Donegals's All Ireland - What can we learn?

This time last year we had a midfielder on the team of the year but we never played him there in 2012.....

Tommy Keegan first of all I have to say that national sports journalists did have a field day with Kildare and they really did sensationalise in a lot of cases instead of reporting the 'facts'. ie. team holiday, finances and the SJ saga. Having said that though I fully agree with you that what McGuiness did was totally wrong. Bogue has done nothing wrong and as you say, has to earn his living like the rest of us. We got a taste of McGuiness' bitterness last year when he gave a full five minute rant on national radio where he told a lot more lies than Bogue's entire book.
Jim might next have a say on what papers are sold in Donegal, maybe then deport any non Donegal natives and eventually take over the whole country, he might even have the same ego as a little man in Germany years ago. He's certainly using his current status to vent revenge on those he doesn't agree with.

I admit I haven't read the book but any review I have read says it's actually very complementary towards McGuninness and Donegal. The author appears to be at a complete loss to explain what McGuinness's problem is. Credit to him for the way he handled his exit from the press conference. If the other journalists there had any guts they've have followed him out.

http://www.independent.ie/sport/gaelic-football/i-cannot-allow-jims-crude-accusations-go-unchallenged-3240533.html

"What am I responsible for? I don't know. Jim has never referenced specifics. It is this crude treatment that should be challenged, as should the precedent of a manager ejecting a reporter from a press conference. Calls for an apology are strange when the author is unaware of where the offence lies."

Of course we know what the real offence was: Cassidy spilled the beans on certain "Methods" and obviously McGuinness did not want that published !!!!

Kelf Cassidy was emphatic that he gave away no secrets from the team's gameplan. I think personally the issue was Cassidy admitting that he felt conflicted about players hitting the deck too easy to try to get people sent off (ie Walsh v Dublin last year).
Fuhrer McGuinness couldn't take someone having a conscience and making him look bad. Sieg Heil!

Ohtooo

The "Methods":

Trash talking, getting in your face ( which means semi accidental spitting), obstructing at frees, hiting off the ball, targetting particular players ( J Doyle for example) and simulating injury to either get opponent in trouble and very importantly, to stop play when the other team are on a roll.

I noticed that Maxi Curran, who was part of the management in 2011, was not mentioned this year at all.
It was Maxi & Cassidy who brought the infamous American DVD of trash talking, obstructing, simulating, etc to Donegal Camp.

Of course Maxi had previous: He was manager of Donegal Ladies 01/03 era and had the simulating to stop opponents attacks down to a fine art. Resulting in a change of rule from "Ref must stop" to "Ref may stop" for injury.

McGuinness has moved them on from the worst excesses and obviously does not want anybody reminded !!!! Its just not that easy Jimmy !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

[quote] Fuhrer McGuinness couldn't take someone having a conscience and making him look bad. Sieg Heil!

Loved that last line ohtoohtobe, made me laugh going around all day...........

Thanks Kill Bill. Kelf that's interesting didn't know about the American DVD.

What would all think if McGeeney employed these tactics to bring an AI to Kildare?

hawker wrote:

What would all think if McGeeney employed these tactics to bring an AI to Kildare?

I know it's not a game for angels but I would never condone someone feigning injury to get someone sent off like Walsh did last year. We were all raised better than that surely.

hawker wrote:

What would all think if McGeeney employed these tactics to bring an AI to Kildare?

We'd probably write a song about him, "Geezer's winning matches".

ah lads the naivety in here is pathetic, do you honestly think this group of Kildare lads are angels. To be successful in the game today you have to be ruthless, be cynical, and in certain situations get a fella sent off if the situation arose.

Fair enough it may be a poor reflection on how the game is gone but if you look at the Tyrones, Kerry's, Corks, Donegal's over the past 10/15 years they have been perfect exponents of this yet have the silverware to back it up.

'These tactics' are a fundamental part of winning in the modern game and if you dont think these Kildare lads have been instructed to do likewise loook at the difference in how they used to roll over in the Nolan and Crofton years compared to now.

hawker wrote:

What would all think if McGeeney employed these tactics to bring an AI to Kildare?

If it had the same effect and outcome as for Donegal in 2012 / I wouldn 't give a rattling toss.

Do on to others as they would do to you - but do it first.

Loads of Pints wrote:

ah lads the naivety in here is pathetic, do you honestly think this group of Kildare lads are angels. To be successful in the game today you have to be ruthless, be cynical, and in certain situations get a fella sent off if the situation arose.

Fair enough it may be a poor reflection on how the game is gone but if you look at the Tyrones, Kerry's, Corks, Donegal's over the past 10/15 years they have been perfect exponents of this yet have the silverware to back it up.

'These tactics' are a fundamental part of winning in the modern game and if you dont think these Kildare lads have been instructed to do likewise loook at the difference in how they used to roll over in the Nolan and Crofton years compared to now.

Loads of Pints just to be clear you're honestly saying you think that Kildare players should lie on the ground and fake injury to get someone sent off?

I would'nt care if they won the AI while on horseback wearing suits of armour, just want to win it before I pop off (which hopefully will not be for another -40 50 years)

not personally no, but its clear it has become par for the course now for teams to target specific players on opposition teams to get them sent off. What i am saying is that it is no coincidence that the teams with a nasty, cynical streak in them are the ones that take home the bacon.

My main point of argument is the utter ignorance of people here to what Kildare do under the instruction of the management team obviously. Like i said, its an important aspect to success now

Yeah I suppose different people draw the line at different places. For me I wouldn't have a massive problem with a lot of it - the game's meant to be a test.
I do have a massive problem with cowardly playacting (Aidan O'Mahony in 2008 is a prime example) to get a lad sent off. That to me is the lowest of the low. When I was younger the code was the exact opposite - even if you were hurt, you were told to try not to show it. To me the likes of O'Mahony peeking through his fingers to see O'Connor getting sent off is the lowest act (apart maybe from spitting) you can do on a football field and anyone caught doing it should get a very long ban.
I know what you're saying about ignorance of what goes on at the top level. I think people are ignorant of what goes on in junior club football, never mind All-Ireland senior.

Agree with you 100% on O'Mahony O2B.

Tom "Greg Louganis" Kelly in 2003 also springs to mind.

Not the type of thing I would like to see a Kildare player engage in.

But would you think that every time a Kildare player stays down, he's injured? Really?

There is no excuse for feigning injury to get somebody sent off it is a cynical and unsporting act, we all play sport to win but not at any cost we have to draw the line somewhere, imagine if one of our players were sent off after somebody went down like drogba, this type of behaviour is not acceptable.

Athyman wrote:

There is no excuse for feigning injury to get somebody sent off it is a cynical and unsporting act, we all play sport to win but not at any cost we have to draw the line somewhere, imagine if one of our players were sent off after somebody went down like drogba, this type of behaviour is not acceptable.

Imagine indeed / oh wait .. Did I imagine the 2000 All Ireland semi final

For anyone interested, as it relates to a prior element of this discussion... http://tiny.cc/ce8dlw

Well said

Well written Tommy. If it was McGeeney who did that after winning an All Ireland I wonder how many of us would care too much. At the end of the day its all about winning same as in other sports.

I do agree that McGuinness handled things badly last week however I also feel that journalists in general need to take a look at themselves, more and more cheap sensational half stories are appearing in the papers with the headline seemingly the most important aspect. No one is or should be above criticism but fair play must come into it, the recent fuss over Joe Cannings comments where taken out of context if you listened to the whole interview.