2015 season

The Kildare team to face DIT in Sundays Bord Na Mona O'Byrne Cup Semi Final has been named. Jason Ryan has made changes again to his starting 15.
The Team is as follows:
1 Tom Corley Moorefield
2 Ollie Lyons Celbridge
3 Peter Kelly Two Mile House
4 Mick O Grady Celbridge
5 Eoin Doyle Naas
6 Kevin Murnaghan Moorefield
7 Colin O Shea Milltown
8 Gary White Sarsfields
9 Hugh Lynch Confey
10 Gavin Farrell Castledermot
11 Eoghan O Flaherty Carbury
12 Eamon Murphy Leixlip
13 Seamus Hanafin Ballyteague
14 Padraig Fogarty St Laurences
15 Fionn Dowling Suncroft

Quite a few changes - good to see Lyons and O'Grady in there. Forward line pretty experimental with Farrell (dropping back?), Murphy and Hanafin.

One of the things I was critical of last year was the fact that even in January we only rotated players for one match, it was largely the same group of players every game. Ryan rotating the panel far better so far. Best of luck to the lads tomorrow.

Gav Farrell gone from Corner Back to Wing Forward ??

Murnaghan will probably play in the same sweeper role he was in last week and Farrell will drop back to the half backs. Good to see O'Grady back in the team. He had a decent first season in 2014. I hope Dowling does well again. He strikes me as a confidence player and a run of games might bring out the best in him.

As mentioned above by Crofter, you have to presume that the number of his jersey isn't a guide to where he'll play, just as it wasn't for Murnaghan last week. He will be one of the seven defenders.

Decent enough performance today but next weeks game against Dublin will give us more of an idea of where we are at. We started well and hit some freakishly good points in the first 15 minutes. We lost our way a bit at the start of the 2nd half but it was game over once we got the 2nd goal.
I thought Kevin Murnaghan had a great game as the spare man at the back. He read the game well, made a lot of interceptions and made good use of the ball. Good to see Peter Kelly, Eoin Doyle and Ollie Lyons get more game time. Colin O'Shea had a good game as well. I know the ref gave them some soft frees but I thought we gave away a few needless frees today when there was no danger. Overall though, we are defending a lot better than last year.
Hugh Lynch and Chalky did okay in midfield but I think we might struggle there against better opposition. Ciaran Reddin's mobility caused us a few problems and I think we'll need Paidi back around the middle for the league.
Up front, I thought Flats was different class. He scored a goal and a couple of points, set up a goal with a brilliant pass and created 3 or 4 more goal opportunities. Fionn Dowling had another good game and showed he's able to come out around midfield and win the odd kick-out. Podge Fogarty did well but I think Tomas has done slightly better in the games he has played. It will be interesting to see who gets the nod for the league.
I thought all the new players did well without looking as if they are ready for a place in the team right now. Seamus Hanafin took his goal well, Eamon Murphy got a couple of nice scores and Colin O'Shea was good at the back. I'd like to see a bit more of James O'Connor who came on as a sub at corner back. He threw himself into a couple of tackles when he came on and looks to have a good attitude.

I think the big difference from this time last year is that we can see a strategy in defence. looks like fitzy and p Kelly will be the man markers with Ollie being the one to follow the forward outfield. murnaghan looks really composed as the sweeper. will be interesting to see where fergal Conway fits in when hes back.conway, doyle and Bolton would be a strong half back line.
midfield is the big worry at the moment. 2 from paidi, moolick, chalky or hughy is ok but not going to transform us into contenders.
forwards are taking there chances. running up good scores albeit against weak opposition. some of the points today were different class.
overall an encouraging start to the year

It was definitely a case of only beating what was in front of you yesterday. Two weeks in a row a College team has come to Newbridge and have been beaten inside of the half hour. Not sure who benefits from these types of games but it gets me out of the house.

Next Sunday will be different and it will be as real a game as you will get in January. It will provide the perfect preparation for the league which is badly needed after some very one sided games so far.

The game came and went without to much excitement. The performance of O' Flaherty was encouraging and he looks to be playing himself into a bit of form. I'm still don't think Ryan is convinced by him but on yesterdays form he can't be dropped.

Not much else to say about the game, the new lads did what they could, Farrell played well and Hanafin took his goal well. Murnaghan played the sweeper intelligently and attacked well where the opportunity came. I think he has the edge over O'Brien just for the ability to get forward.
Not much else to say apart form some silly frees given way when the fouled player was going nowhere. That kind of thing keeps teams in games and needs cutting out.

Next Sunday Dublin. Decent crowd and atmosphere expected. Free game winner makes no difference in the grand scheme of things but it would be nice to keep the little run going.

Ciaran Fitpatricks neck is already having flashbacks.

Would agree with the comments on the match and would wonder also about having the colleges in this competition.....


On the game this week its just being announced its an all ticket game. Any idea if tickets will be sold on the day???

From Hoganstand:

Next Sunday's O'Byrne Cup final between Kildare and Dublin at Newbridge will be an all-ticket affair.

After yesterday's semi-final between Dublin and Meath in Navan attracted a crowd of 7,500, the Leinster Council has decided to make the final all-ticket. St. Conleth's Park has a capacity of 10,000 and a full house is anticipated.

Tickets, which are priced at €10 for over 16s, are available from participating SuperValu and Centra stores as well as from www.tickets.ie and www.gaa.ie

The match will also be broadcast live on TG4.

Even being OB cup, standard of opposition has been abysmal.

Kildare are a great price at 13/8 to win on Sunday. If Dubs go with same team that started against meath, only 4 of the team that played against Donegal will start.

Dublin will surely start a much stronger team this time. Its a good chance for both teams to get a competitive game before the league.
We seem to be in a much stronger place than last year with a lot more options apart from midfield which continues to be a problem.
The first 2 matches are tough but the next 2 are very winnable and we could be in a good position at half way unlike last year.
Looking forward to seeing what team is selected during the week.

The College Teams seemed to be very weak this term, and One has to wonder what benefits are there to them being involved ?..

Dublins 2nd Team would probably beat most County Teams.. Id imagine they will go with the same again.

would i be right in saying that panel will cut for league

On the County Grounds, Capacity seems to be 10,000, would anyone know how many fit in the stand side of the pitch? and then the capacity for the rest (i.e. terracing behind both goals and 'wyeth' side of pitch)???
If i was guessing i would say stand side 2,500 - remainder 7,500????

I reckon bout 8000 rest and 2000 if even for the stand.

Love the way capacity was increased last year from 6-10k. Still trying to locate where the renivation for the extra 4k took place!

If i was to rank the four teams who Dubdms played in OB Cup v the fpur we played, their fpur oppositions would be ranked 1 tp 4 of the 8..At least we will get a game this w/e

lilysavage wrote:

If i was to rank the four teams who Dubdms played in OB Cup v the fpur we played, their fpur oppositions would be ranked 1 tp 4 of the 8..At least we will get a game this w/e

Can Someone please translate..

Anybody know who's idea it was to put flags up on the bridge in Newbridge ahead of the game on Sunday. It is cringeworthy and makes us look like a Micky Mouse county getting excited about an O Byrne Cup final!!

Ah leave off will yah! You dontstop supporting your county just cos its January.

Agree with lily and dont see the harm, as long as we dont get a hiding.. Id be more embarrased with our dressing rooms tbh.

Have to concede some of the slagging on Reservoir Dubs is very funny. Lads wondering about possible traffic restrictions in Newbridge Sunday night, in case we want to have a homecoming for the O'Byrne Cup three-in-a-row!

Anyway, what I want to see in this game is evidence of a solid defensive plan - stopping Dublin scoring goals is the first step on the path to beating them. Obviously they haven't got a full-strength side but they still have quality forwards available like O'Gara, Costello and Rock so if we can tie them down that's a good sign.