The Official Cavan GAA Discussion thread.

There was a lot of very sloppy play over the 70 minutes. The pass that led to their goal was criminal. Moynagh getting black carded when we had just pulled four points clear and Carlow were down to 14. The senseless red card (just after we conceding 1-1). Oisin Kiernan twice overhitting simple hand passes in the first half. The really lazy tacking by forwards as noted by Lemlin just coughing up frees. And notably two scores for Carlow from frees in the second half where Conor Madden and then Lynch jogged back to cover an overlap but not getting close leaving handy tap overs (and both being yelled at by the bench to provide cover- criminal!)

Glass half full: i thought we played some really good football in spells, but as noted by Cavan_KIng, we've yet to play anything close to a full game of football. James Smith and Thomas Galliagan in spells looked brilliant- fielding some brilliant ball and horsing through tackles. Gearoid was imperious (again!). I thought Cormac O'Reilly played really well in the first half. Brilliant movement, workrate exceptional, broke some tackles, set up a few scores, fouled for at least one (possibly two) frees and kicked a point. I thought Cian Madden had a good game- carried the ball at speed, head up and was looking for things to happen. Pity he didn't take the chance he had for a score, but he's settling nicely into that role. Against a very strong wind, we seemed to manage the game quite well and kicking 19 points is a good return. Should have had two goals- but at least we created goal scoring opportunities.

Glass half empty: Carlow could have conceivably had three more goals. Brilliant stop by Ray and a magnificent goal line clearance by Podge. We had a gale at our backs and kicked some poor wides in the second half. Patrick Lynch wasn't at the races today. I would have hooked him over O'Reilly. Half back line (where we have been dominant for years) was very passive (the Holla is such a loss there- he's usually the metronome to set that tempo). Conroy, Moynagh and Kiernan (and Gerry Smith) all had bad days at the office.

Unless Thomas isn't fit there is no reason to play him near goals. Michael Argue is a lovely club footballer but he is never an intercounty midfielder (does he even play there anymore for Bailieborough?). He's too passive for midfield and the game seems to pass him by.

Still, three games, three wins. Move on to the next one.

Well said. There’s a clear pecking order in Division 2 with the top four pulling away from Down, Cork, Offaly & Meath. I’ve seen alot of Meath over the years and have always said we are a better team than them. I certainly wouldn’t fear any team between Division 4 and that bottom level of Division 2.

As mentioned by the We Are Cavan lads, we have an annoying habit of playing to the level of our opponents. It’s rare we ever see Cavan go out and hammer a team. The last example I can remember is the League game vs Roscommon in 2019 in Breffni but everything went our way that day.

I couldn't see what was up with Gerry Smith. He was grimacing when he was coming off but it didn't seem to be muscular (he's had problems with hamstrings in the past) and wasn't limping. Maybe he came off as a precaution. Hopefully Killian Clarke is back and he could slot in for Thomas in the middle. Jason is a huge loss as he could do a man-marking job on the likes of Murphy (although I think Podge will take that on). We're going to be playing a lot of ball in the next month so the panel is going to be tested, that's for sure. Could do without stupid suspensions though.

I would have loved to play Sligo last week. Given how the steamrollered Carlow everyone has assumed they are somehow a beast of a team, and that sort of hype is no good for any team. Carlow were missing half their team and on a poor run. Sligo scraped a win over Wexford (who we know are no great shakes) and lost to Tipp (who scraped a draw against Waterford, beaten by Leitrim). What does that tell us? Division four is a dogfight, most teams are capable on their day of ambushing any other. It's isn't a linear "Sligo beat Carlow by 23 points, therefore they are 19 points a better team than us". Markievicz Park is never an easy place to go to, but I would be backing us for the win (not by much, as is per the norm!)

I completely forgot that he came on in the 2019 final!

Would there not be room for him alongside Cormac O'Reilly and Patrick Lynch? Conor Madden looks better coming off the bench at this stage and has had plenty of opportunity to nail down a spot and hasn't.

For Sunday, Mick Argue was listed as corner forward but he played in the middle and Galligan moved in and out. I would much prefer to have Reilly, Lynch and O'Reilly in there as genuine attacking threats. Cormac O'Reilly is really giving it everything he has to nail down a spot, you really have to love his application and effort.

I understand it in that we have no one stepping up as a ball winner inside or an option for a long 50:50 ball. Anyone see any developments in our forwards after appointment of our new forwards coach? No, me either.

He's been in place all of a few months. Allow him some time to work with the players. In fairness to him, given we are playing in Division 4 and no forward is setting the world alight consistently on the scoring board, other than Gearoid, it doesn't look like he has much to work with. Hopefully that will change.

I've always heard the likes of Colm Parkinson on the GAA Hour state that Cavan attack as a team because we don't have an outstanding forward. I don't think its necessarily a bad thing and he wasn't saying it as criticism.

The one point that could be labelled about the stats quoted above is that we are playing at the bottom level of football - the defences can't get any easier to play against. You can only play what's there but Tyrone were only off the plane too.

I would agree with the inability to get goals it's a bit concerning but we have had chances and i would be more concerned if we were not making goal chances.

3 of the starting forwards the last day are young and only played a handful of games so we need to give them time but at this level you would certainty expect more help from them on the scoring charts. In saying that i think the way we play does not help inside forwards as the ball is rarely kicked in long and early to let them get out in front and win the ball and turn and head towards goal and get a shot away.

Tierney, like Caoimhin O'Reilly, has been there through a number of managers so there has to be some underlying issue IMO. I accept your point re a run of games but listening to the We Are Cavan podcast this morning on the Carlow game, Damien Donohoe made a comment to Mickey Brennan about what does a forward like Caoimhin do - someone waiting patiently for their chance - and the reply was training. Training has to be the most important thing. A player has to earn their right to starts on the training field and Tierney has been there through three different managers now.

I'd also question some of your other comments. Has Tierney consistently been one of the best forwards in the club game in Cavan? I think there's a bit of recency bias there. He spent a couple of years abroad did he not and I certainly don't remember him lighting up the club championship consistently since his breakout U21 year? I don't see much of Ballyhaise so could be wrong I admit.

Niall McDermott unfortunately went abroad and I think, as we're seeing with Moynagh now, that it's very hard to get back to the level you were at after a year or two out of the game. I've seen it over the years at club level with lads returning from Australia or America for a long term. They just aren't the players they were when they left.

The other factor is that Graham appears to be trying to build a panel for the future going forward. There are players there who are arguably younger than McDermott and Tierney and are of a similar level so he might see it as being better to work with them. I do know Ballinagh supporters were aggrieved when McDermott played very well in 2020 in their intermediate win and then didn't even receive a call from Mickey. That said, the county team won Ulster that November!

I think he was 17 when he broke onto the scene in the 2018 intermediate final. Therefore he'd only be turning 21 or 22 this year so still quite young. I do believe he has had some injury issues also.

Interesting JMac podcast with Michael Hannon last week. He made some good comments in fairness. I do take these things with a pinch of salt as he is more than likely still friendly with the likes of Johnston (whom he works with) and also Mickey (whom he and the rest of that media crew need access to for information). He seems very much of the opinion that Graham is building a panel - he referenced the Ulster final and only 17 players being used. Even at that, one of those was Niall Murray who, if memory serves me, was only brought on after Madden scored and the game was won.

He also makes some excuses re last season being truncated and Cavan being caught against Wicklow - whom I believe have won one game now in the last two years (against us!) and have just dispatched their manager only four games into the new season. I'm not really buying that one to be honest. Wicklow seem like a total basket case and we still managed to lose to them - there's no excuse for that

Of particular interest though is his comment that it takes about ten games for a new player to get up to intercounty speed and that last year stunted the development of alot of players in that Cavan only had 4 games. He also referenced Cavan needing to get some decent challenge games against Division 1 opposition in April if they want to be championship ready.

Wasn't the Kildare league game his first and then i think a half against Roscommon? He definitely started against Monaghan but from memory he was subbed in the second half- did he get time in any of the other games? I don't think he featured in 2021 for county and was only coming back for Mullahorn from injury in the championship.