy winners of the league but is the distance between them and the chasing pack that pronounced? If you look at the above and try to match it against teams with legs and intensity and power and directness – Tyrone bring that and Mayo, for all their struggles, can bring that. They have conditioning and run straight lines and ask questions physically. Dublin are probably still a notch ahead of everybody, based on the weekend’s games. But maybe there’s hope for the chasing pack.
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Post by kerrygold on Aug 1, 2017 13:21:21 GMT
Hard to argue or find fault with JMGs assessment of Kerry. Pretty much on the money. A Mayo semifinal could yet prove to be a real banana skin for Kerry.
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Post by buck02 on Aug 1, 2017 13:27:09 GMT
Hard to argue or find fault with JMGs assessment of Kerry. Pretty much on the money. A Mayo semifinal could yet prove to be a real banana skin for Kerry. Agreed, I thought his assessment about the way we are was fairly spot on: " Looking at the personnel, how do you assess them: inside attack, yes; half forwards, not sure; middle of the park, one of them; half backs, untested against consistently direct attacks; full-back line, question marks?" If Mayo beat Roscommon and I expect they will, I think Kerry will need to be 90%+ to win the semi final.
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fitz
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Red sky at night get off my land
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Post by fitz on Aug 1, 2017 17:56:14 GMT
Lads, Mayo are dying a slow death. Jordan's article today I feel is spot on. They've been in the swamp wading through game after game, against weak teams. They're totally reliant on their half back line. They definitely are regressing. I'm not saying they're easily beat, they're not, but if we bring a very strong performance, we will win.
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fitz
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Red sky at night get off my land
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Post by fitz on Aug 1, 2017 18:02:51 GMT
I'd like to give Donnacha a bit of I feel is well justified kudos. If he has a bad game he's quick to the top of the list for the criticism rap sheet. Tool old, best days past him... Sunday's game was quite messy at times. late first and early second half. He did an absolute ton of slog running making himself continuously available for passes, especially when we were really running into deep water just past the half way line. He especially gave our defence multiple outs when we were struggling to move forward. He's an animal. He got a brilliant score just before half time too, after Galway had scored 3 unanswered.
He doesn't always play well, but his attitude is fantastic, empties the tank in every game. He is still offering loads...just not always in the glamour zone. Love him.
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Deleted
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Post by Deleted on Aug 1, 2017 19:05:03 GMT
I thought donncha played well enough actually and cannot envisage a scenario where he does not start the semi.
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keane
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Post by keane on Aug 1, 2017 20:29:15 GMT
Without having thought too much about it I'd say Donnchadh could easily be my favourite Kerry player of all time.
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Post by kerrygold on Aug 1, 2017 20:42:57 GMT
Lads, Mayo are dying a slow death. Jordan's article today I feel is spot on. They've been in the swamp wading through game after game, against weak teams. They're totally reliant on their half back line. They definitely are regressing. I'm not saying they're easily beat, they're not, but if we bring a very strong performance, we will win. Your probably right but because of what they did in the two games v Dublin last year on the back of poorish form Kerry will have to give them the ultimate respect going into the semi final, assuming they beat Roscommon. However I concede they look disjointed this year to date and look different to last year.
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