Kerry GAA Discussion Thread Mod Warning Post #4167

D'Agger

My thoughts on the game:

Eoin Brosnan was completely anonymous for Kerry barring when he popped up late in the game to score an important point, as has already been said I hope Tomás comes into the centre for him as a straight swap.

I thought we did well enough at midfield considering we were up against the best midfield in the country. Maher, considering I've given him some flack, did quite well I thought and I thought Sheehan was unlucky to be taken off although we definitely needed anchoring around the middle at the time he was taken off. Really missing Moran this year!

Thought Enright did very well in the corner, I know Kerrigan got a few good scores but from play I thought he was well marshalled.

Considering the slack Kealy has gotten on this thread over the past he deserves a pat on the back after the other days performance, was very close to stopping the penalty (not the same I know but still) spread himself well for the shot that came off the post and made a fine save in the 1st half.

I could make further points but I'm a bit tired from the weekend still so I'll come back to it!

keane2097

I assume you were at the game Paul?

D'Agger

keane2097 wrote: »

I assume you were at the game Paul?

No I managed to give myself one of my famous hangovers, got out of bed just in time for throw in though!

ShamoBuc

PaulieC wrote: »

No I managed to give myself one of my famous hangovers, got out of bed just in time for throw in though!

I love those kind of nights out;)

keane2097

PaulieC wrote: »

No I managed to give myself one of my famous hangovers, got out of bed just in time for throw in though!

Right - I'll do up a long post because TV obviously didn't do some of the players justice.

ShamoBuc wrote: »

I love those kind of nights out;)

I taught him how to get them

D'Agger

keane2097 wrote: »

Right - I'll do up a long post because TV obviously didn't do some of the players justice.

Brosnan I assume you're talking about

I taught him how to get them

This is quite true.....Díck!! :pac:

keane2097

PaulieC wrote: »

Brosnan I assume you're talking about

Brosnan, Maher a couple of guys you didn't mention...

D'Agger

keane2097 wrote: »

Brosnan, Maher a couple of guys you didn't mention...

I look forward to you enlightening me then Keano bah

keane2097

I'll start with the bad stuff:

Our sideline failed to impress me as it usually does after a bright start. Moving Declan O'Sullivan in on Canty was a great move as it threw Cork for a loop for a while. The issue is, before the switch both DOS and Star were playing great, after it only DOS was. This is fine while DOS is still lighting Canty up, but as soon as Canty moved out the field it was time to switch back, because Donaghy is too lazy to mark Canty when we didn't have the ball, and everything Canty does gives the Cork players and fans a crazy boost.

It was very obvious that Cork were going to line up in the second half to mark our forwards as they finished the first half - i.e. Miskella FB, Canty CB. It was sticking out an absolute mile that straight after the throw in put Donaghy in on Miskella and move DOS back out on Canty to throw Cork off kilter again. It takes minutes for teams to adjust to stuff like that, and that's the time when you can really hurt them.

It took us way too long to put Donaghy back in once it was clear that Canty was more of a presence in the middle than Star was imo.

Second half they were way too slow to spot that Kerrigan had gotten Enright's number, the switch of Marc O'Se onto Kerrigan could have happened a good bit quicker.

Brian Sheehan as always has good and bad. The good is that when he tries to be he's a fantastic ball player. He's great on the ball, can use it very well to bring the forwards in the game and is a scoring threat from everywhere. Unfortunately, he's lazy. There were times on Sunday when the backline was under pressure getting the ball out and he just stood around looking at them rather than giving them an option. He needs to up his workrate, but he can be a really, really good midfielder for us if he does IMO.

On to the good:

First guy that has to be mentioned is Donnacha Walsh.

I haven't been a fan, have thought he's ok, but generally been unimpressed. All I can say after Sunday is wow. The work the guy does off the ball is incredible, and I'm not just talking about donkey work here either. The runs he makes off the ball are so smart, Noel O'Leary was rarely with 10 yards of him in the first half. He doesn't get on the ball as much as he might, but when he does check out the positions it's in - tight spots down the line, often having crossed over to the other side of the pitch and being the only decent out ball for a defender coming out of defence.

His use of the ball is really economical as well, but it's the run-making that I was just blown away with. Really terrific game by him, I can see why he's often withdrawn early as it's got to take it's toll.

Anthony Maher is another I've been critical of, but he's another who got through an amount of work. He didn't fade yesterday and won a lot of ball that went his way even in the second half, he just wasn't getting much help from those around him. He showed the big heart too, pulling in some ball at really key moments when sometimes it didn't even look like his ball to win.

Darren O'Sullivan did tremendous work in the first half as well, the two wing forwards tracking back in that first half was awesome and is the main reason that we were able to keep Cork to such a low score, especially when you consider that DOC was burning Marc O'Sé to every ball and Goulding looked to have the beating of TOS when he got reasonable ball as well.

Brosnan it needs to be remembered is first and foremost a defender now. Cork's half-forward line had very limited influence over the game, so the half back line was good. Again, at a couple of key stages Brosnan came onto the ball at pace and made surging runs forward. Another damn impressive display by a guy I've been critical of, and he won't mark too many better or more mobile forwards than he had to on Sunday.

Kieran O'Leary was fantastic in the first half. Similar to Walsh, made super runs, but saw a lot more of the ball. Used it well for the most part, and was very much involved in most of the good work that Kerry did, but some of the wides he kicked are really not good enough. Still, very impressed with him overall, very unlucky to get carted in the second half.

Cliff notes on the rest (where needed, anyone not included played more or less as expected):

Shane Enright had a great first half but was getting destroyed in the second before getting injured and should have been switched sooner or replaced by Bohane. Promising from him though.

AOM looks as fit as I've seen him look. Great to have him back firing on all cylinders. Coped pretty well with a bigger man in Ciaran Sheehan, he'll mark worse forwards this year that's for sure.

Declan O'Sullivan was awesome as ever. Best footballer in the country and must be a contender for GOAT centre forward.

Disappointing cameos from my clubmen Quirke and Barry John Keane. Quirke just didn't get up to the pace of the game quick enough, although it was a tricky assignment given the rampage Alan O'Connor was on when he was introduced. BJK just looked nervous and made some very basic errors. His hair is worse than ever.

Great cameo from Stam, must be the most talented footballer in the country not to have made a proper breakthrough onto the county team, given his age. Hopefully this is a sign of things to come.

tl,dr; First half was the best 35 minutes I think I've possibly ever seen a Kerry team play, we still have things to work on but are in a great spot considering how much stronger the squad should get over the next few weeks.

D'Agger

Too long to be disecting into snipets of quotes but in general would agree with what you've said - especially about Declan O'Sullivan - they guy's a phenomenal footballer and destroyed Canty while he was on him.

I've maintained that O'Leary's best position is on the wing - he constantly works hard and creates space but atm Walsh is the better man for the job. it's obvious the work he puts in, he's always all over the pitch.

I though Enright did well tbh....we'll put it down to the hangover, however I still maintain that Brosnan was poor the guy was nowhere to be seen for alot of the game, Cork blitzed through the middle too many times in the second half too - and while not entirely Eoins fault - he's a strong athlete and needed to anchor the middle and cut out Cork coming through.

Great cameo from Stam, must be the most talented footballer in the country not to have made a proper breakthrough onto the county team, given his age. Hopefully this is a sign of things to come.

Wut??

keane2097

PaulieC wrote: »

Wut??

Thought Stam was the guy that came on at the end and kicked the last point, didn't have a program.

Who was it?

D'Agger

keane2097 wrote: »

Thought Stam was the guy that came on at the end and kicked the last point, didn't have a program.

Who was it?

James O'Donoghue from Legion - good player but still the mind boggles as to why Stam isn't on the panel, he's a good strong player and has been on the fringes for the past few years....hopefully he'll get a crack of the whip next year

Old_-_School

A lot has been said about how old the Kerry team are and how young the Cork team are but of the starting 15s, Cork had 6 players in their 30s compared to only 4 for Kerry.

keane2097

PaulieC wrote: »

James O'Donoghue from Legion - good player but still the mind boggles as to why Stam isn't on the panel, he's a good strong player and has been on the fringes for the past few years....hopefully he'll get a crack of the whip next year

Stam is O'Donoghue as well isn't he?

That James O'Donoghue guy is young I guess if I don't know him?

ciarriaithuaidh

Keane exposed badly. Mike O'Donoghue from Spa (Stam) is about 24, and was a star on the u-21 winning team of 2008...James O'Donoghue from Legion is 20 and looks nothing like his namesake.

Also, you need to watch the game again if you think Kerrigan "destroyed" Enright in 2nd half. Enright was still on top of his game until his injury..in fact he got injured when he beat Kerrigan out to a ball and then pulled up with an obvious hamstring injury, allowing Kerrigan to go through and score a point.

keane2097

Kerrigan was Cork's best player in a second half in which they dominated for 30 minutes, he scored two great points from play, would have had a goal to go with it only or Marc O'Se fouling the ball on the line, and Enright injured himself losing out on a ball which Kerrigan came away with and almost goaled.

Three points from play that should have been 1-3 is a fair roasting in 25 minutes.

D'Agger

keane2097 wrote: »

Stam is O'Donoghue as well isn't he?

That James O'Donoghue guy is young I guess if I don't know him?

Was a 2year minor - alot's been made of him since he was about 16 - almost the way it was with Paddy Curran.

A good talent - took his point very well

D'Agger

ciarriaithuaidh wrote: »

James O'Donoghue from Legion is 20 and looks nothing like his namesake.

Well they do have the same amount of arms,legs and heads tbf

Also, you need to watch the game again if you think Kerrigan "destroyed" Enright in 2nd half. Enright was still on top of his game until his injury..in fact he got injured when he beat Kerrigan out to a ball and then pulled up with an obvious hamstring injury, allowing Kerrigan to go through and score a point.

I thought Enright did well too but Kerrigan was Corks go-to man in the 2nd half and he did get a decent bit of change out of the battle they had as Keano pointed out

keane2097

Enright looks a very good prospect by the way, had a brilliant first half but Kerrigan stepped it up a notch in the second and he just didn't cope.

It's no shame, Kerrigan's a very good player and has the benefit of experience.

keane2097

PaulieC wrote: »

Was a 2year minor - alot's been made of him since he was about 16 - almost the way it was with Paddy Curran.

A good talent - took his point very well

Yeah like I said I didn't ave a program (bit ridiculous considering who printed them :pac:), heard O'Donaghue and assumed it was Stam.

Don't think I've seen Stam in a few years, was surprised at the amount of hair "he" had

ciarriaithuaidh

keane2097 wrote: »

Kerrigan was Cork's best player in a second half in which they dominated for 30 minutes, he scored two great points from play, would have had a goal to go with it only or Marc O'Se fouling the ball on the line, and Enright injured himself losing out on a ball which Kerrigan came away with and almost goaled.

Three points from play that should have been 1-3 is a fair roasting in 25 minutes.

You need to watch the game again...Kerrigan kicked 1 excellent point when a Tom O'Sullivan block down landed in his lap. Apart from that he kicked 1 point where he outpaced O'Mahony after he and Enright had swapped markers, he got another when Enright (having beaten him out to the ball) fell injured and he picked up the loose ball and scored. For the penalty incident, Pearse O'Neill was clean through on goal so Enright went to meet him hit him hard, but he got the ball away to Kerrigan who had the shot stopped...Watch the game again if you don't believe me.

liogairmhordain

an incident in the 31st minute of this game.
kerrigan got a pass from d. o'connor and headed towards goal, marked by enright.
enright grabbed his arm and then held onto his jersey.
this happened right in front of the ref, about 20 yards out from goal.
kerrigan put the ball over the bar anyway.
the referee gave a free out to kerry.

keane2097

ciarriaithuaidh wrote: »

You need to watch the game again...Kerrigan kicked 1 excellent point when a Tom O'Sullivan block down landed in his lap. Apart from that he kicked 1 point where he outpaced O'Mahony after he and Enright had swapped markers, he got another when Enright (having beaten him out to the ball) fell injured and he picked up the loose ball and scored. For the penalty incident, Pearse O'Neill was clean through on goal so Enright went to meet him hit him hard, but he got the ball away to Kerrigan who had the shot stopped...Watch the game again if you don't believe me.

I watched the second half last night. If your direct opponent scores 1-3 from play in 20 minutes you got roasted regardless of what excuses people want to come up with for how it wasn't your fault.

keane2097

liogairmhordain wrote: »

an incident in the 31st minute of this game.
kerrigan got a pass from d. o'connor and headed towards goal, marked by enright.
enright grabbed his arm and then held onto his jersey.
this happened right in front of the ref, about 20 yards out from goal.
kerrigan put the ball over the bar anyway.
the referee gave a free out to kerry.

From where I was sitting that was good tackling leading to a free out for overcarrying.

ciarriaithuaidh

keane2097 wrote: »

I watched the second half last night. If your direct opponent scores 1-3 from play in 20 minutes you got roasted regardless of what excuses people want to come up with for how it wasn't your fault.

Except he didnt get 1-3, he got 0-2. Mahony and Enright had briefly switched men for one of the points. There's no way anybody watching that game live or in replay could come to the conclusion that Kerrigan roasted Enright.

D'Agger

keane2097 wrote: »

From where I was sitting that was good tackling leading to a free out for overcarrying.

tbh I saw the replay of that incident and it did look like a free - would've been a soft enough one but he did grab him by the arm

At the same time it's rare to see the benefit of the doubt being given to the defender by the ref like that.

D'Agger

liogairmhordain wrote: »

an incident in the 31st minute of this game.
kerrigan got a pass from d. o'connor and headed towards goal, marked by enright.
enright grabbed his arm and then held onto his jersey.
this happened right in front of the ref, about 20 yards out from goal.
kerrigan put the ball over the bar anyway.
the referee gave a free out to kerry.

I'm sure if you look through the game with a fine tooth comb you'll find jersey pulls and little fouls all over the field of play - your post is a bit of an unfair reflection on the referee who, imo, had a very good game - he let it flow and it was the most sporting game between Cork & Kerry I'd seen in a long while.

That may have something to do with Galvin & Cadogen not playing though :pac:

keane2097

ciarriaithuaidh wrote: »

Except he didnt get 1-3, he got 0-2. Mahony and Enright had briefly switched men for one of the points. There's no way anybody watching that game live or in replay could come to the conclusion that Kerrigan roasted Enright.

I'm sure Mahony fanboys would be well able to come up with an excuse as to why he had to take over for Enright when Enright strayed off the man he was sent out to mark because of his pace, leaving Mahony stranded on a guy he was never supposed to be marking and didn't have the pace for.

ShamoBuc

PaulieC wrote: »

tbh I saw the replay of that incident and it did look like a free - would've been a soft enough one but he did grab him by the arm

At the same time it's rare to see the benefit of the doubt being given to the defender by the ref like that.

Yeah, it certainly was one of the times when the ref saw a foul on the forward but played on as he had posession. But in this case he decided to blow up against the forward for overcarrying - he had put it over the bar aswell:(

D'Agger

ShamoBuc wrote: »

Yeah, it certainly was one of the times when the ref saw a foul on the forward but played on as he had posession. But in this case he decided to blow up against the forward for overcarrying - he had put it over the bar aswell:(

Well it was a foul - the ref missed it and Kerrigan did overcarry as a result of being fouled.

Still the ref did very little wrong the other day so wouldn't dwell on it tbh