The Sunday Game

Sunny Disposition

Former players should not be analysing games their own county are involved in.

They try to ignore or minimise serious foul play from their fellow countrymen.

The naked bias robs the programme of any credibility. Stop it RTE, time for a bit of cop-on.

TheRiverman

Shane Dowling was a disgrace tonight.

crusier

Keegan let himself down badly with the man of the match selection. Mayo couldn't make the semi to play Galway but Keegan was going to do something for Mayo to take away from Galway, he couldn't help himself, McStay was the same way as a pundit, absolutely bitter, he could never give a Galway team any credit. RTE need to reevaluate their pundits, I thought Comer came in off the field after a man of the match performance and then wiped the floor with Keegan and Kavanagh as a guest on the panel with better analysis knowing he had just been shafted by Keegan, he's way up in my estimation and Keegan way down. Think Keegan and Kavanagh feel they are there until the pension.

Billy Ocean

Pundits covering their own teams really bugs me, same with soccer punditry, in fairness to the likes of Dowling its a unfair situation too as I think some of Na Pairsaigh players in the panel are his closest friends.

windy shepard henderson

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120513484#Comment_120513484

again...

what annoys me is limerick supporters dont whing anything like he dose ,

WesternZulu

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120513564#Comment_120513564

Nothing bitter at all about it as Keegan explained later.

https://twitter.com/leeroykeegan/status/1650194236564725762?t=uJEC202gwoo7fI8RBprn4A&s=19

Hope he has moved back up in your estimations.

Sure MOTM means nothing really on The Sunday Game as Padraic Joyce well knows 😉

crusier

No

WesternZulu

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120513779#Comment_120513779

Keegan admitted his mistake and apologised and you still have it in for him.

Perhaps it's you then who's biased against your neighbours rather than Leroy.

crusd

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120513779#Comment_120513779

Jezz, relax there. When did a man of the match ever matter?

Butson

Dowling was a total joke last night.

As a Galwayman, I hope Joe Canning calls out any nonsense from the Galway players this summer. If he is not prepared to do that, then he shouldn't be on. Or don't do Galway games.

keeponhurling

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/2058293721/the-sunday-game

You’re right and sounds logical.

but then again, we’ve seen many games with pundits like Daly, Sheedy, Shefflin, Mulcahy , Cyril Farrell or whoever , and they were never really what you would call “cheerleaders” for their own county. At least, it was less obvious or annoying.

Dowling just doesn’t seem able to get any balance.

Billy Ocean

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120516923#Comment_120516923

In fairness to Dowling 1 difference to him compared to most pundits is he's a similar age to the Limerick players most likely still close friends, most pundits are retired a few years and detached a bit from the current panel, its definitely a conflict of interest for Dowling to cover Limerick games, RTE could help out alot too, for example over the weekend he could have done the Saturday highlights rather than Sunday.

Gusser09

Shefflin was a joke that time hogan was sent off. Its not confined to limerick.

On a different note why do they all look like they are going to their communion or a wedding the way they dress. Way ott.

washman3

I might sound cynical here but it may be possible that Dowling was picked deliberately to cover the Limerick game for viewership purposes. They knew well that he would be slow to call out players he played with a short time ago really. It's unfair to him and indeed others pundits who cover games involving their own counties. Last nights pairings should probably be Tyrell and Canning. Most pundits will be slow to criticise their own counties. Shefflin and Tyrell on the Hogan/Barrett incident and Canning on the Ciannan Fahy incident last year are just examples. Outside of his own county's involvement i think Dowling does a decent job on analysing games from a tactical point of view.

The other option is to get rid of analysis altogether, which may suit everyone involved and just show the highlights of games and leave controversial incidents to the CCCC to solve.

Sunny Disposition

Bizarre as it sounds, getting rid of the analysis in the evening shows would be a great move in terms of hurling.

A lot of the analysis is pretentious and poorly delivered anyway, it’d be no loss. No problem with analysis on the live show, but it seems to have overtaken the actual games on the evening show. There as much talk shown as hurling. And then you have things like a recently retired Limerick hurler analysing Limerick!

evolvingtipperary101

You could put a turnip in a suit jacket and get similar analysis on any game as Dowling. There's not much better analysts around Limerick at the moment. So, we're stuck with him for insight on the current Limerick team until Mulcahy retires. I think down the line, we'll get much better thinkers on the game from that bunch, such as Hannon, Tom Morrissey, Quaid, and O'Donoghue.

icdg

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120517458#Comment_120517458

This (second paragraph) is the huge issue with the Sunday Game and has been for years - they show too much analysis and not enough action. I thought the less games to show this year (with the Saturday Game being a thing) would allow more time for highlights but instead they’ve shortened the show. MOTD gets the balance mostly right but on RTE at some point the analysis became more important than the highlights. I’m not saying cut out the analysts altogether but the balance needs looking at. If you have a PVR it’s worth taping and watching on delay and fast forwarding through half the talking.

Borders no.2

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120517458#Comment_120517458

Totally agree but unfortunately there's too many nests to be feathered for this to ever happen. We saw it during the rugby. Somehow we needed half of the RTE sports department and a full team of analysts to go to Rome to help with covering the Italy game.

With the volume of games on now most people don't have the time or ability to catch everything even if they do use GAAGO so a proper highlights package is essential. If people want more analysis of games there's any amount of podcasts.

2 minute round ups of season defining matches for teams is insulting to those teams and the competition as a whole.

breezy1985

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120517397#Comment_120517397

The problem is former players that are too close to the teams playing.

The soccer can be even worse where they make a point of having players from the clubs playing for the clickbait comments.

breezy1985

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120517883#Comment_120517883

You could equally say anyone can go watch highlights on the internet now so the show should have more analysis.

It's their job to get ratings which means competing with podcasts not seeding sections of the fan base to them.

keeponhurling

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120517486#Comment_120517486

Seamus Hickey has been pretty good so far on GAAGO as a pundit

Borders no.2

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120517899#Comment_120517899

Ya but what often ends up happening is more analysis of a game we've already seen during the day.

They need to do what they can to stoke up controversy etc i get it but personally I had enough of the outrage around Waterford v Limerick by Sunday night and Roscommon v Galway had also been talked to death. Some proper coverage and analysis of other games is what I was interested in personally but everyone to themselves.

For me the Sunday Game is a lame duck for years now and if I miss it I'm not running to find it online.

Lots of big stories just glossed over and lost in the fog.

breezy1985

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120517965#Comment_120517965

Ya given that most of us who were at the live air match can go back and watch the post match on the player maybe they should prioritize the games that didn't get analysis.

Sunny Disposition

Soccer and rugby panels became very popular in RTE about 15 years ago. Hook and Pope with Tom McGurk, Giles, Dunphy and Brady with Bill O’Herlihy.

I feel that may be the reason there’s a persistence with a focus on ‘analysis’ and there’s also a persistence with certain panellists and at least one presenter, who try to be edgy.

But it’s long past time to go back to basics, show the matches and don’t bother with the people who have something to prove.

greenspurs

Anyone mention Dowlings hair yet ?

raindodger

Was thinking the other night if Joanne Cantwell was a ref how many red cards would she dish out in every match.

Rosita

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120558873#Comment_120558873

You'd better grin and bear it for another while. The next inevitable stage is the autobiography at Christmas.

windy shepard henderson

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120517944#Comment_120517944

`100 times better , i was at a double header in thurles a few years ago , headphones on hickey and pauric lodge were commentating he was excellent , wexford were playing waterford in the all ireland 1/4 final and poor paul morris done his cruciate hickey actually went through the process morris was going through ,

"hes going to be in pain for about 90 seconds after that the doctors will give him a quick check on the field to determine how bad it is, if you see a player with his hand covering his eyes it means its long term , the pain is gone after 90 seconds but replaced with the emotion that not only your inter county season is over but your club championship as well , thats what i went through when i did mine "

to me that is fantastic analysis , how has he been overlooked by that whinger

cute geoge

Where is Jacky gone ,

I am not familar with the new guy but he likeable

MattressRick

The camogie coverage is scandalous. They show highlights of Galway Cork, then it's teed up that Shane Dowling had something to say on it and he gave a stuttering summary without naming a single player. It was obvious he hadn't a clue what he was talking about.

Sunny Disposition

I enjoyed the hurling coverage last night. Damian Lawlor was relaxed and drew out reasoned commentary from two analysts who came from neutral counties. More of this please.