A bit of a loss at the sudden image on invincibility that Dublin have this year! Dont get me wrong I think they are a good side but if you were to pay attention to the bookies you might as well just give them Sam now and let everyone else off on their summer holidays!

Last year they were the best team and deserved to win but not after close encounters with Kerry and Mayo that could have gone either way! To suggest they are such hot favourites now would suggest they have done something miraculous since then, but I dont think they have!

They won the league but only qualified for the semi thanks to a last minutes point against a poor Tyrone team! They then beat Cork and Derry in the semi and in the final and we all saw the championships they had so to me its not an overly impressive feat! They then tore their way through Leinster, hammering everyone in sight but when you look at who they were playing you have got to question the merits of it all. No other Leinster team made the last 8 and its easy rack up a big score against a poor team in Croker!

Then came the quarter final where they hammered Monaghan. No offence to Monaghan but they are not a great side. While they can stay close to teams in Ulster where every game is low scoring they were totally shown up on Saturday! Realistically speaking, Monaghan were never contenders for the All Ireland and there is a big gap between the top teams and the rest, Monaghan have only ever managed to get to one AI final back in 1930 which they lost!

Now while you can make the arguments that you can only beat whats in front of you and the manner in which they beat the opposition has been impressive, I don't think anyone can accurately judge where the Dubs are at the moment!

They have been going flat out the whole way through the championship while Kerry, Mayo and Donegal only move up a gear when necessary!

Dublin are a good team, but this year is far from over!

as_ky (Kerry) - Posts: 535 - 11/08/2014 21:06:31    1635311

I would say you will find soon enough but you won't beat Mayo. Absolute drivel of a thread. Dublin are the gold standard.

seanfinn (Monaghan) - Posts: 360 - 11/08/2014 21:28:56    1635332

Without doubt.

I imagine most of yous know that.

Build em up to knock em down.

It's handy..if Dublin win the All-Ireland then those can say how they knew it all along but if they don't then it is time to stickin the boot.

MesAmis (Dublin) - Posts: 13707 - 11/08/2014 21:32:45    1635335

I can't see them (Dublin) being beaten this year. To many things need to go against them, and even if they did i feel they still have the power and numbers to get over the line. At the same time there is always the hope that sport can throw up the unexpected, and hopefully it will, thats why we all love sport. Really all we can do is watch this space and see what happens.

fire_in_belly (Donegal) - Posts: 59 - 11/08/2014 21:40:30    1635343

Based on what seanfinn? One thing to disagree but would actually bs interesting to hear what your argument is? I agree they are aa good side but I cant understand hiw there odds are 1/4 and the nwxt favourites being 7/1 who lost to them by a point in last years final!

as_ky (Kerry) - Posts: 535 - 11/08/2014 21:40:47    1635344

Dublin are beatable if you can match and surpass their energy in the third quarter; but that's a challenge. I agree that Monaghan are not that great - they struggled to put away possibly the worst Tyrone championship team I've seen in 40 years earlier this year (too old, too slow, too clean, and with a naive defence) and Dublin also had a bit of a head start against a tired Monaghan team who had played a high tempo extra time game a few days earlier. So it was all set up nicely for Dublin.

The main difference between this Dubs in this decade and the Dubs in the last decade is that the current Dubs don't panic. Previously, Dublin could play great football and have you on the ropes for half an houir or so, but you could always rely on themn to panic. Not now. They're a full 75 minutes team and each minute is played at a frantic pace.

Semi final predictions:

Dublin to beat Donegal by at least 5 or points, without too much difficulty. Donegal have not been tested yet and have a couple of old lads in key positions and nowhere near enough pace to match Dublin. Donegal are nowhere near where they were in 2012. Armagh lacked a bit of big-game know how, but, being young and full of running and arguably with better forwards than Donegal, had they beat Donegal and with the experience of a tight game nder their belt, would have given Dublin a better run out than Donegal will. Again, set up nicely for Dublin.


Kerry to eat Mayo. They are playing just as good without Gooch - at least. They've risen to the challenge of losing a key player. Mayo have a lot of strengths, and if Kerry had no JOD, then I'd tip them narrowly, but with O'Donoghue on form? Can't see it.

Assuming a Dublin- Kerry final then, you'd have to predict a narrow Dublin win - but watch out for Kerry - especially if Brolly keeps on reminding Kerry that Dublin are already better than the Kerry team of the 70s and 80s ... ;)

essmac (Tyrone) - Posts: 1141 - 11/08/2014 21:43:29    1635346

I don't think anyone can accurately judge where the Dubs are at the moment!


Your use of the phrase "over-rated" is wrong. But the above statement is fairly accurate. Dublin are favourites and rightly so, but it's not the foregone conclusion that some are making it out to be.

cavanman47 (Cavan) - Posts: 5012 - 11/08/2014 21:47:36    1635351

They are 2-7 to win the all ireland and this morning Boyle sports have a promotion of 9/4 any of the other 3 winning doesn't matter who.
They are 1/10 to beat Donegal one of the top 4 rated teams while Donegal are 7/1 with a 8 point handicap.
They are head and shoulders better than any team at the moment I have never seen prices and odds on football like these.
Its that simple!

OhtobeARossie (Roscommon) - Posts: 1764 - 11/08/2014 21:47:54    1635353

Sounds very similar to mayo of 2013. Let people talk them up. No team is invincible. We'll see how good they are when they come up against a division 1 team

mayoaresavage (Mayo) - Posts: 313 - 11/08/2014 21:50:15    1635354

We are 7/1 to beat Dublin - it's hard to believe . I personally think that Mayo are best suited for Dublin !

TheRightStuff (Donegal) - Posts: 1688 - 11/08/2014 21:53:01    1635357

No.

RebelCork (Cork) - Posts: 789 - 11/08/2014 21:56:17    1635359

Im happy with the odds.let the bookies hype up dublin.a few weeks ago I put money on kerry at 5 to 1 and said thats a great price and now is the time to get it on.but now they are 9 to 1 which is unbelievable considering the amount of all ireland medals they have on the team and are looking good this year so now I put more money on them.and if I dont win I wont be too disappointed because I could never ever pass up those odds.dublin id consider are evens with mayo 3 to 1.kerry 7 to 2 and donegal 11 to 2.bookies are a joke.

colm860 (Kerry) - Posts: 75 - 12/08/2014 08:14:00    1635365

How in gods name is it same to mayo 13??? Apart maybe from everyone in mayo Dublin were favourite to win.
Actually 2/7 is a great bet. How many banks will give you 900€ for €700 for a 6 week investment??? Its money for old rope. This is the greatest team that has ever been, I'm not been disrespectful of Kerry of the 80s but you'd be hard pushed to even put some of that team on this current Dublin team, and to prove a point apart from Martin O'Connell I couldn't see many of the Meath team fromy80s either.
Look until you see them with your own eyes , there movement, their knowing exactly where team mate is, its hard to comprehend just how bloody good they actually are. And for a devout blind optimistic Meath man to admit that its hard. But the truth is they are that good and barring a 200% increase from any of the other 3 coupled with a complete meltdown of Dublin they won't be beat this year.

royaldunne (Meath) - Posts: 19449 - 12/08/2014 08:28:50    1635375

Dublin are not overrated...excellent team. It's funny to see people before the Monaghan game saying Monaghan won't back down and will run them close but then after say ah sure Monaghan are no good. Same things happens when Mayo often win a game but then again we have yet to win Sam, Dublin have 2 in three years. Having said that Dublin are not unbeatable, no team is.

yew_tree (Mayo) - Posts: 11230 - 12/08/2014 09:03:42    1635380

as_ky

This is a phenomenal Dublin team, unlike Dublin teams of the last decade who often folded under pressure, these lads couldn't care less because they've already been to the summit twice. Also while last year's Mayo game could have went either way I'm afraid Kerry were no closer to beating Dublin than Meath were.

Htaem (Meath) - Posts: 8657 - 12/08/2014 09:05:37    1635381

Jesus another daft thread. Dublin are a class side. Are they the best team I have ever seen? No. They are not as good as Kerry 04-06 or Tyrone 05 IMO but they are the best in the country at the moment, don't analyse it to death.

TheFlaker (Mayo) - Posts: 7889 - 12/08/2014 09:36:38    1635392

This Dubs team are above and well beyond "Being talked up"

Gas to see that people still don't realise that

Plenty to work on, several Dub players are still learning their trade

There is plenty room for further growth, this team is still not the finished article

jimbodub (Dublin) - Posts: 20600 - 12/08/2014 09:37:51    1635393

At the moment, Yes - probably over-rated.

We have not won enough All Ireland's with this current team to be rated so highly imo.

Having said that, this is a special group of Dublin players.
I just hope they reach the heights we think they can and achieve more All Ireland's.

What pleases me most is our style of play. Great to watch and pure football.
We are playing the game the right way, and this is a highly tight, focussed and determined group of lads.
We wont always have these days like these, which makes it all the sweeter when they come along.

They still need to achieve more to be rated so highly though.

Only time will tell.....!!

Fionn (Dublin) - Posts: 3727 - 12/08/2014 09:41:48    1635395

Htaem totally agree . Kerry could bring the best of-naughties plus 80s-in their prime and they'd find it hard to keep with this Dublin team
As for hype? They thrive on it unlike teams of the past.

royaldunne (Meath) - Posts: 19449 - 12/08/2014 09:50:29    1635400

Totally disagree flaker I seen Tyrone and Kerry of those times and they not a patch on this Dublin team.

royaldunne (Meath) - Posts: 19449 - 12/08/2014 09:51:58    1635401