Kildare v Clare

Well that last 20mins certainly made up for some of the dross we have seen over the last couple of months. The subs made a huge difference - Callaghan particularly. Kelly, Cribben and Moolick all did well, Smith was impressive in the first half. Feely struggled today hence the move into full forward and to be fair he did ok in there. A couple of players unfortunately may have played themselves off the panel but with the U21's available now that was inevitable.

Was happy with the performance today. Kicked some bad wides in the second half but they showed more fight to win this match than any other in the league this year. Moolick, Kelly, Smith, O'Flaherty and Hyland all did very well I thought.

Clare played as if their lives depended on it today whereas for long periods Kildare played like a team turned out for a challenge match. It was good to see us finishing so strongly because we were far from impressive for much of that game. Smith looked sharp and Leper was excellent when he came on. They played like two lads who knew that their places are under threat. There were others who might have played their way out of contention. I don't think we learned a whole lot else from today and it will be interesting to see what team is picked when we play them again in a few weeks.  

By the way, Cormac Reilly is still hopelessly inconsistent. A constant source of frustration for both teams today.

TommyKeegan wrote:

Another example of how we aren't as good as we think and individual players aren't as good as we think. Maybe I'm arrogant but that's an attitude that's needed here, we should be beating the absolute crap out of the teams in this division. Listening on radio, 15 to go and might well win, but these games shouldn't even be competitive if we are to go anywhere!

Not many on here were expecting Kildare to win every match by double figures or claiming all stars for our players. We were in Div 3 on merit and O Neill has used it to try a lot of players but has found the strength in depth fairly shallow.
I don't think arrogance helps at all, there's a world of difference between confidence / self belief and arrogance. Confidence and self belief are earned by hard work, results and good coaching

Good to dig out the win after trailing for most of the match. The switching of Paul Cribbin onto Gary Brennan (Feely couldn't handle him) and the introduction of Leper turned the tide in our favour. I thought Clare were the best team we played in the league and I think they deserved to get promoted.
A couple of our old failings rose their head again today. Clare just ran through the centre of our defence a few times (notably for the goal) We seem to get dragged out of position too easily. We all follow our men but it leaves big holes in our defence at times. Our poor tackling technique was on show again. It's so frustrating when we kick a great point (some of our scores from distance were excellent) and then give the opposition a tap over score from a free due to a reckless tackle. I wouldn't be a fan of Cormac O'Reilly but all the referees can't be wrong and a lot more work is needed in this area.
I thought the full-back line were good again today. Hyland showed good leadership driving forward. Fitzy did well despite being played out of position. We struggled in midfield but Moolick got on top there towards the end. Up front Smith looked sharp (in the first half) Niall Kelly did well and Leper changed things when he came on.
And miracles do happen - we were the first team out on the pitch for the second half!

Good to dig out the win after trailing for most of the match. The switching of Paul Cribbin onto Gary Brennan (Feely couldn't handle him) and the introduction of Leper turned the tide in our favour. I thought Clare were the best team we played in the league and I think they deserved to get promoted.
A couple of our old failings rose their head again today. Clare just ran through the centre of our defence a few times (notably for the goal) We seem to get dragged out of position too easily. We all follow our men but it leaves big holes in our defence at times. Our poor tackling technique was on show again. It's so frustrating when we kick a great point (some of our scores from distance were excellent) and then give the opposition a tap over score from a free due to a reckless tackle. I wouldn't be a fan of Cormac O'Reilly but all the referees can't be wrong and a lot more work is needed in this area.
I thought the full-back line were good again today. Hyland showed good leadership driving forward. Fitzy did well despite being played out of position. We struggled in midfield but Moolick got on top there towards the end. Up front Smith looked sharp (in the first half) Niall Kelly did well and Leper changed things when he came on.
And miracles do happen - we were the first team out on the pitch for the second half!

Division 2 next year

Cork
Down
Galway
Fermanagh
Derry
Meath
Kildare
Clare

Kildare really seem to play shite on radio. County Board need to get their act together and play on grass..

Our half back situation is really starting to worry me. The full back line is steady enough but I think my near 50 year old self could glide through our half back line. And yet we still don't supplement things with an extra man back. Looks like we'll be going man for man against the Dubs in a Leinster Final if we get there. I'll be watching that from behind all 10 fingers and thumbs. Unless Cian has some grand plan up his sleeve.. Jesus I hope Eoin Doyle is on the mend although I don't think he alone can plug the gap.

Our last two games , Tipp and Clare has seen our best two performances which is encouraging. Today was the first day that we put up a decent points total , and could have scored more if we had taken all our chances so that to was positive, In the first half we let Clare run down the centre too easily but we did improve on this in the second half. For me the positives from the league 1) promotion 2) winning 6 out of 7, 3) Dan Flynn & Feely back 4) the development of Hyland, 5) the addition of O'Donoghue, Houlihan and Tyrrell as options to the squad. The negatives 1) the failure to find any additional forward talent (tyrrell apart) - Hopefully some of the u21s will now come into the reckoning 2) Our defence frailities are still glaringly obvious when teams run at us

As kk said Clare went full bore in this game, where as our lads played for about 20 minutes top. When leper and Johnny Byrne were brought on and Cian made a couple of positional switches we improved considerably. We won far more breaking ball and we had a target man who could make the ball stick and bring others in.

Midfield struggled at times but it didn't help having Cormac Reilly blowing up for any challenge in the air. I can only say he was impersonating a ref and doing it poorly.

Fitness looked better and they finished far stronger than Clare. 
For Tommy to say we should be hammering these teams is absurd. We were in Div 3 because we had a manager who couldn't manage and I have no doubt we would have been close to Div 4 if he was still here. Games on the radio never give a good indication of how the game is flowing. When we pushed on today Clare had no answer.

It was also good that the players seem to have a bit if fight in them. Some have played their way out and I expect of the  U21's will come in especially up front. 6 wins out of 7 and a game in Croke Park to come before Wexford is a good couple of months work from such a low base.

The last 2 days have shown how important goals are. If Sherry had scored yesterday we would be Leinster champions and if Cribben hadn't butchered 2 great goal chances in the first half we could have been a lot more comfortable today.
Our big weakness is the inability of our half back line and midfield to stop players running straight through us and setting up easy goal chances. Maybe Doyle could help in this regard but he is very injury prone.
The other big worry in the league is the poor options we have in the full forward line. We really do need a big player who can win a high ball and bring others into play. I don't know if have we that type of player available without TOC and Fogarty. Players like Flynn and McCormack could really prosper in that environment.
Otherwise we may have to try someone like Dan Flynn or Feely there but that will mean robbing one sector to pay another. The big pity is that we have one player who would fit that bill perfectly but he is playing another sport in another country.

Rex wrote:

As kk said Clare went full bore in this game, where as our lads played for about 20 minutes top. When leper and Johnny Byrne were brought on and Cian made a couple of positional switches we improved considerably. We won far more breaking ball and we had a target man who could make the ball stick and bring others in.

Midfield struggled at times but it didn't help having Cormac Reilly blowing up for any challenge in the air. I can only say he was impersonating a ref and doing it poorly.

Fitness looked better and they finished far stronger than Clare. 
For Tommy to say we should be hammering these teams is absurd. We were in Div 3 because we had a manager who couldn't manage and I have no doubt we would have been close to Div 4 if he was still here. Games on the radio never give a good indication of how the game is flowing. When we pushed on today Clare had no answer.

It was also good that the players seem to have a bit if fight in them. Some have played their way out and I expect of the  U21's will come in especially up front. 6 wins out of 7 and a game in Croke Park to come before Wexford is a good couple of months work from such a low base.

I think you're deluding yourselves thinking Kildare were just waiting to turn on a tap and the first half was just down to commitment/energy levels. Our defending from front to back remains a huge issue and even a moderately skilful Clare team were able to look like a Div 1 team attacking us. We were still porous for the first 15 minutes of the second half. Must have been soul destroying for the forwards to watch us gift them score after score while kicking some great points at the other end. Fair play to the team for digging it out with a strong last 20 minutes but over 7 games we have shown ourselves to be a top Div 3 or low end Div 2 team.. no different to what we were last year in my view. Think the standard we've been playing at could really hurt us in the summer and that's why I'd favour us focusing on youth in the championship as this year was all about getting back to a decent league level and getting the basis of a decent team ready for the next couple of years.

Callaghan showed his value coming off the bench late in a game and is the best of the old stagers. Reluctantly I no longer believe O'Neill should be retained and o think McGrillen played himself off the panel today. Dowling should go to to make way for the likes of McCormack and N Flynn.

Smith was excellent and could be one of the older players to retain in the starting 15 depending on whether Fogarty gets back.

Feely at full forward was an interesting move but resulted from his yellow and a tick according to O'Neill rather than being a pre-planned move. Still he is a class footballer and it's great to have that option.

Your putting words in my mouth there. I never said they were waiting to turn on the tap. What I did say is that they played to a level near their current potential for twenty minutes. Clare looked like they played to theirs from the start. 

I'm far from deluded as you say. I can see the problems quite clearly. I even started a thread on our poor tackling. I stated we were a Div 3 team, and that's what we are. It doesn't change the fact we won 6 out of 7 against teams supposed to be our level. That's what you can only judge us on. Not against Div 1or Div 2 teams that's for next year. As for your suggestion we are no better than last year, we'll have to disagree or at least wait until longer than the 3rd of April.

Cian is not going to change three years of poor coaching by Ryan in three months. A little patience might not go amiss.

Rex wrote:

Cian is not going to change three years of poor coaching by Ryan in three months. A little patience might not go amiss.

Exactly, Cian is here for the long haul and will definitely improve Kildare in that time. He has given a lot of players a decent chance to play themselves on the team for the summer. On todays evidence 3 of them have probably played themselves of the panel. He always said that we would be a lot stronger when the U21's came on board.
He used Div 3 to get his best squad and now has time to develop tactics more fully. We did win 6 out of 7 matches and lost the other by a point. Would we have got promoted under Jason Ryan?
If we can improve the half back line and find a ball winning full forward then we will be a lot better in the summer. I am confident we have the right man for the future.

I still think Dan Flynn is the best option as a roaming full forward. Ok we lose some pace around the middle but in the brief time he has played inside there for Kildare he has caused havoc. Tipp had no answer to him last weekend. If he's fit for the league final I'd like to see him tried there again.

Is Eoin Doyle likely to be ready for the Leinster Championship?

In agreement with Crofter on two key points - Fogarty should be full forward and I would be quite worried about what might happen in a potential Leinster final (although I'm not taking that for granted, given that we are Kildare).

I'm tearing my hair out about the openness of Kildare teams at all levels. Sweepers and covering players seem alien to us, which is quite remarkable given the tactical evolution of football. Dublin encountered a similar problem in 2014, but they've adapted. We haven't, and you best believe the Dubs will target that, just like yesterday.

All things considered, right now I think we'd be annihilated by Dublin - again. As Crofter says, the only caveat is that O'Neill is developing a defensive masterplan and not showing his hand. But gauging from his interviews and the games to date, I have a horrible feeling he isn't. I suppose there hasn't been progress, in that sense.

Having said that, if Ryan was still in charge, I think there's a strong chance we'd be joining Westmeath in Div 4. So overall, I would say an improvement this year, but my god, we are rationing it out.

Ease up on JR ffs. Horseshite to say he'd have got us relegated. He was over us when we hammered a Div 1 and Div 2 team in Championship, along with two from Div 3 this year without Feely, Flynn or Hyland. He also got a Wexford team to an AI semi final so bit of perspective needed.

What exactly is Eoin Doyle's injury? He's been out for so long now but haven't heard much about it or the aim for when they hope to have him back (missed the KFM reaction today though so maybe it was mentioned).

Yeah - totally disagree there. Comfortably the worst Kildare manager since I've been watching them. He presided over two successive relegations. I would rank the Dublin and Kerry games last year as the worst championship displays I've ever seen from Kildare teams.

So, I would have to say it's not stretching possibility at all to say he'd have got us relegated. To be honest, I don't care what he did with Wexford, it's what he did with Kildare I was concerned with - and unfortunately he turned us into a laughing stock. He was totally out of his depth, but look, he should never have been appointed.

It has been refreshing this year to have a competent manager, even allowing for tactical problems.

You've a short memory. I recall Kildare being knocked out if the Championship at home to Louth twice, losing to Offaly at home. Ryans Championship record for Kildare is a lot better than hes given credit for. Margins of victory are far widwr these days and we are not the only team who have been hammered by the top 2 teams in the country. Kildare would have coasted through that division 3 with you or me in charge. No need to keep banging on about past regime in every other post.

Yeah, like I say, the Dublin and Kerry games were the worst championship displays I've ever seen from Kildare teams. They were two full broadsheet pages devoted to the Kerry defeat in the Irish Times - Jim McGuinness described Kildare's performance as "genuinely shocking" (he was right btw) and said our lack of competiveness on what was supposedly a flagship weekend for Gaelic football suggested a crisis in the sport. This is before we get onto Darragh O'Se's views.

Unfortunately I've quite a long memory - I've been following Kildare since 1990. Under Dermot Earley we beat Dublin in the league and under Padraig Nolan, we got to a Leinster final and put in a strong performance. John Crofton, for all his faults, never presided over anything as appalling and humiliating as the Dublin and Kerry games. So, Jason Ryan would have to qualify as the worst Kildare manager of modern times. This is just factual stuff I'm recounting, don't have a vendetta against the guy or a anything.

Lily8 wrote:

What exactly is Eoin Doyle's injury? He's been out for so long now but haven't heard much about it or the aim for when they hope to have him back (missed the KFM reaction today though so maybe it was mentioned).

Osteitis pubis. The same thing Leper has trouble with. I've seen Doyle at a number of matches in the stand with Brian Flanagan and Bryan Murphy but I haven't heard or read anything from the management lately about his availability later this year. Maybe some Naas folk on here know if he's going to line out for the club before the Leinster Championship starts?

Rex I am patient - still supporting them 40 years after my first game ! Don't get me wrong I'm glad we're promoted and salute O'Neill for managing that but we've struggled badly to put away Div 3 opposition in all but the Longford and Tipp games. Today we came good but Clare looked like winners for the majority of the game. My biggest issue is that I would have expected us to seriously experiment with some form of defensive shield so that we learn how to stay in a game and be competitive against not only Div 3 teams but better teams as well. It is the scourge of Kildare football at the moment that we do not know how to tackle or block runs through the half back line. If your players are weak in the half back line and all the evidence suggests ours are as a manager who has walked the line on All Ireland day more than once I'd be expecting more from O'Neill and am disappointed in that aspect of our campaign. I'm also not convinced about Hylo as a full back but accept we don't seem to have too many options there.

Look, he's doing ok and I like the guy's interviews as they are honest and generally reflect what I think about performances but I dread us setting up like this in a Leinster Final. I don't believe you can suddenly turn on a defensive system after the Leinster semi final as the typical Kildare player doesn't seem to have a natural football intelligence so they need to be well drilled. I know that comment won't go down well but I can only call it as I've seen it for 40 years.

Let me finish on a more positive note. I think in Feely, Cribbin, Dan Flynn,Kelly and perhaps young McCormack and young Flynn from the under-21s we have some outstanding forward talent which again with good coaching and learning to play the percentages better (decision making) can be a serious threat to better teams. An example of the need for better training / awareness was a ludicrous example where Murnaghan broke forward on the 45m line in the second half and I saw all 4 of the Kildare players ahead of him charging out to meet him on the 45 leaving no one inside to pass to or finish off a move. You wouldn't see the like at an u-10 match.

So Cian has his work cut out and yes I probably do need to be patient. But I'm not really seeing evidence that he's doing a lot tactically or in coaching the players to improve in training. I think any improvement on last year ( if you take your argument that there is one) has come through having better players available such as Hyland, Flynn, Feely.

Hopefully he can work wonders on the training pitch and a few of the under 21s truly emerge as gems.

Best 20 minutes of football we’ve played so far this year. Looked like another dodgy final quarter when Clare went 2 / 3 points up but the subs definitely made an impact, Leper and Murnaghan in particular.

Other than the performances of Niall Kelly, Paul Cribbin and David Hyland there’s not really much to be positive about though.

Clare could have been out of sight by half time with the goal chances they had, Corley didn’t exactly deal with a high ball too effectively and Hyland made a great clearance off the line too.
Cribbin improved things when he went out to midfield but we seemed reliant on Lyons and Hyland for a bit of pace through the middle. If Dan Flynn is going to be used in the full forward line which could work well, then we’re losing probably our strongest runner through the middle.

Cian O’Neill has talked about how these things are fixable and on the fitness front he’s planned for where a team needs to be in September and is working backwards. It’s all well and good planning for September when you’re Dublin, Kerry or Mayo and you know you barring a disaster that you won’t face much of a challenge till August. When you’re Kildare though being fit in September isn’t worth much if you’re not going to be fit enough to beat the likes of Wexford and Westmeath in May and June.

Can’t defend, other landing them on top of Feely we’ve no strategy for kickouts and we’re still kicking some terrible wides. Suppose 6 wins out of 7 isn’t too bad considering that but it’s hard to be too optimistic of these things being improved upon come the summer.

I'm sure these things are fixable but I can’t see them being the type of thing you just suddenly bring into a match in the summer. The same goes for a sweeper. If you’re going man to man on teams in the league then you’re not giving yourself much chance of playing with a sweeper effectively in a Leinster final. If we drop a man back against Wexford and then Westmeath fair enough but there’s no real indication that’s going to happen.

Any word on possible challenge matches taking place over the next 3 weeks or will we be just going with A v B matches in training?

In terms of a championship team I’d be looking at;

Donnellan
Kelly, Hyland, Lyons / Fitzpatrick
O’Donoghue / Lyons, Conway, Bolton
Feely, Moolick
Cribbin, Flats, McNally
Leper / Smith, Flynn, Kelly

Definitely room there for Doyle if he’s fit with O’Donoghue or Conway dropping out, Fitzpatrick into the full back line and Lyons moving out is another option. From the under 21’s and based on Saturday Mescal, Ryan, Connell, McCormack and the 2 Flynn’s would be the ones I’d be looking at adding to the panel with Neill Flynn the strongest contender for a starting spot. It’s encouraging to have some options coming through again. We look like we’ll have some really strong options around the middle for the next few years and McCormack and Flynn look like the type of classy forwards we’ve struggled to produce over the last number of years (Doyle and Kelly aside).

There’s things to be optimistic about long term, but for this year at least I wouldn’t be overly confident of avoiding a hammering against any team with a strong forward unit.