Kildare v Dublin

This team rolled over I hear a lot? How? Why? It's surely not a conscious choice. Most of us here - me certainly - have been roasted by better players over years. I never rolled over though, rather was taken apart by a better skill-set player in a team full of better skill-sets. Short of just boxing a lad and getting the line, how do you suggest not "rolling over"?

If I knew that Tommy I probably wouldn't be posting here with all due respect. I can only say it the way I see it and that is what it looked like plain and simple.
Of course there are occasions where a better team just simply gets the better of you but I would firmly argue that this and other Kildare teams have rolled over to teams of less ability to them. No denying it

Xavi wrote:

Notwithstanding the opposition.  That is utterly pathetic .

Ewan McKenna will argue the case of financial doping.  Ibwould argue the case of pure and utter Brain dead football . We are going no where faster than Dan Flynn over 100m unless we screw our heads on our shoulders

With you on this. Nothing the GAA did has prevented Kildare from funding players and management with a a brain in their heads and some steel in their hearts.

If it was only Dublin we do this against fair enough. This is 5 defeats on the trot since the Meath match. Let’s ignore the OBC.. it’s 4 defeats in 6 big matches.
I’m running out of patience with players and management now. Not going to say much more until I calm down.

TommyKeegan wrote:

This team rolled over I hear a lot? How? Why? It's surely not a conscious choice. Most of us here - me certainly - have been roasted by better players over years. I never rolled over though, rather was taken apart by a better skill-set player in a team full of better skill-sets. Short of just boxing a lad and getting the line, how do you suggest not "rolling over"?

This team rolls over against the Galway’s and Armagh’s as well. Don’t kid yourself it’s all about Dublin. Doesn’t do anyone any favours.

Don't disagree on that but new season, if they do that again as per Armagh and I'll be just as critical as anyone about lack of progress. Last year was progress, and I expect more this year. That involves staying in Division 1 thus I'll listen so closely to huge Monaghan game on KFM, a Leinster final and, if okay draw, Super 8s. But all that is ahead, unfair to base anything in terms of that on an amateur team playing a pro team which tonight was.

Tommy I fully agree with your sentiments on the wider argument re Dublin and I appreciate that obviously feeds into the result tonight but sometimes you have to look inwards. 2nd half performance was utterly abysmal and completely at odds with our first half, which was far from perfect but at least showed heart and desire.

Amateurs v professionals. Were as good as the other 28 teams outside of top 3 or 4 and thats just how it is

3 points from play is a pretty shocking return.. Amateurs in every sense.
As Johnny Doyle said after the Maynooth defeat.. you can do all the training and strength and conditioning, but it's no good if you can't kick the ball over the bar.

Those forwards are just not up to it.

There’s a lot of hysteria on here about Dublin’s finances. They have won four of their five All-Irelands by a point and one by three points. What exactly is preventing us from improving Kildare football to get it to the same level as Mayo and Kerry? We have a larger population than both and all our players live in Kildare. We should focus on that rather than whinging.

I do wholeheartedly agree with TK’s point about heart, character, etc. Too many people on here are too emotional when we lose and lash out at the players’ character. But as TK says, what do we want them to do? Throw a box and get sent off?
Instead I’d be more interested in how our skills and decision making disintegrated when Dublin pressed high in that nightmare spell after half time. That to me was the most disappointing thing tonight.
To end on a positive note, this time two years ago we were in division three. Now we’re losing and hopefully learning against one of the best teams of all time. I understand that it hurts when they hammer us - I was in bits during that 2-5 to 0-1 spell - but we need to keep some perspective.

We may have a bigger population than most counties but sure about 25% not even irish? They couldnt give a toss about kildare gaa. The actual popoulations of counties like mayo kerry are alot highrr when you factor in all the people living up here

One in four people living in Kildare not Irish? That’s simply not true.

Hard to get the round that performance or lack of it.  First half was so so I thought. Dublin strolling about while our lads were blowing hard to get anything. You could see any time Dublin upped it in small bursts they could score  at will. Saying that Dan Flynn could and should have had two more goals and we kicked a few horrendous wides.

Second half Dublin decided to try a little more and left our lads trailing. The lazy arm when tackling was back with a vengeance added to that oh so familiar soft centre and it was de ja vu for the umpteenth time.

Full back line couldn't cope with ball sent in. Nrogan was knocking down balls for fun. Full forward line couldn't make anything stick, although some of the passes sent in were bordering on ridiculous. To top it off midfield decided to not come out for the second half

Tonight was a free shot and Dublin will scutch nearly everyone else in tbe division as well. But the same failings are evident and they won't miraculously be fixed by next weekend. Next week is massive, lose and I think we're as good as gone.

We were the architects of our own downfall. The mins preceding the 2 goals were so sloppy as to be unreal. Why did we concede possession so cheaply from knockouts. Why did defenders fight for a today 50 50 ball only to see a Dublin player pick up the rebound 9 times out of 10. Forget about about financal doping it all about football shrewdness and anticipation. We are so naive it's scary. We made Dublin look better than they are. Gavin just follows the Cody template in scoring a 2nd goal right after the first and coasting home afterwards.
Next week is a massive game for our league.

Considering we supposedly had a lot more work done than Dublin, the manner we folded after Dublin pressed us high in the 2nd half was depressing. Similar to last years Leinster final, Dublin seem to find it so easy to move us around, create space and cut through our defence. While we can obviously make some improvements, it hard to see us ever bridging the gap to Dublin - it's a chasm at this stage.

Credit to Daniel Flynn who looked a real threat and deserved his goal at the end. Hopefully the big defeat hasn't knocked confidence too much. Monaghan next week is a must win game. I think it's between ourselves, Monaghan and Galway as to who goes down. Hopefully they both lose tomorrow.

Back from Croke Park now and trying to wind down with a glass of red, still can't get my head around that match, to be honest I think the ref gave Kildare every advantage, but for 20-25 minutes Dublin just upped a gear and blew us away, scoreline flattered us, I will be in Newbridge next week, then I think what's the point? , financial doping is right, just take the match programme as an example, almost every page was about Dublin, add to that there was a two page spread of Dublin's football league fixtures and nothing about Kildare's, Ciaran Kilkenny in sponsored suits etc, it was more akin to a Dublin GAA magazine, hard to be optimistic about the future of GAA.

I thought that about the match program & felt cheated buying it. But then it was their home match. Even if Croker isn’t their home ground. Besides very few there from Kildare again so why should they cater for us.

Tbh, this game simply confirmed all I knew beforehand. Unfortunately Tommy is right - I was out with Dub friends of mine afterwards and there was general consensus that we are essentially watching a charade at this stage.

The odds are so ludicrously stacked in their favour that any defeats they suffer for the foreseeable future will be spectacular one-offs a la Kerry in league final last year, Donegal in 2014. It's a weird dynamic because we're not really giving them credit for the wins and they're not getting much enjoyment out of it either.

We are pretty much in a zero-sum game, although again, not something I didn't know already. More generally, I do think we are well capable of surviving in Div 1 this year. But the GAA has created a grotesque monster in Dublin and Paraic Duffy's comments last week simply amount to black comedy - possibly the only person more delusional in the GAA is Joe Brolly.

On the plus side I did get to celebrate Offaly's hurling win afterwards. The only people more hilariously clueless than the pro-Dub cheerleaders in the media are Dublin hurling "fans".

I do actually think Mayo might finally beat Dubs at home this spring. Interestingly, we have not had a home game against them in 23 years (just to clarify - that's not a joke). Such is the GAA in 2018.

Maybe they were saving themselves for the next weekend. Jayus that was shocking.

Just want to say as well that I was not impressed by Emmet Bolton's comments beforehand at all. AT ALL.

I get it - you wanted to have a whinge about the management. Have a bit of class and keep it to yourself mate.

Just listened to Emmet tonight. Well we know he didn't retire now at least. I can't see himself and O'Neill going for a point anytime soon.

No and tbh that's fair enough. But getting into that stuff over the airwaves, it's just ugly tbh. James Horan - he'll give it to you straight about Mayo without getting into that kind of personal stuff. Think a few people could take a leaf out of his book.

That second half was a hard one to watch. Croke Park really is a torture chamber for us these days.

Hopefully they can raise themselves again for next Sunday which is winnable. A game v Dublin was never going to define our league campaign. Hard to see many teams in the division picking up points against them.

Well if you're to believe the "It's cyclical" merchants, Mayo and Tyrone should comfortably account for Dubs at home, followed by the Kerry golden generation giving them a sound trashing in Croker.

There is the also the possibility the same commentators are talking out of their arses.

What was Emmet Bolton saying?? He's a man I'd be paying attention to in fairness..
Is it fair to say kildare over achieved getting promoted last year..they really have 5/6 passengers at division 1 level...

Gonna be big struggle to stay up and division 1 is prob a step up to far