Mod Note Post #1 - The 2022 All Ireland Senior Football Championship.

gormdubhgorm

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/119074892#Comment_119074892

I never said I wanted Meath to continue to be poor. That is just a figment of your imagination. Yeah I still like beating Meath but I can appreciate good play from rival teams. I clapped McDonalds Mayo point v Dublin in 2006. Marvelled at Kerry's play in 2013. I appreciated Geraghty's and Dowd's play back in the day. I appreciate football.

Even now I find myself enjoying watching this up and coming Kerry team. Even though i would like them to lose.

You reference last years game v Dublin as if is some kind of panacea and shining light for Meath. I will admit I fell into that trap as well.

And Newstalk jazz it up because they want hope they want hype. Hype sells.

However, it appears to have been a one off. League form tells reveals the truth. Plus the recent Leinster game between Dublin and Meath. Has shown that it is less to do with Meath improvement. But a Dublin decline, also Dublin falling asleep in last years Leinster game. A combination of those factors.

Sonny678

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/119074945#Comment_119074945

Genunine question would be Robbie Brennan be in the running for Dublin job. How he is rated. It looks like Malachy O Rourke could be next Meath manager. But one of the other candidates that has been mentioned is Robbie Brennan. He is Dub but has huge connections with Meath. His parnets r from Meath, he lives Dunboyne Meath for 20 year, his wife and kids are Meath. He played for Dunboyne and trained Dunboyne underage team and seniors. And has being a Meath U20 selector and Meath minor selector. Seemed to do good job with Crokes. Someone did say to me he could be future Dublin manager. I dont know. Genunine questions how is he rated in Dublin. It looks like Malachy O Rourke will take over from McEntee as Meath manager from what I am hearing. But I have heard Brennans name mentioned.

Fr Tod Umptious

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/119074725#Comment_119074725

If they marketed things properly it would create a buzz and hype. If serious marketing people got hold of these competitions even the Tailteann Cup Every match would be like the 125 GAA celebrations, Bit of vibrancy and razzmatazz. Get a decent Tannoy system in grounds as well. Big screens showing past great matches between the sides. Interviews pitch side from old legends of each county side,

All well and good.

But think about what the Tailteann Cup is.

It's a competition for the 16 worst teams in the country.

No matter how much you try to hype it up you cannot get around the reality that it's a competition for the 16 worst teams in the country.

If it's valuable to the teams that play in it, i.e. they take it seriously, and if the fans of those teams get something out of it then it's a success, regardless of how much broader the interest is.

Howok

Im very excited before the start of the new championship

gormdubhgorm

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/119074945#Comment_119074945

Personally I would like Jim McGuinness or James Horan the type of managers who put an organisational structure on a team. Horan would be my no1 choice as he knows how to build a team. And rebuild it.

But there is no real world situation where either of them would be even considered for the Dublin job.

It is worrying times because things can spiral downward very fast if not sorted. The next appointment after Farrell is a crucial juncture for Dublin football.

MacDanger

Would Paul Clarke be considered at all?

gormdubhgorm

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/119075620#Comment_119075620

After Brian Mullins he was the only other one I could think of.

Mullins as a figure head for a year to steady things.

Third option would be recently retired lads along with someone like Bryan Cullen (Worked with Leinster Rugby S&C)

_NAGDEFY

This Meath/Kildare rivalry is worse than Russia and the Ukraine. I didn't realise such tensions existed. At least neither are a nuclear power.

Fattybojangles

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/119077529#Comment_119077529

I suppose if I had access to Nuclear weapons I would nuke Meath.

gormdubhgorm

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/119077529#Comment_119077529

They are great matches to experience as a neutral. Always plenty of tension even before a ball is thrown in.

RoyalCelt

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/119075008#Comment_119075008

You're right about Meath not improving. What do you think the GAA should do to get Meath to the next level? Because it's clear they need another team winning Leinster. Also what should the GAA do to ensure Kildare can beat the dubs also because it's been forever since they did it in championship too.

Looking forward to your suggestions. Unless something changes we could be looking at 50 years before Dublin are beaten at provincial level assuming the competition lasts.

gormdubhgorm

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/119084625#Comment_119084625

Well the GAA are doing the Eastern Strategy putting money in Meath Kildare Wicklow etc . But I think that is only a sticking plaster unless they change the provincial systems or scrap them. Munster and Leinster not fit for purpose. Even to a large extent Connacht.

There is no other competition I can think of where the groupings are so lobsided in standards.

I think what the GAA are doing now linking league plus championship is the slow beginnings of the league ’>’ championship.

Which is the way it should be so teams find their level or work up to the best standard they can reach. You wouldn’t put people learning to swim v long distance swimmers in a race. Pointless.

But year in year out the GAA have stuck with the provincials not knowing what to do really. It is pure madness. And to be honest I have long preferred league to championship. Easy to get tickets to any match you want to go to. Games compatible and quality. Only the weather I don’t like.

For a long time now championship more often than not (bar freak years) becomes the top teams in div 1/ at least pushing div1 by the AI SFs Basically a knockout div 1 competition. That should be obvious to the GAA at this stage.

Fr Tod Umptious

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/119084625#Comment_119084625

Unless something changes we could be looking at 50 years before Dublin are beaten at provincial level assuming the competition lasts.

At the end of 2020 people where saying Dublin could win 10 or 15 All Irelands in a row.

Then look what happened.

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/119084718#Comment_119084718

..they lost one game in a KO competition.

Not exactly a concrete point you made there.

A bad Dublin team like now will still always be in the semis and winning, a bad Galway team won't even win a Connacht.

Fr Tod Umptious

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/119084743#Comment_119084743

The point is no matter how invincible a team looks, at any level, in any competition they will still lose at some point.

So Dublin will lose in Leinster at some point, and what we have seen in the last year that some point may be closer than people think.

Fattybojangles

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/119084718#Comment_119084718

They lost 1 game that went to extra time based on a dodgy retaken free.

gormdubhgorm

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/119084718#Comment_119084718

I wasn’t! I saw Dublins dip happening.

Provincials are a joke though. Kerry one of best in football hot favs.

They are playing in ax Hurling province (rarely Cork) - Dublin in province full of lower div2 ,div3 and div4 Mayo div 1 (odd year Galway) - Ulster Monaghan-,Donegal- Tryone - Armagh all div 1 - Derry pushing towards div 1.

Seems obvious what the problems are. No way would a competition be designed like this now.

Only reason the provincials not scrapped is because would be uproar in Ulster. Basically I think Ulster is holding the rest of Gaelic Football hostage so there is no real change.

Bass Reeves

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/119084881#Comment_119084881

Even a lot of Ulster players are begining to think that way as well.

You need Round robin competitions to give teams a decent amount of games every year. In 3-5 years you need to isolate championship from league and have promotion/ relegation between championship layers as well. Teams will still take the league serious

It's interesting when you look at hurling they have messed up the league with there two D1. They will have to revert back.to 8/ division and let's teams be relegated and promoted.

gormdubhgorm

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/119084906#Comment_119084906

Well it seems obvious to me that when teams play each other and are of a similar level. It breeds competition and wanting to improve. And can gradually improve in league.

If I was a decent footballer from Leitrim/Wicklow / Waterford I wouldn’t bother playing County. Would stick to club. County just an excuse for a day trip.

What is the point in getting a walloping over and over in the intercounty championship? If people think Meath have it bad what about those counties??

Laois seem to be heading on a real downward spiral as well. In the doldrums - after a while lads will say what’s the point?

Tailteann cup seems like neither one thing nor other. Hope I proved wrong for the competition’s sake.

breezy1985

Very easy blame Dublin but Leinster teams haven't exactly been setting the leagues and qualifiers alight.

Dublin being the best doesn't explain why Meath or Kildare are not 2/3/4/5th best.

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/119084977#Comment_119084977

Success breeds success. If you're lamped in with Dublin you have very little prospect of the minor success(provincial) that leads into national success.

Anybody from a county who's been to an AI final knows there's a massive uptick in young children's interest around the final.

You can't expect those counties to keep up if the small kids in those counties have no success to feed into.

breezy1985

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/119085557#Comment_119085557

What success have Louth had or Limerick, Clare, Tipp, Derry or Cavan before their recent upturns in fortune.

There are invitative things that can be done off the pitch other than winning something. Some counties just expect success without hard work like Offaly after the glory years or currently Cork in both codes.

ArielAtom

Morris was stupid at best, running over to push a player in front of the ref, Gannon was not expecting it, hence he went down, it wasn’t a dive, it was enhanced to get Morris sent off. McEntee let himself down.

Hammer Archer

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/119086868#Comment_119086868

Ha! "Enhanced"! That's a new one. I'll remember that next time Dublin fans complain when one of theirs are sent off. He dived. He was holding his head after being pushed in the chest. Again, ye were up in arms when the Donegal player fell to the ground in 2011 and Connolly was sent off. Connolly did more to get sent off that day.

Fattybojangles

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/119086868#Comment_119086868

Enhanced christ that's a good one holding his face after being pushed in the chest is shocking now Morris should have took his baiting like a man as well.

JRant

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/119087003#Comment_119087003

I was sitting right in front of it and he didn't go down holding his head. He was pushed over and looked winded as he wasn't expecting it. It was a fair aul shove in the chest in fairness and would be enough to wind you, especially if you weren't expecting it. He was lying on the ground holding his chest when McEntee got right up in his face and started acting the hard man.

Anyway, he was a gobshite for giving the ref a decision to make, especially after the first red which was fairly egregious and should get a hefty ban. You can't be swinging elbows at people like that.

Lemlin

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/119085598#Comment_119085598

Cavan made an U21 Ulster Final in 2010. They then won Ulster U21s in 2011, 2012, 2013 and 2014. They won an Ulster minor in 2011 and their minors made the AI Semi Fin al in 2017 and lost to Clifford's Kerry. People don't realise it but Cavan had alot of underage success in the early 2010s when most of the present Senior Team were playing at those levels.

breezy1985

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/119088940#Comment_119088940

Ya underage success and that's where the hard work needs to be put in. For counties outside the top few it can be a long road back to success and too many take too long to admit this to themselves and delay the inevitable.

If you are sitting round blaming Dublin rather than asking what your county board are doing to arrest the decline then you are going nowhere.

gormdubhgorm

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/119088940#Comment_119088940

Yeah I remember Cavan played Galway in an u21 final. Think it was a curtain raiser to a Dublin match which was why I was at it. Either that or the auld fella wanted to watch Galway. It was definitely in CP anyway.

Lemlin

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/119089153#Comment_119089153

2011 U21 All Ireland Final. Galway won it. Cavan had beat Wexford in the Semi Final.

In 2014 we went fairly close in an AI Semi Final to beating probably Dublin's best U21 team ever.

Look at this for a Dublin team (and Kilkenny was injured):

Dublin: L Molloy, R McGowan, D Byrne, R McDaid, J Small, J McCaffrey, B Fenton. P O'Higgins, E Lowndes, N Scully (0-01), S Boland, N Walsh, C McHugh (0-03), P Mannion (0-01), C Costello (0-04, 2f). Substitutes: E O Conghaile (0-01) for O'Higgins, G Burke for Walsh, G Ivory (0-01) for Boland, Shane Cunningham for Scully.

Dublin earn final berth beating Cavan (rte.ie)