Looks like the facts behind this story were well concealed to date. If it transpires that he initiated this desire to move prior to any management decision to exclude him from the McKenna cup panel, then he, and many posters here, may experience some embarrassment. Bottom line, if he wants to move, let him. Cavan has a stronger tradition than to be relying on one player. The ironic piece is that he is probably exactly what Kildare need, a player whose sole instinct is to always look for his own score and has the ability to take It.

ondforty (Cavan) - Posts: 471 - 17/01/2012 12:03:19    1094964

Article in irish independent today

http://www.independent.ie/sport/gaelic-football/cavan-star-johnston-poised-to-take-dra-route-in-bid-to-join-mcgeeneys-kildare-2990257.html

Ritz (None) - Posts: 199 - 17/01/2012 12:13:10    1094971

Sean O Rinn you just dont get it do you??
Management dropped Lyng AND Johnston in October just after the county final. Both players especially LYNG had played very well in the latter stages of the county championship. Did they see these games? Lyng was finaly coming good after years of niggling injuries.
To drop players in a 10 second call doesnt give much time for an explaination does it??
If the door was open for a return for these players why have they not come out and say so?
Seanie must know there is no way back hence his desire to move.
Most players would go away and perform well with their clubs and get a county recall if they were told that was the option. But these players havent been told this.
But playing well for your club doesnt count in Cavan it seems.....3 of the best club forwards in the latter stages of the championship were Lyng, Johnstone and Dunne and none of the 3 are in the panel.

How ironic it would be if Seanie and Mickey starred for the gaels in the early rounds of the league and refused to come back IF asked by Management.

Management were too quic with their season changing decisions. They could have at least waited until the McKenna Cup was over afte giving everyone a fitness programe in october and a run out in January. That would have been the fairest way of doing things.
Instead they dropped players 5 months after anyone had kicked an inter county ball

sheva7 (Cavan) - Posts: 498 - 17/01/2012 12:15:02    1094974

ondforty
County: Cavan
Posts: 139

1094964
Looks like the facts behind this story were well concealed to date. If it transpires that he initiated this desire to move prior to any management decision to exclude him from the McKenna cup panel, then he, and many posters here, may experience some embarrassment. Bottom line, if he wants to move, let him. Cavan has a stronger tradition than to be relying on one player. The ironic piece is that he is probably exactly what Kildare need, a player whose sole instinct is to always look for his own score and has the ability to take It.

read the article.

sheva7 (Cavan) - Posts: 498 - 17/01/2012 12:17:18    1094979

Cavan football in the news again for the wrong reasons
Reading Johnstones article in the indo its not clear the reasons he was dropped. Id be suprised if it was lack of ability. Was it for lack of disipline? If so id have expected the call to last more than 10 seconds.
Has management closed the door on these 3 players mentioned for the full year? Or can the players work their way back? Or do the management even owe the general paying public an explaination?
When Cassidy was dropped in Donegal McGuinness came straight out and said why. It blew over. Can we not have that here in Cavan? Or do we let it linger on and on?

My take on it is everyone should have been given a chance over the winter with personal fitness plans and a few games in the McKenna cup to give everyone a runout.
Yet players were discarded in October 5 months after a ball was kicked. strange that.

Well we have heard Johnstones position, fair play he just wants to play football and is willing to.
We are trying to coax good players who arent willing to play and on the other hand we are dropping good players who are willing to play. Could only happen in Cavan.
Maybe the Management would give cash paying public their take on the issue. Ppl are entitled to know otherwise Johnstone will get blamed for walking out on his county. AND I DONT BELIEVE THISIS THE CASE

richiej (UK) - Posts: 1430 - 17/01/2012 12:52:28    1095006

I'm not a fan of the player in question but how in gods name did the CB let this situation arise without some sort of intervention? If he leaves and is let leave, he will not be seen in Cavan jersey again and that will be a crying shame. At 27 years of age he is not being left with much of a choice. It would be hard to imagine Mickey Harte or Sean Boylan embroiled in such a mess. Mmanagment for their part have flexed their muscles a little too hard I think. With the backdrop of last years underage success the CB seem reluctant to pull rank on the managment duo. Wise heads are needed here

#thegreatergood

Con Cavan (Cavan) - Posts: 894 - 17/01/2012 12:59:33    1095013

Sean Johnston isnt a true blue.sheva7 johnston isnt the best forward since charlie Gallagher and derek mc donnell .Gerald Pearson was a better player than Johnston, he showed this by scoring 10 points on his championship debut and when he was dropped of the county on a couple of occasions and he didnt look for a transfer to a different county because he is a true blue. he worked hard to back on the county team until injury ended his county career.

hoy (Cavan) - Posts: 307 - 17/01/2012 13:01:57    1095015

Well after reading the independant the Management need to say the reason for Seanies omission. is he disruptive? is he too old at 27? or is he not good enough? has to be one of the 3.
If he is disruptive he should have been given a chance to tow the line,
If he is too old at 27 the games gone mad.
If he is not good enough he has no business going to Kildare.

sheva7 (Cavan) - Posts: 498 - 17/01/2012 13:03:30    1095018

Lads sorry to gatecrash the thread but have been following this over the last few months.
1-has Johnstone had a fall out with the management??
2-is there any going back from here?
3-will Cavan regret this? will Johnstone regret it?

For what it's worth I think Johnstone is making a serious mistake to be transferring to Kildare. Kildare have nothing to offer him when he quits playing and then what does he do? go back to Cavan with his tail between his legs. again this is not a swipe at him it's my feeling.

121andun (Down) - Posts: 54 - 17/01/2012 13:31:30    1095046

I know he has talent but I wouldn't put him in the same bracket as Declan Browne, Matty Forde and Dessy Dolan back in the late 90's when their counties were poor and known as a one man team. These guys were stars in their county and stuck with it and eventually got their rewards on the big stage.

I've seen it before at club level where a player leaves to join a bigger club and they struggle, I fear the same might happen with him and where will that leave his intercounty aspirations? It would be very hard to come back to Cavan (even under new management) and win the fans back.. I don't see him as a McGeeney type player. Would he play out of position as John Doyle has done last year - sometimes playing mid-field or wing half forward and putting in the hard graft? preferred position

radiotower (Cavan) - Posts: 75 - 17/01/2012 13:34:43    1095050

dropping someone in October without even giving them the chance to work on the programme over the winter and be allowed a run out and a fair trial in january like everyone else - bit unfair no??

clonee (Cavan) - Posts: 68 - 17/01/2012 13:59:06    1095081

Hopefully the Gaels as a Club will look for a proper explaination at the next CB meeting now that Seanie has given his side of the story.

sheva7 (Cavan) - Posts: 498 - 17/01/2012 14:10:32    1095098

Perhaps the Editor might allow me to finish my point this time.

I did read the article Shev7. He obviously has a very high opinion of himself and seems very secure in the knowldege that he would be welcomed in Kildare. That can't be an accident. The issue is in the public domain now, but we don't know when the notion of a transfer was first initiated. It could have been quite some time ago which would make a mockery of his claim that it came about as a result of his 10 sec chat with the manager. Charlie Gallagher had class.

ondforty (Cavan) - Posts: 471 - 17/01/2012 14:28:10    1095114

Seanie j

kildare- Top of their game. Top class manager. Division One. Job oppurtunities. Get to play in Croke park regularly.

Cavan-Pride. Rebuilding. manager the juries Out.Division Three. Zero jobs. Only for the ladies we d never see Croke park .

I know if i had his ear id tell him to go!. Its no big deal. Hes the best player maybe dissilusioned by last two years. God knows i am & im only a spectator! theres a new team on the horizon & maybe he has missed the boat. But he ll build a huge profile for himself with a new bigger County. Sometimes opportunites arise from various situations they don t all have to be positive. But you can make it happen for yourself!

Im sure the door will always be open within cavan geals & cavan county. he may even come back a better player..

Transfers are only 10-15 years away so you could say this is a watershed in the History of the GAA.....

Yours truly

Denn Man ( bringing sense to yet another Gaa Climax)

Denn Man (Cavan) - Posts: 413 - 17/01/2012 14:33:48    1095119

Another point I was making but was originally edited out for some reason...

I always got the feeling that Johnston has a superiority complex. You could see it in his body language that he has no time for players from smaller clubs - he might get a taste of this playing with Kildare?

radiotower (Cavan) - Posts: 75 - 17/01/2012 14:41:32    1095127

Denn Man

Kildare are in Division 2

Jinxie (Meath) - Posts: 6348 - 17/01/2012 14:58:10    1095158

Just reading the posts and i'm a little concerned, why, when there obviously is some reason why the manager decided not to use Sean Johnston that posters want a public recrimination of some sort. This is an amateur game, Sean is an amateur player, i feel that if anyone were to publicly state why any individual player wasn't selected it would be a complete injustice.

A point that is also being lost here is that this is not professional soccer this is the GAA. In the GAA you play with your club and if chosen you play for your county. If you don't get selected to play for your club you work harder and if you don't get chosen to represent your county you do the same. Can i ask posters comments if Sean doesn't make it in McGeeney's plans what should he do then?. It has been widely acknowledged that Kildare need a goal scorer, correct me if i'm wrong but Sean may be a prolific point scorer but a goal scorer at Inter-County Championship level he isn't.

Final question and i don't mean to offend or put anyone on the spot but if i may direct this to shev & richie, I mentioned yesterday that I had been told that Cavan Gaels had stripped Sean of the captaincy and dropped him for the start of the championship, is that true or just rumor?

08cngael (Cavan) - Posts: 20 - 17/01/2012 15:02:07    1095162

Doesn't it take two people to have a conversation. If as Seanie says the conversation only lasted ten seconds he obviously didn't do much to fight for his place or talk then about his hunger to play inter county football.

smokeybacon (Cavan) - Posts: 27 - 17/01/2012 15:48:13    1095204

Sean was the Gaels captain in 2010. Chesty was the chosen captain in 2011.

Sergeant (Cavan) - Posts: 100 - 17/01/2012 15:48:45    1095207

After what happened in Fermanagh last year I know how frustrating it is to lose your better players, but what do genuine Cavan supporters think..theres no doubt he is a top class forward......................so Is Johnston being harshly treated by the current management set-up and forced to try transfer to Kildare to play inter-county ball or is he being selfish and thinks he is too good for Cavan and wants to chase silverware with Cavan???? Thoughts Please

macca999 (Fermanagh) - Posts: 1223 - 17/01/2012 16:00:09    1095231