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Post by dc84 on Jun 20, 2019 8:12:30 GMT
What a mad Leinster championship Galway who won 2 games including beating Kilkenny in Nolan park first time in 70 years they lost there in championship are out. And unbeaten Wexford who only beat Carlow are through mad stuff!
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Post by Whosinmidfield on Jun 20, 2019 10:34:58 GMT
Who'll win the two provincial finals mickmack? I fancy Tipp and Kilkenny.
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Post by Mickmack on Jun 20, 2019 14:31:32 GMT
One of the Wexford lads got a red card after the finsl whistle for verbals so he will be out.
I have to say that KK are a different animal now that others stepped up when TJ was held..literally.
I fancy KK to prevail.
Limerick has the best panel in the game. Bonner Maher is gone for the year with a cruciate. He was their hod carrier. A big loss.
Limericks game is based on workrate and they will need to up in considerably on the last day.
Tipp are just breathtaking to watch in offensive mode. Their defense has improved on last year and Sheedy has them pulling together.
Deep down Tipp might want it more.
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Post by dc84 on Jun 20, 2019 14:57:54 GMT
One of the Wexford lads got a red card after the finsl whistle for verbals so he will be out. I have to say that KK are a different animal now that others stepped up when TJ was held..literally. I fancy KK to prevail. Limerick has the best panel in the game. Bonner Maher is gone for the year with a cruciate. He was their hod carrier. A big loss. Limericks game is based on workrate and they will need to up in considerably on the last day. Tipp are just breathtaking to watch in offensive mode. Their defense has improved on last year and Sheedy has them pulling together. Deep down Tipp might want it more. Jesus 8 dunno Mick limerick haven't that many Munsters and it's in the Gaelic grounds I'd say they will be manic to win it and the crowd will be almost feral
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Post by Mickmack on Jun 20, 2019 17:24:06 GMT
to an extent it doesnt matter that much. Limerick were not in the munster final last
Hitting a vein of form for a 6 week period is the key now
taking out KK in the QF was the making of Limerick last year.
Cork were munster champs in the SF game v Limerick
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Post by Mickmack on Jun 21, 2019 17:21:24 GMT
Jackie Tyrrell: Hurling world is small and familiarity can breed contempt With six contenders left it’s time to assess where the various teams find themselves
Halfway through the All-Ireland final in 2009, a ball was sprayed into the corner where the Cusack Stand and Hill 16 meet. Eoin Kelly went chasing the ball down and as it trickled out over the sideline, I let a loose flick of my hurl across his side. It was a quick snig and it connected.
Eoin turned and gave me a steely look. He stared me right down and let off a few verbals to go along for good measure. Just to let me know he was not having it. I expected he wouldn’t take any crap from me. He had caught me with a nice clip under a high ball moments before so this was an evening-up of the scores.
We were at each other’s throats from early doors in the game, digging and nudging away but more verbals than anything. We were like two cranky auld wans in a coffee shop arguing over who was paying, constantly trying to outdo each other and get the advantage over the other person, plenty of chat, plenty of needle.
“Is that a forward warming up over there, Eoin? Must be coming on for you. Sure I’ll catch you in the bar for a drink after, yeah?”
“Where were you for that one, Jackie? I’ll slow up the next time and give you a better look at it.”
A bit of context is only fair here. We went tit-for-tat with each other that day but we loved it. Eoin and I went back a long way. We soldiered together for St Kieran’s college and again in Limerick IT. We had too much respect for each other to get personal or nasty about it but knowing each other so well added a lot more spice to it.
He was one of the best forwards ever to play the game and it was my job to find a way to stop him. I was trying anything and everything I could to put him off but the problem with Eoin was he could dance any way you wanted. That’s what he was saying in that look after I gave him the flick of the hurl.
“Right, Jackie – is that what we’re at here? Grand so, let’s go.”
The hurling world is small and familiarity can breed contempt. It definitely did for a while with us and Tipperary and you’d have battles going on all over the place in those games. It struck me over the weekend that because there are so many more games now under the new structure, you’re going to have these repeated clashes again and again.
Tipperary and Limerick have at least one more game to play against each other and possibly two if they both stay alive to the All-Ireland final. You can say the same for Kilkenny and Wexford, even though it’s less likely they’ll both still be going in mid-August. Cork could find themselves playing Limerick for the fourth time in two seasons at some stage – they had only played each other four times in 12 years before 2018!
An edge When you have more games but still the same amount of teams, the result is stoking the fires between all these sides harder and more often than before.
You could see from both games last weekend that there was an edge to them. Even the Tipp-Limerick game, with neither of them going at full throttle, you could see they were starting to get on each other’s nerves.
Kyle Hayes and Paudie Maher were laying into each other, not backing down for a minute. The more times you meet, the more history there is, the more scores there are to settle, the more hurt, the more irritation, the more motivation. Add it all up and the real winners are the spectators.
So with six teams left – and with all due respect to McDonagh Cup finalists Laois and Westmeath – there is a bit of time and space to sit down and assess where the contenders find themselves.
Everything they do this week and onwards will be filtered through two questions. (1) What did they get out of the round-robin series? (2) What do they need to work on from here on out?
Tipperary (1) What did they get out of the round-robin?
They dispelled a few myths, for a start. Nobody is calling them an ageing team, nobody is saying they’ve gone stale, nobody’s talking about their poor league. Their forwards are purring; Noel McGrath’s relocation to midfield has rejuvenated him and they’re putting up big scores in every game. Apart from the injuries to Bonner Maher and Cathal Barrett, they have seen no downside so far.
(2) What do they need to work on?
Very little. You’d be nit-picking, really. With Bonner gone, it puts a good bit of pressure on Dan McCormack now to fill that ball-winning, worker role in the forwards. The only thing we don’t know for sure about Tipp is how they will carry the favourite’s tag into the All-Ireland series. The last time they were riding this high was midway through the league in 2017 when they seemed to be doing everything right as reigning All-Ireland champions and we know how that turned out. Everything from here on out is a test of attitude.
Limerick (1) What did they get out of the round robin?
They’re in the Munster final and they have 70 minutes to go and win the one cup a lot of them are missing. So in a way, it’s job done. But what they got most of all was a rude awakening. Losing to Cork was a kick in the backside at the best possible time – early on, with no major consequence. Their response against Waterford and Clare showed that they’re still a really good team. As All-Ireland champions, they didn’t need much more than that.
(2) What do they need to work on?
Bringing everything together for a major performance in the Munster final. Going into the All-Ireland series with three defeats wouldn’t be great. As well as that, they don’t need the psychological thing of being beaten twice by Tipperary when they might have to meet them again. When they play as if everything is on the line, they’re contenders. Time to prove it.
Cork (1) What did they get out of the round robin?
They’ve stumbled into their best team. Mark Ellis at six was clearly never the plan but he’s flying it there. Alan Cadogan had to return earlier than expected but now he’s back to his best. Aidan Walsh is working out as a ball-winner and Patrick Horgan is his brilliant self. And who would have thought they’d have the luxury of starting Conor Lehane on the bench? Also, coming third is a nice little prize. They could be dangerous.
(2) What do they need to work on?
Consistency is obviously a problem. Disastrous against Tipp, brilliant against Limerick, laboured against Waterford, very poor again against Clare. They can’t afford ups and downs the rest of the way. Specifically, they have issues in the full-back line when Eoin Cadogan gets pulled away from the square.
Kilkenny (1) What did they get out of the round robin?
Considering their injury-list at the start of it, making a Leinster final is all they would have wanted and maybe better than they could have hoped for. Eoin Murphy is back, Cillian Buckley and Walter Walsh didn’t have great games last weekend but they got minutes into their legs. James Maher, Richie Hogan, Conor Delaney – all these lads are finding their way back.
(2) What do they need to work on?
They still need a broader scoring base to help TJ Reid out. Matthew O’Hanlon did well on him on Saturday night and held him scoreless from play. Adrian Mullen scoring 1-3 is a good step forward but it was absolutely needed, otherwise Kilkenny would have been in big trouble. In the latter stages of the championship, it’s even more likely TJ will be curbed. The scores have to come from somewhere.
Wexford (1) What did they get out of the round robin?
You can’t argue with an unbeaten team. They have become so hard to beat under Davy and it’s clear for all to see that everyone is playing for him and for each other. They will go to a Leinster final now with a huge chance. Getting Liam Óg McGovern back in such good form has been a huge plus.
(2) What do they need to work on?
They could do with some variation up front. Wexford are what they are – Davy’s not going to pull a rabbit from a hat between now and the All-Ireland series. So it’s great that they can get four points a game from Diarmuid O’Keeffe in midfield but they need more of that in the forwards as well. Being hard to beat will only get you so far – eventually, you have to be able to put up big totals to beat the serious contenders.
Dublin (1) What did they get out of the round robin?
For a team that was in such disarray a couple of years ago, they ooze leadership now. Eamonn Dillon, Conal Keaney and Liam Rushe in the forwards, Chris Crummey, Sean Moran, Eoghan O’Donnell in defence. They possibly have the best six backs in the country and definitely have the best half-back line.
(2) What do they need to work on?
Now is the time for more of the fringe players to make a name for themselves. Great and all as it was to see Conal Keaney being such a warrior the last day, how often can they rely on that at his age? Dublin need a plan for the day when he isn’t such an influence on the game. Two of their three goals against Galway came from Crummey gambling on a run from the half-back line. Again, great – but the next big team they play will be wise to it.
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Post by glengael on Jun 27, 2019 15:13:25 GMT
Tipp to power on or Limerick win more silverware? It should be some occasion.
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Post by Mickmack on Jun 27, 2019 17:44:15 GMT
Limerick wont want to lose a third game.
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Post by ballhopper34 on Jun 27, 2019 18:38:44 GMT
Limerick wont want to lose a third game. Could lose three and still win it all? Would losing three games take a shine off the title? How hard will it be for Tipp to beat Limerick three times? Surely over-confidence to some degree would kick in during the run-up to the third meeting?
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Post by Mickmack on Jun 27, 2019 18:42:33 GMT
Limerick wont want to lose a third game. Could lose three and still win it all? Would losing three games take a shine off the title? How hard will it be for Tipp to beat Limerick three times? Surely over-confidence to some degree would kick in during the run-up to the third meeting? Galway will be stratchin their heads in Limerick lose a third time and are still in it. Galway lost one game.
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Post by ballhopper34 on Jun 27, 2019 18:49:59 GMT
Could lose three and still win it all? Would losing three games take a shine off the title? How hard will it be for Tipp to beat Limerick three times? Surely over-confidence to some degree would kick in during the run-up to the third meeting? Galway will be stratchin their heads in Limerick lose a third time and are still in it. Galway lost one game. And Wexford won only one game to get to the Leinster Final...
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Post by clarinman on Jun 27, 2019 21:55:47 GMT
Could lose three and still win it all? Would losing three games take a shine off the title? How hard will it be for Tipp to beat Limerick three times? Surely over-confidence to some degree would kick in during the run-up to the third meeting? Galway will be stratchin their heads in Limerick lose a third time and are still in it. Galway lost one game. Galway could not beat Wexford or Dublin. Neither of those will win the all Ireland. Limerick lost to Cork and Tipperary who are serious contenders. There is a major imbalance between the 2 provincial championships.
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Post by Mickmack on Jun 28, 2019 7:49:29 GMT
Galway will be stratchin their heads in Limerick lose a third time and are still in it. Galway lost one game. Galway could not beat Wexford or Dublin. Neither of those will win the all Ireland. Limerick lost to Cork and Tipperary who are serious contenders. There is a major imbalance between the 2 provincial championships. I dont think Clare or Waterford would have come through Leinster this year. All Limerick did was beat those two and are through to the munster final. Thats another was of looking at it.
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Post by Mickmack on Jun 30, 2019 14:37:10 GMT
So its one all between Tipp and Limerick.
Will the all ireland final be the tie breaker.
Limerick were seriously good for the last 50 minutes today.
Tipp will play Dublin in the QF i think.
Dublin will be on a winning roll not having lost since the KK game.
Tipp will have it all to do.
Bonner Maher their warrior is badly missed.
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Post by kerrygold on Jun 30, 2019 14:49:19 GMT
Epic Munster final, Limerick were relentless. It would be great to see them winning back to back All-Irelands. After round 2 of the Munster round robin someone said to me Tipp were too "arsie" to have the legs for the business end. Looks profound after today's result.
Some great provincial finals in hurling & football this year, it won't be possible to cull the provincial championships. Real pity we just cant create four regions of 8 for the greater good..............
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Post by veteran on Jun 30, 2019 14:49:26 GMT
Majestic display by Limerick. Their smothering levels of energy not unlike Kilkenny at their zenith. Writing well on the wall for Tipp ten minutes before halftime. Irrepressible after their response to Seamus Callanan’s goal.
Clare will be wondering why Limerick did not perform like this two weeks ago!
It must be said that John O’Dwyer should probably have been red carded. There is no probably about Ronan Maher. A definite red card . Reckless . Resulted in the classiest player on the pitch, Peter Casey , having to be replaced. Appalling officiating.
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Post by kerrygold on Jun 30, 2019 14:51:02 GMT
The ref was right on top of it also.
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Post by Mickmack on Jun 30, 2019 15:12:02 GMT
Majestic display by Limerick. Their smothering levels of energy not unlike Kilkenny at their zenith. Writing well on the wall for Tipp ten minutes before halftime. Irrepressible after their response to Seamus Callanan’s goal. Clare will be wondering why Limerick did not perform like this two weeks ago! It must be said that John O’Dwyer should probably have been red carded. There is no probably about Ronan Maher. A definite red card . Reckless . Resulted in the classiest player on the pitch, Peter Casey , having to be replaced. Appalling officiating. that ref lets too much go
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Post by kerrygold on Jun 30, 2019 15:19:11 GMT
Cracking shootout in the Leinster final. Wexford stepping up.
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Post by clarinman on Jun 30, 2019 16:50:00 GMT
Majestic display by Limerick. Their smothering levels of energy not unlike Kilkenny at their zenith. Writing well on the wall for Tipp ten minutes before halftime. Irrepressible after their response to Seamus Callanan’s goal. Clare will be wondering why Limerick did not perform like this two weeks ago! It must be said that John O’Dwyer should probably have been red carded. There is no probably about Ronan Maher. A definite red card . Reckless . Resulted in the classiest player on the pitch, Peter Casey , having to be replaced. Appalling officiating. Limerick did not perform like this 2 weeks ago because they left 6 of their best players on the bench knowing that the game was a dead rubber. Clare need to look at their performance the previous week against Limerick.
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Post by kerrygold on Jun 30, 2019 17:03:29 GMT
Delighted for Davy Fitz, Lee Chin and Wexford. Some striking of the ball today.................
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Post by southward on Jun 30, 2019 19:39:25 GMT
Very strange-looking decision at the end of the Leinster Final today. Wexford coming out with the ball in injury-time, ref blows up to allow a sub come on, then gives a throw-ball. Maybe I missed something but, like, wtf?
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Post by Mickmack on Jun 30, 2019 19:44:19 GMT
Wexford and KK had provided the hurling game of the championship in Wexford Park.
The fear was that KK would know their way around Croker better and Wexford would not rise to the occasion but they did in the second half.
A dubious 65 helped them to go 3 up.
KK are thrown in front of the Cork bus now.
The scheduling will be interesting once Laois and Westmeath are accounted for.
Cork v KK and Dublin v Tipp is a probable double header.
Dublin went mental the last time they met Tipp in the QF and twas played in Thurles.
They might send Tipp v Dublin to PUC and play KK v Cork in Tipp.
Or a double header in Croker but Cork will probably be in line for a few big games.
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Post by wideball on Jun 30, 2019 21:52:27 GMT
Wexford and KK had provided the hurling game of the championship in Wexford Park. The fear was that KK would know their way around Croker better and Wexford would not rise to the occasion but they did in the second half. A dubious 65 helped them to go 3 up. KK are thrown in front of the Cork bus now. The scheduling will be interesting once Laois and Westmeath are accounted for. Cork v KK and Dublin v Tipp is a probable double header. Dublin went mental the last time they met Tipp in the QF and twas played in Thurles. They might send Tipp v Dublin to PUC and play KK v Cork in Tipp. Or a double header in Croker but Cork will probably be in line for a few big games. Is Nowlan Park too small?
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Post by Mickmack on Jun 30, 2019 21:59:17 GMT
same weekend as Bob Dylan in Nowlan Park i think
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Post by dc84 on Jul 1, 2019 7:56:49 GMT
Portlaoise would probably do would they expect more than 20k?
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Post by jackiel on Jul 1, 2019 10:16:09 GMT
A long day in HQ yesterday, eyes still stinging from the sun but by far the most enjoyable day for a long time. Great to see Wexford win both Leinster titles, it meant so much to them and their supporters. Good to see a bit of passion, looking forward to the Semi Finals now.
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Post by onlykerry on Jul 1, 2019 10:24:14 GMT
same weekend as Bob Dylan in Nowlan Park i think Neil Young & Bob Dylan play Nolan Park on Sunday 14th - therefore not an option for GAA
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Post by dc84 on Jul 2, 2019 16:18:50 GMT
Double header Sunday week in croke park bit of an odd choice ? Would've thought Kilkenny and cork would've brought a good crowd to thurles with dublin and tipp going to portlaoise?
I do think laois might give dublin a fright this weekend though they are decent lit better than Carlow imo.
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Post by Mickmack on Jul 4, 2019 21:17:25 GMT
KK beat Galway in the u20 in Leinster.
KK are rising again. No doubt about it.
Eoin Cody of Ballyhale got a DJ Carey type goal.
Adrian Mullen of the senior team is also from Ballyhale and he is only a youngster too.
Its going to be a massive battle between KK and Cork
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