National Forum

Donegal V Cavan. Ulster Final. 2019-

(Oldest Posts First) - Go To The Latest Post


Replying To The_Fridge:  "Essentially I'm in agreement. I've argued for years with Tyrone fans that the counter attacking style of football suits our players best and we got success, not all Irelands due to Dublin, but getting to the latter stages of the all Ireland. We can go into semantics and call it counter attacking but it is 14 men between the ball with 2 sweepers, funnel the opposition man into a 5 man swarm, turn over, and everyone counters at pace. Its been done before, this isn't anything new.

Now the problem is when you come up against Dublin they know not to go into the swarm, in 2017 Tyrone played like Donegal and were hammered because simply kept the ball for 2-3 mins, going from side to side, patiently waited for an opening, then bang, goals and points followed. They also have the players to dismantle Donegal's kick outs.

Donegal are playing well but for how long?"
I see what you're angling at actually and it's an interesting discussion in fairness. You're right, Dublin will sit with their back 6. They'll press opposition defense and if they don't turn it over high up, they'll try and slow you up, let you take it as far as the 45 and then bottle you up after you've hand passed it to death.

There's a few things I would say on that. Firstly, we have to get through the super 8s and that's most important. Second, for any team to beat Dublin, you need to have variety in terms of the kick and hand passes. You need pace, you need physique. You need quality finishers who take 90% of the slim chances the Dubs give you. With all those boxes ticked, you can be in a game with them.

If you look at the teams who fancied themselves against Dublin in recent years, Mayo were the best equipped under Rochford as they ticked most of those boxes and fell very marginally short. Did they have really top class forwards? Good ones but not great ones. Which teams do have top class forwards? Those teams are the only ones who can beat Dublin Provided they have all the other things mentioned above.

Donegal_abroad (Donegal) - Posts: 1319 - 24/06/2019 13:28:20    2199889

Link

All Gaelic Football matches are riddled with fouls which are not given by referees. whether that be holding opponents off the ball, illegal tackling(let's be honest 90% of tackles are illegal). handpasses, sledging, over-carrying. I mean the ref stands in the middle at the start, throws the ball up and completely ignores that there is a wrestling match going on with 2 of the midfielders. On the flip-side of this they cant wait to blow the whistle on a player who is grounded and surrounded by 3 or 4 players whilst being mauled and beaten on the ground and who cannot possibly play the ball. Ot has got to be the only sport where it's own rules are ignored by officials. In addition there is no consistency regarding the colour of cards dished out for dangerous play. One week it's Red, the next it's black and the next it's yellow or nothing.

s goldrick (Cavan) - Posts: 5518 - 24/06/2019 14:30:00    2199953

Link

Another great win for the lads and well deserved. It puts to bed the silly notion that Donegal's Ulster win last year was somehow easy, or handed to them. It's fair to say that we have been the best team in Ulster this decade and long may it continue.

It's baffling, if thoroughly satisfying to read some of the bitterness coming from the Tyrone lads here. Why don't you boys look at your own deficiencies before mocking Donegal's? A massive point some of you bucks seem to be missing is that Donegal's best forwards (bar Odhran MacNiallais) actually want to play for Donegal and score freely despite our "ultra defensive" approach.

You'd have to ask why it is that Lee Brennan, Mark Bradley and Ronan O'Neill opted out? Kyle Coney wasn't involved for years either.

Lockjaw (Donegal) - Posts: 9115 - 24/06/2019 20:25:09    2200235

Link

Replying To offtheditch:  "Donegal a sullenly the better team.
We made their job too easy with our kick outs and generally giving them possession too easy.
Donegal very clinical.
Donegal very very synical. Murphy plays the victim and the ref. so well."
Maybe past events on the football field have made him a little bit cynical. Double marking, constantly being fouled and dragged must take a toll. In one of his earlier Championship games the then Cavan captain Damien Reilly charged at him and then threw himself on the ground a la Neymay, end result being young Michael red carded after 20 minutes. Thankfully Michael was later exonerated on appeal and his 14 remaining team mates gave Cavan a right hammering anyway.

Yeah, cynism on the football field, dont think Michael Murphy started it.

HEREBENJI (Donegal) - Posts: 421 - 24/06/2019 22:05:40    2200328

Link