Think that it is a bit cheap talking about a few players who were unavailable yesterday. Wicklow only has a fraction of the pick as Meath and were missing some big names for one reason or another and got on with the task. If Wicklow had a consistent free taker, they could well have come away with a victory.
Meath's performance does not inspire confidence for a team who is the second best in Leinster.

Jack L (None) - Posts: 3099 - 15/06/2015 09:20:10    1737009

Am I in the minority that things Biggy wasn't all that great…
Yes he scored 1-4 but he could've scored another 4-5 points

I think if any player encapsulates the current team its Biggy. Can be brilliant at times almost unplayable but then can be so bad it makes ye want to kill him

From yesterday
McEntee, Rooney and Tormey were the standouts
Flanagan did his job well. He allowed Harry to go after the high balls and look spectacular while doing the quite work off the ball.
Power should be in the HB line
Bray and McMahon had their moments
Burke and Eamonn showed he should've been in from the start

Also the refereeing was abysmal, behind the play from early in the game, totally inconsistent in his decisions and players must've been scratching their heads all day long..

brian (Meath) - Posts: 1954 - 15/06/2015 09:44:01    1737032

Can the lads calling for a red for Paddy explain their reasoning? There's no professional foul rule in Gaelic football. It was a blatant black card, dunno where you're get a red from.

SmallHouse (Meath) - Posts: 291 - 15/06/2015 10:11:01    1737060

Agree with smallhouse,how should he get a red card??

ziggy32001 (Meath) - Posts: 8354 - 15/06/2015 10:22:25    1737070

That's the type player he is....but has to be accommodated as he is a natural scorer, anybody slating donnacha Tobin needs too stop and think for a minute. This is an unbelievable all round footballer with an engine too get up and down the field and he's being asked too play a specialist possition like corner back and full back, it's a joke robbing Peter too pay Paul like that.

southmeathgael (Meath) - Posts: 889 - 15/06/2015 10:33:18    1737079

southmeathgael

and this is the problem,even when most players are fit,we have Keoghan at 6 and Tobin at 2.We continue to play player were they are clearly not at their best.

ziggy32001 (Meath) - Posts: 8354 - 15/06/2015 10:48:29    1737096

McGraynor tried to round Paddy, paddy wrapped his arms around McGraynor and cynically brought him to the floor. No attempt to play the ball just take the man out in a non malicious fashion.

That's a black card and penalty, the ref wasn't great all day but he got that right. I can't see where the red card calls are coming from.

Uncle_Fester (Meath) - Posts: 217 - 15/06/2015 11:21:34    1737146

When mention came on just after ht he should have went in full back, he has plenty of experience there and the two pens wouldn't of even happened as he would have dealt with the long ball in. Only as a Stopgap obviously, he has too start wing back next day

southmeathgael (Meath) - Posts: 889 - 15/06/2015 11:27:07    1737151

Southmeathgael

Agree again,but I am losing faith in management in terms of making calls,playing player were they are suited and to have some kind of plan that I can see.

ziggy32001 (Meath) - Posts: 8354 - 15/06/2015 11:29:08    1737154

Also a lot of nonsense being talked about by some people re Bray.

He is still our biggest scoring threat but he is being asked (and is willingly doing it as selflessly as ever) to sacrifice his own scoring for the good of the team and act as a target man of sorts. This is not his game really but he still does a good job.

What you want ideally is SO'R back on the edge of the square and Bray either in the corner or at 11 where he can make runs off the ball with a bit more freedom and feed off the lay-offs. Saying he isn't able to score anymore is, to put it politely, utter rubbish. Any time the ball came into him yesterday he had a man up his backside and another 2 very quickly around him & he still managed to win some crucial frees and set up scores.

SmallHouse (Meath) - Posts: 291 - 15/06/2015 11:47:09    1737174

ziggy32001
County: Meath
Posts: 2916

I'm fairness I think a plan was a emerging during the league, yesterday you were never going to see much pattern with the way Wicklow played, I'd expect to see a bit more structure the next day, and if we get to the dubs, then we should see a real shape, no point showing a hand yesterday.

Jinxie (Meath) - Posts: 6342 - 15/06/2015 11:56:33    1737184

yeah I find the anti-Bray stuff odd,and this has been going on for a few years now..

ziggy32001 (Meath) - Posts: 8354 - 15/06/2015 11:59:07    1737186

Jinxie

I hope so,I really do! :)

ziggy32001 (Meath) - Posts: 8354 - 15/06/2015 12:00:22    1737188

Don't think there was much learnt from that game. It was a chance to blood new players which happened, New players that failed perform didn't help themselves ie Joey wallace, Judge,and Brian Power. If we get Connor Mc gill, Menton back and this will stabilize our defense, and free up players to play in more natural positions, And could give us a solid enough platform to start a fresh the next day.

bobkarlgees (Meath) - Posts: 1263 - 15/06/2015 12:13:40    1737206

We would be lost Without Stephen Bray as the system we play its only him up there . The backs are the worry very light sometimes on attack we are very static no one running out the wings. The worry yesterday was we had four backs on Wicklow's 3 forwards for most of the game with Keoghan un marked on his own trying to help out the three this did not work at all and is now obvious that he should be number 2 .

RoyalToon (Meath) - Posts: 13 - 15/06/2015 12:19:30    1737214

What has mod been doing at training with this team wicklow cut us apart every time they ran at us , full back line made to look worse than they are no support from hb line or mid field covering back we have to tighten up or we will be beaten out d gate by westmeath and whats worse is it will be infront of kildare and the. Dubs, we need everyone back fighting fit

matthematx (Meath) - Posts: 177 - 15/06/2015 12:57:01    1737273

Don't like Martin Mc Hugh but i have to agree with his comments today

cowardlyasafox (Meath) - Posts: 209 - 15/06/2015 13:09:19    1737284

Lot of negativity here and I think its unnecessary.

Important to remember that the players are under a lot of pressure in these types of games which they are expected to win very easily. If they win well, nobody gives any praise and says its expected. Anything less than a comprehensive victory and the knives come out...

Now, when you added in the factor that we had so many youngsters playing and under that much pressure to not just win, but to win very easily, in what was our first game at HQ since 1995 - I think that what we saw as a result of these two factors was a very nervous young team under a lot of pressure to perform.

And Wicklow were a team of tough hard men who will always give the a white hot Championship game such as this a right go....which they did.

My only concern, and I like the man as he does his best and is a great Meath man passionate about his county, is that Mick O'Dowd doesn't seem to have a clear playing strategy in place yet...but we can only give him the benefit of the dout that (a) he didn't want to show his hand yet and/or (b) he didn't have the player available to implement it.

Again, I think its unfair on young J Wallace to be played in these games. Let him develop at Ratoath first, win the intermediate with them, and then come back to him in a year or two when he has finished growing and is more ready.

Lets keep positive anyway lads and get behind the team to see how far we can go. Once the season is over, change may be needed, but until then lets stick together so we can shove it in the face of the likes of McHugh et al.

Crinigan (Meath) - Posts: 1318 - 15/06/2015 13:20:22    1737294

What were Martin McHughs comments today?

ziggy32001 (Meath) - Posts: 8354 - 15/06/2015 14:00:08    1737340

lutch how can you excuse judges performance because he was marking a 'nice footballer' ??? if we reach a leinster final hes going to come up against a lot more than just nice footballers. And i dont necessarily think people are slating the team there just pointing out some very obvious flaws in the way the team was set up yesterday. When you look at the likes of dublin, donegal, kerry... they all look like they have a direction and a system to follow and they stick to that sytem 90 percent of the time, on the other hand meath had neither any system or direction yesterday. And i know some people are going to say you cant compare us to the likes of them but if we have any aspirations of competing this year which we should be at this stage of MODS reign then the standards those teams are setting is the standard meath football needs to get too and its plain to see their not there yet.

HungryMeathMan (Meath) - Posts: 22 - 15/06/2015 14:09:33    1737355