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The good old days

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The modern game is not a patch on the days when teams played free flowing open football and tried to out score the opposition. Like dont get me wrong the GAA is still good and probably teams are fitter, more proffessional and play with more intensity. There are far too many players in defence at times though and the game is largely based on counter attacking. It has changed so much since the 1990s . The beautiful game has long gone. Do you agree or disagree??? REDANDBLACK30 (Down) - Posts: 1619 - 14/06/2016 13:46:16 1866624 Link
Apart from misty-eyed nostalgia, all evidence suggests that you are wrong. Breffni40 (Cavan) - Posts: 12133 - 14/06/2016 13:55:51 1866629 Link
Replying To REDANDBLACK30: "The modern game is not a patch on the days when teams played free flowing open football and tried to out score the opposition. Like dont get me wrong the GAA is still good and probably teams are fitter, more proffessional and play with more intensity. There are far too many players in defence at times though and the game is largely based on counter attacking. It has changed so much since the 1990s . The beautiful game has long gone. Do you agree or disagree???" I agree with some of what you say , but as many will point out there were turkeys back in the day , some of the classics seem old and dated on reflection , I will put it this way One team will win Sam , 4 will win a provincial many others will fail playing poor negative football with one objective try to concede less than the opposition , Id love to know how some of the modern footballers actually feel about the restraints put on them by systems/coaches . If you want my ideal utopia imagine the modern footballer, fast, athletic, on much better surfaces actually trying to out score the opposition. Damothedub (Dublin) - Posts: 5193 - 14/06/2016 14:09:20 1866643 Link
100% agree the game is dirt now same crap every week , everyone behind the ball then they counter attack by hand passing forward and back boring me to death. Mattie Ford on the Jones Rd podcast giving out about the negative defensive rubbish were stuck with right now Karl Mannion n Micheal Rice also giving out about it. clondalkindub (Dublin) - Posts: 9926 - 14/06/2016 14:09:58 1866644 Link
The game has changed alright but there is as many good games now as there was then in my opinion. MesAmis (Dublin) - Posts: 13729 - 14/06/2016 14:11:58 1866647 Link
Down man complains about the modern game because f his counties irrelevance in it! Shock, Horror! redhanddefender (Tyrone) - Posts: 913 - 14/06/2016 14:15:51 1866651 Link
Agree 100% with the OP. Condorman (Dublin) - Posts: 983 - 14/06/2016 14:22:43 1866658 Link
From the 80s backwards, it was real hit and hope stuff, the thrill of the 50/50 man to man battle, very basic stuff. Todays game is probably tidier and less is left to chance, depends on how you see it or like it I suppose. KerryKillers (Dublin) - Posts: 711 - 14/06/2016 14:25:12 1866661 Link
Agree with original poster by and large, There was some bad games back then too, but the onus was to outscored opposition. royaldunne (Meath) - Posts: 19449 - 14/06/2016 14:25:33 1866662 Link
Replying To redhanddefender: "Down man complains about the modern game because f his counties irrelevance in it! Shock, Horror!" Our best player over the last twenty years Benny Coulter said that he found the modern game a grind and not much fun at times. The GAA should change the rules to make the game a better spectacle again. It is not about parochial allegiances here. Like making a certain numbers of defenders stay in their own half. REDANDBLACK30 (Down) - Posts: 1619 - 14/06/2016 14:30:52 1866669 Link
WE see a lot more games in last number of years due to TV, so its easier to complain or enthuse about todays matches. But from what I have seen there has been good and poor from all eras. Less chance of a shock these days, mainly goes with current form and this is reflected in attendances. seadog54 (Meath) - Posts: 2154 - 14/06/2016 14:35:57 1866678 Link
Kinda reminds me of looking back at my youth and thinking the weather was much better back then in the Summers compared to now. Wall to wall sunshine, having the craic with friends etc. Then you talk to the folks and they point out the years we went to Donegal and spent the most of the time in the Holiday Home due to the rain, or of the times the Hay was ruined etc etc. Nostalgia definitely has a lot to do with things and I am sure a psychologist would tell you that the mind remembers the good times, good weather, good games or whatever and tends to block out times that weren't so good. Offside_Rule (Antrim) - Posts: 4058 - 14/06/2016 14:37:56 1866679 Link
It's a common misconception that the games were free flowing classics in the old days but if you actually go back and watch them the quality in most is dire. most of the games featured a battle between free takers for scores, the spread of scoring was non existent. You also aimless style kickouts just hoofed as far as the keeper could kick to get away from his goal. Players also in full back and half back lines were very poor at distribution of the ball nine times out of ten they done the old adage of drive it up the field which also none times out of ten came back twice as quick with interest. I have watched one of the Dublin Meath 91 games with a player who played that day and he sat us down as a team and showed how poor a lot of the play was in the game and how much even club level has moved on quality wise. One other thing was people like to talk about physicality well a lot of it was not manly stuff as the hulring boyos like to label it, it was simply cowardly hits from guys who knew they were not able for better players and saw it as there only way of evening up their chances against them. hill16no1man (Dublin) - Posts: 12665 - 14/06/2016 14:39:10 1866680 Link
I disagree with the OP. And I'm also bored of seeing people say "What must the players feel playing defensive tactics not being able to express themselves" or sentiments along those lines... Clearly, People are happy enough with it, If not, they would opt out no ? Why would you do something you don't enjoy doing ? waynoI (Dublin) - Posts: 13650 - 14/06/2016 14:49:37 1866684 Link
Ok so it was mid 90s before a really remember football but when I watch the old finals etc on tg4 they are poor in comparison. Take the 92 final which was Donegal Finest Moment - Look how poor some of the passing was. It was a different spectacle back then but I dont agree that it was better and that is a Donegal man whose team some of ye seem to hold responsible for Tactical football (ill refuse to use the p work) dstuction (Donegal) - Posts: 1209 - 14/06/2016 14:54:41 1866686 Link
Replying To REDANDBLACK30: "Our best player over the last twenty years Benny Coulter said that he found the modern game a grind and not much fun at times. The GAA should change the rules to make the game a better spectacle again. It is not about parochial allegiances here. Like making a certain numbers of defenders stay in their own half." Yeah the games obviously awful now because Benny coulter who didn't like training in a gym said so as a 30 something! Older people will state this, I still play and I think its as exciting as always. The money involved is starting to have an effect and a bigger gap is emerging but the big games are still action packed with great scores. I think GAA needs to address funding and re-organise the structure to jim mc Guinness style proposal and we will be laughing. aul fellas will always have a moan! redhanddefender (Tyrone) - Posts: 913 - 14/06/2016 15:01:09 1866689 Link
The best games were 15 v 15 man on man may the best team win not this crap were watching nowadays it's brutal. The amount of people I know who've stop going cause they just hate the way the game has gone and then to make it worst it's creeping into hurling ahhhhhh Lord please save us clondalkindub (Dublin) - Posts: 9926 - 14/06/2016 15:21:11 1866701 Link
Replying To REDANDBLACK30: "Our best player over the last twenty years Benny Coulter said that he found the modern game a grind and not much fun at times. The GAA should change the rules to make the game a better spectacle again. It is not about parochial allegiances here. Like making a certain numbers of defenders stay in their own half." We've had this discussion loads on here recently. I really would hate a change to the rules. I don't see what isn't exciting about counter attacking? It's end to end stuff. Tyrone really played it to perfection vs Derry, they got a goal where they were inside their own 45 and then about 15 seconds later the ball was in Derry's net without a 50/50 ball played the whole way up. Clinical stuff, no team could have done that 20 years ago. People give out about too much hand passing too but Donegal took Fermanagh to the cleaners with give and go hand passing at the weekend. Was a joy to watch. Teams try and beat each other still. There have been some really good scores put up this championship so far. The ultra defensive systems are dying in my opinion. The attackers have gotten used to them and have the patience to pick them off now. Cavan v Armagh and Donegal v Fermanagh being examples of that. Whammo86 (Antrim) - Posts: 4248 - 14/06/2016 15:46:58 1866716 Link
RedandBlack has a point Overall, the standard of games is not as exciting as it once was. When you see both Kerry and Dublin taking a more defensive mindset then you wonder what hope have teams with a lesser squad depth of producing attacking football. There will be 4/5 excellent matches which will have you on your seats but those games are more i nthe minority nowadays. Currently it's a vicious circle, the amount of training is producing fitter players, players that can run more, handpass more and less kicking is done. The more running with the ball the more play gets bogged down. Players that can kick a ball 45 yards over the bar are becoming redundant. Dublin and Tyrone are probably ahead in terms of how modern football is played these days. The last 2 All irelands I couldnt bare watching them again. They were dire stuff especially 2014 where Kerry actually won. woops (Kerry) - Posts: 2073 - 14/06/2016 15:51:11 1866720 Link
Replying To clondalkindub: "The best games were 15 v 15 man on man may the best team win not this crap were watching nowadays it's brutal. The amount of people I know who've stop going cause they just hate the way the game has gone and then to make it worst it's creeping into hurling ahhhhhh Lord please save us" You're always beating this drum, but the impression I get is you're much too young to remember 15v15. Give over. Breffni40 (Cavan) - Posts: 12133 - 14/06/2016 15:55:05 1866725 Link