Kildare V Laois

wexford would not have footballers in the calibre of Kingston Strong Quigley but at the same time it's extremely worrying .

before I say this I will state that I think Morgan Flats should have been in the panel from day 1. but is anyone else unnerved by the fact that he was brought back into the panel a number of weeks before championship. Firstly why wasn't he retained from day 1. Secondly why is he only back in now, is our coaching ticket only realising now that defensively we are all at sea? despite being extremely poor for the whole league and it coming to ahead in the farcical final against the mighty Clare who carved is open at will .

also for defenders who been there all year what so they think of him coming in from the cold to sort our defensive problems .

It's all worrying for me 3 weeks out to champ we fond ourselves really no further defensively down the line than we were 4/5 year ago when Dublin absolutely tanked us in Ryan's 1st year as selector

http://www.kildarenow.com/gaa/morgan-oflaherty-returns-to-kildare-panel-while-one-member-has-opted-to-leave/86668

Would have thought the manager explained it pretty well before now. Think he was always going to be brought back Morgan. Dealing with teams running at us has been a concern long before now but I don't know why the game on Sunday is being taken too seriously. None of the players who started the league final started on Sunday, Laois started with 9 or 10 of their championship starting line-up and brought on 3 more. Throw in 10 substitutions and its fair to say the team weren't taking the result too seriously, more about whittling down the panel.

Likewise as the manager pointed out before the league final, they weren't tapering off their training and, rightly or wrongly, didn't seem too perturbed by the result. Championship is what he will be measured by. If the league was that important, John Evans would still be managing Roscommon and Eamon Fitzmaurice would have been removed after losing his first 4 league games badly. Remember 2012, we finished 5 points behind Tyrone in the league table, won a league final we were clearly more interested in than them, lost to Meath and got hammered by Cork. At the end of 2012, I don't remember too many people saying "ah who cares about the championship, we won a division 2 league final".

This is the sky sports tabloidisation of sport. Every game is the biggest game of all time since the last one the previous week.

My main concern with the Wexford game is the number of key players sitting either final year exams or masters exams in the 2 weeks before the game. Got enough on their plate right now.

Btw, I'd imagine Ciaran Lyng, Ben Brosnan, PJ Banville, Daithi Waters, Brian Malone, Adrian Flynn and Anthony Masterson would be sceptical about being inferior calibre footballers to half fit Donie Kingston, half-fit Brendan Quigley and Darren Strong (Darren Strong???). Nothing personal xavi but its one too many negative posts in the last 10 days on the forum that has me on edge.

Shergar wrote:

http://www.kildarenow.com/gaa/morgan-oflaherty-returns-to-kildare-panel-while-one-member-has-opted-to-leave/86668

Would have thought the manager explained it pretty well before now. Think he was always going to be brought back Morgan. Dealing with teams running at us has been a concern long before now but I don't know why the game on Sunday is being taken too seriously. None of the players who started the league final started on Sunday, Laois started with 9 or 10 of their championship starting line-up and brought on 3 more. Throw in 10 substitutions and its fair to say the team weren't taking the result too seriously, more about whittling down the panel.

Likewise as the manager pointed out before the league final, they weren't tapering off their training and, rightly or wrongly, didn't seem too perturbed by the result. Championship is what he will be measured by. If the league was that important, John Evans would still be managing Roscommon and Eamon Fitzmaurice would have been removed after losing his first 4 league games badly. Remember 2012, we finished 5 points behind Tyrone in the league table, won a league final we were clearly more interested in than them, lost to Meath and got hammered by Cork. At the end of 2012, I don't remember too many people saying "ah who cares about the championship, we won a division 2 league final".

This is the sky sports tabloidisation of sport. Every game is the biggest game of all time since the last one the previous week.

My main concern with the Wexford game is the number of key players sitting either final year exams or masters exams in the 2 weeks before the game. Got enough on their plate right now.

Btw, I'd imagine Ciaran Lyng, Ben Brosnan, PJ Banville, Daithi Waters, Brian Malone, Adrian Flynn and Anthony Masterson would be sceptical about being inferior calibre footballers to half fit Donie Kingston, half-fit Brendan Quigley and Darren Strong (Darren Strong???). Nothing personal xavi but its one too many negative posts in the last 10 days on the forum that has me on edge.

Who was taking it too seriously? A few observations on the game but no one going overboard when I read the posts. If anything the ongoing theme is a concern around a pattern of poor defensive performances, not one game, or two games.

I also think it is dangerous to assume Wexford are any less talented than Laois. If that was Laois's close to full strength team then god help them. But who knows, they could have been doing heavy training the day before or something or as is common in Laois footballers they just couldn't be arsed.

Final point : everyone across the country cribs about Dublin's dominance (and I'm not averse to joining in). But Dublin have won 4 league's in a row and don't seem to subscribe to the view that the league doesn't matter. They breed good habits and develop their tactics from February onwards and it doesn't seem to do them any harm. When you look at where we are coming from I still believe we've been too relaxed about building any sort of style of play / tactical approach since February. I hope I am wrong and yes of course if it all comes right in the championship anyone who commented on a league game will be slated.

Thanks for the earlier report Crofter much appreciated by those of us who can't get to games.

Looking at the team we had out, it was our second string (apart from a few first-choice lads who came on at half time) and I'd imagine a lot of them were playing for a place on the championship panel.

Just on the Wexford game will that be shown on the TV i'm away on a stag would be nice to see it?

Ohtoohtobe wrote:

Thanks for the earlier report Crofter much appreciated by those of us who can't get to games.

Looking at the team we had out, it was our second string (apart from a few first-choice lads who came on at half time) and I'd imagine a lot of them were playing for a place on the championship panel.

You'd think that. . But certainly didn't look like it.

steviegenius wrote:

Just on the Wexford game will that be shown on the TV i'm away on a stag would be nice to see it?

Don't think TV fixtures out yet, but only game other than Leinster hurling qualifying group that Saturday, so I guess depends on other sport and whether RTE/Sky see it as worthwhile.

TommyKeegan wrote:

steviegenius wrote:

Just on the Wexford game will that be shown on the TV i'm away on a stag would be nice to see it?

Don't think TV fixtures out yet, but only game other than Leinster hurling qualifying group that Saturday, so I guess depends on other sport and whether RTE/Sky see it as worthwhile.

For Kildare based sports fans : That Saturday you have the Irish 2,000 Guineas on at the Curragh and the Irish Open Golf on at the K Club, both probably on RTE.

It's probably far more likely that they'll have the Dublin v Wexford hurling live on TV at 7 o'clock rather than our match at 5 o'clock.

kickingking wrote:

It's probably far more likely that they'll have the Dublin v Wexford hurling live on TV at 7 o'clock rather than our match at 5 o'clock.

Ah didn't realise that was on. Would almost definitely say no chance we'll be on so.

I assume there's a match on before ours, as our match is on at 5.15.

SeamusMurphy wrote:

I assume there's a match on before ours, as our match is on at 5.15.

Dublin v Wexford in the hurling is on after it.

The curtain raisers for Dublin's bloody hurlers, just awful.

Rex wrote:

The curtain raisers for Dublin's bloody hurlers, just awful.

Well when you pour utter millions into making a county with very little tradition somewhat more respectable in a sport almost none of them actual care about, you might as well put them top of the bill.

Won't be to long before those young fellas playing hurling in kilkenny with Dublin parent's will be inticed back.