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Donegal V Cavan Ulster Semi Final

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Replying To papa_pump:  "To be fair, Cavan played out of their skin and Donegal put in one of their worst performances in recent memory. But don't forget that Donegal led that game until the 60th minute, and it was a 1 point game in injury time, when Patton made a plash out of clearing McKiernans long ball.

Cavan had to play out of their skins and everything had to go wrong for Donegal for that win to be possible. Both of those things happened. It's not like it's some sort of repeatable game plan, or that Cavan somehow have Donegal's number because of it."
Donegal were only ahead by the 60th minute because of the 2 harsh black cards given to Cavan players. When it was 15 v 15 Cavan were the better team. I have been watching Cavan for 50 years and no matter what time of year it was, what the weather was like, what competition it was, what frame of mind Donegal were in, I cannot remember Donegal, in general, ever having much trouble beating us. As such the win in 2020 was completely on merit, not excusable and not a fluke. If, and it's a big if, Cavan can plug into that same intensity, hunger and play as well as they did in that final, then they will really put it up to Donegal. I really hope it's in the melting pot with 10 minutes to go as it will tell us a lot about where both teams are.

BreffniGael (Cavan) - Posts: 46 - 28/04/2022 13:16:50    2413855

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@ Rory , U liked that post, u had to reply twice, nice. U might be slippin u forgot to do the name calling!Looks like u weren't at school long enough because u running out of superlatives!Cowards,keyboard, warriors. Can u expand the vocabulary?

thelowball (USA) - Posts: 400 - 28/04/2022 13:54:05    2413872

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Replying To papa_pump:  "To be fair, Cavan played out of their skin and Donegal put in one of their worst performances in recent memory. But don't forget that Donegal led that game until the 60th minute, and it was a 1 point game in injury time, when Patton made a plash out of clearing McKiernans long ball.

Cavan had to play out of their skins and everything had to go wrong for Donegal for that win to be possible. Both of those things happened. It's not like it's some sort of repeatable game plan, or that Cavan somehow have Donegal's number because of it."
Everything didn't go wrong for Donegal though. You even had the ref behind you. I don't think it's as simple a case as Cavan put in a world class performance, and Donegal had everything go wrong for them. That really didn't happen. Cavan made many mistakes. We missed 2 goal chances through James Smith and Marty Reilly before we got the goal. We left a lot of scores behind us that day. Yet we still won with the black cards and the ref riding us. So I really don't think it was the case at all, it just seems to me that in Championship terms, the teams are just not hugely far apart.

Cavan did seem hungrier that day, but Donegal played as much as they were let when it was 15 v 15, it wasn't simply everything going wrong. Let's not rewrite what happened on the day...

Loughduff Lad (Cavan) - Posts: 2391 - 28/04/2022 13:54:50    2413873

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Cavan have more to play for that Donegal, if Donegal lose then they have the chance again in the qualifiers. this is a team that's on the Sam Maguire list remember !!!! so a run in the qualifiers will still get them to an all Ireland if they want.
Cavan on the other hand will be in the secondary competition if they lose this, the team has been plagued the last 16 months that 2020 was a fluke. so there is of course pressure to prove that wrong. who wants to be remembered for winning a championship through a fluke????

theweanling (Cavan) - Posts: 414 - 28/04/2022 14:12:15    2413882

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Replying To papa_pump:  "If that's the case then what about the flip side? You wouldn't even have to take any players out to make Cavan bang average.

The only way Donegal lose this is if their mentality isn't right. I don't buy all this talk of Cavan being poor in the league so that they can peak for championship. In 2019 they were beaten well in Clones, the late goal put a bit of a shine on the scoreline for the 2020 Ulster final, and straight after beating Donegal 2020, they went down to Croke Park and got mauled. Then last year they couldnt keep within an ***** roar of Tyrone. Cavan took full advantage of Donegal's complacency that day. The two squads aren't comparable.

For all this talk of Donegal fans underestimating Cavan, it seems that Cavan are way overestimating themselves..."
Spot on.

I wouldn't pay much heed to some of the Cavan "supporters" on here. There's a regrettable tendency to lose any sense of perspective whenever we win a game.

Most of us are realists however and it is unlikely, though not impossible, to see us winning this one.

Cavan_Shambles (Cavan) - Posts: 575 - 28/04/2022 14:47:08    2413894

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Since last Sunday this forum was very good. People giving there honest opinion about the game and rightly saying that it wasn't a perfect performance and rightly so. Then it was hijacked by two fools with an agenda since yesterday. So please let the real gaa fans debate our county team s chances against Cavan without silly interference.

rorysboys (Donegal) - Posts: 2410 - 28/04/2022 14:49:22    2413895

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Replying To theweanling:  "Cavan have more to play for that Donegal, if Donegal lose then they have the chance again in the qualifiers. this is a team that's on the Sam Maguire list remember !!!! so a run in the qualifiers will still get them to an all Ireland if they want.
Cavan on the other hand will be in the secondary competition if they lose this, the team has been plagued the last 16 months that 2020 was a fluke. so there is of course pressure to prove that wrong. who wants to be remembered for winning a championship through a fluke????"
Cavan already proved that theory wrong by reaching the final in 2019.

So that's that.


As for having more to lose because we don't get into the qualifiers. . .do you not stand a fairly decent chance of winning the Tailteann Cup if we end up in it? What odds would we still be for Sam if we beat Donegal?

cavanman47 (Cavan) - Posts: 5016 - 28/04/2022 14:57:46    2413899

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Replying To rorysboys:  "Since last Sunday this forum was very good. People giving there honest opinion about the game and rightly saying that it wasn't a perfect performance and rightly so. Then it was hijacked by two fools with an agenda since yesterday. So please let the real gaa fans debate our county team s chances against Cavan without silly interference."
Whose not giving their honest opinion? I'm guessing you are categorising me as one of two fools for calling a spade a spade and saying Donegal will hammer Cavan. Do you not think that's an honest opinion of mine?

MurphBalls (Donegal) - Posts: 178 - 28/04/2022 16:12:31    2413921

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Replying To MurphBalls:  "Whose not giving their honest opinion? I'm guessing you are categorising me as one of two fools for calling a spade a spade and saying Donegal will hammer Cavan. Do you not think that's an honest opinion of mine?"
Ah talk a bit of sense, your on here attacking bonner and his management team all year. And now your saying that they'll beat Cavan by 10 plus. Some turnabout.. as an old man used to say to me if you have nothing sensible to say . Say nothing at all. No truer words lad. I respect Cavan football and always liked there passion.

rorysboys (Donegal) - Posts: 2410 - 28/04/2022 16:50:56    2413926

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Replying To rorysboys:  "Ah talk a bit of sense, your on here attacking bonner and his management team all year. And now your saying that they'll beat Cavan by 10 plus. Some turnabout.. as an old man used to say to me if you have nothing sensible to say . Say nothing at all. No truer words lad. I respect Cavan football and always liked there passion."
What has talking about Bonner and my opinion that I don't think he's the right man for the job got to do with how much we beat Cavan by? I'm pretty sure I've let it be known that the style of football we play will be good enough to make light of the lesser teams like Cavan until we meet the top teams. When was the last time we beat a top team outside of Ulster?

I don't think I've ever once attacked Bonner! Unless your definition of "Attack" is different to mine. You spout on about talking sense and about loyalty to Donegal football. What you spout on about has no relevance about the other point you are making in tandem with the other. Just stop embarrassing yourself. You're probably quite lucky that your alias is anonymous.

You can respect Cavan football and their passion all you like but it's got nothing to do with my opinion of the result of the game. So, maybe start listening to your own advice there old man :)

MurphBalls (Donegal) - Posts: 178 - 28/04/2022 17:15:26    2413934

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Replying To MurphBalls:  "What has talking about Bonner and my opinion that I don't think he's the right man for the job got to do with how much we beat Cavan by? I'm pretty sure I've let it be known that the style of football we play will be good enough to make light of the lesser teams like Cavan until we meet the top teams. When was the last time we beat a top team outside of Ulster?

I don't think I've ever once attacked Bonner! Unless your definition of "Attack" is different to mine. You spout on about talking sense and about loyalty to Donegal football. What you spout on about has no relevance about the other point you are making in tandem with the other. Just stop embarrassing yourself. You're probably quite lucky that your alias is anonymous.

You can respect Cavan football and their passion all you like but it's got nothing to do with my opinion of the result of the game. So, maybe start listening to your own advice there old man :)"
No harm lad but I don't know what your trying to say. You say you played under bonner, I would say bonner played you very little goin by your detest for him.? We've all been there lad you'll eventually get over it. Have a nice day

rorysboys (Donegal) - Posts: 2410 - 28/04/2022 17:53:41    2413939

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There us no doubt cavan deserved their win in 2020. It's up there with as one of the toughest defeats though that I've experienced. Donegal beat the old nemesis that is tyrone, played a super game against armagh in the semi (better performance than Sunday last). It was a chance to win donegals first ever three in a row of ulster titles and get to the first all ireland semi since 2014.

Cavan had kind of huffed and puffed their way through their side of the draw but they fair showed up that day. There's definitely something very crafty in the way Graham manages them. They never look to good in the league or even in some championship matches and just squeak over the line. They do seem to be able to lift it when needed under him. Nobody saw them hammering antrim and they fair walloped them. Over the last while bar mckiernan you'd wonder about their scoring power. Paddy lynch seems to be improving them on that front. They've some very decent defenders and a good keeper that played really well in 2020. Armagh for example would only love to have him. In saying donegal will be decent favorites and surely can't lack for motivation but cavan will certainly be going in confident too.

Ulsterchamps_32 (Donegal) - Posts: 696 - 28/04/2022 18:16:23    2413945

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Rory, Really u think we're goin to have nothing to say, Move over Pat Spillane,Colm O'Rourke ,Martin McHugh, the new analyst on all things football especially Donegal is the astute 'Rory boy' . Now it does have a ring to it,but still laughable! Them fellas I mentioned don't know what there talkin about, right Rory. Here's my prediction v Cavan, Donegal by 2 pts providing Bonner doesn't mess up

thelowball (USA) - Posts: 400 - 28/04/2022 19:49:22    2413962

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Replying To rorysboys:  "Totally agree we'll have to stop kicking short all the time. We do have big men who can win there own ball. No harm in a bit of variation."
Not only that, but if you do the analysis, a very high percentage of the short kick outs go to the left corner, which allows opposition plan for an overload against us.

SouthOfTheGap (Donegal) - Posts: 585 - 28/04/2022 20:20:54    2413967

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This is Div 1 v Div 4 so if Donegal can't win this by at least 10 points they must be hopeless… The whole pressure is on Donegal… and I wonder can they cope.. They couldn't in 2020 when raging hot favourites in a game we could have won by more than 4 pts… it wasn't like we were hanging on.. Mc Stay says this is a penalty kick for Donegal but we have seen them miss them before…. Come on the Cavan….!!!!

ForeverBlue2 (Cavan) - Posts: 1939 - 29/04/2022 08:42:47    2413978

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Replying To ForeverBlue2:  "This is Div 1 v Div 4 so if Donegal can't win this by at least 10 points they must be hopeless… The whole pressure is on Donegal… and I wonder can they cope.. They couldn't in 2020 when raging hot favourites in a game we could have won by more than 4 pts… it wasn't like we were hanging on.. Mc Stay says this is a penalty kick for Donegal but we have seen them miss them before…. Come on the Cavan….!!!!"
Is the whole pressure on Donegal? Because you're all on here saying league form doesn't matter and now it does matter, which is it? Don't Cavan go to the Tailteann Cup if they lose? That's pressure. So if we don't beat you by 10 points plus we are hopeless, where does that leave Cavan then? Beyond hope? Some contradictions being made on this thread by the boys in blue.

Donegal_abroad (Donegal) - Posts: 1321 - 29/04/2022 10:12:40    2414000

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Replying To Donegal_abroad:  "Is the whole pressure on Donegal? Because you're all on here saying league form doesn't matter and now it does matter, which is it? Don't Cavan go to the Tailteann Cup if they lose? That's pressure. So if we don't beat you by 10 points plus we are hopeless, where does that leave Cavan then? Beyond hope? Some contradictions being made on this thread by the boys in blue."
Wouldn't be listening to that fella. No one on the Cavan forum can listen to him.

Loughduff Lad (Cavan) - Posts: 2391 - 29/04/2022 11:22:09    2414022

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Replying To Ulsterchamps_32:  "There us no doubt cavan deserved their win in 2020. It's up there with as one of the toughest defeats though that I've experienced. Donegal beat the old nemesis that is tyrone, played a super game against armagh in the semi (better performance than Sunday last). It was a chance to win donegals first ever three in a row of ulster titles and get to the first all ireland semi since 2014.

Cavan had kind of huffed and puffed their way through their side of the draw but they fair showed up that day. There's definitely something very crafty in the way Graham manages them. They never look to good in the league or even in some championship matches and just squeak over the line. They do seem to be able to lift it when needed under him. Nobody saw them hammering antrim and they fair walloped them. Over the last while bar mckiernan you'd wonder about their scoring power. Paddy lynch seems to be improving them on that front. They've some very decent defenders and a good keeper that played really well in 2020. Armagh for example would only love to have him. In saying donegal will be decent favorites and surely can't lack for motivation but cavan will certainly be going in confident too."
That's about the best summation of Cavan I've seen from someone outside the county. You're about right there. Donegal absolutely are favourites, but we've stuff going for us too

Loughduff Lad (Cavan) - Posts: 2391 - 29/04/2022 11:24:27    2414024

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Replying To Donegal_abroad:  "Is the whole pressure on Donegal? Because you're all on here saying league form doesn't matter and now it does matter, which is it? Don't Cavan go to the Tailteann Cup if they lose? That's pressure. So if we don't beat you by 10 points plus we are hopeless, where does that leave Cavan then? Beyond hope? Some contradictions being made on this thread by the boys in blue."
Come on, don't lump us all under the one bracket.

Most of us are realists, however there is a small cohort of fanatics who let their fantasies get out of control after we win a game.

For me I think Donegal will win this by 4 or 6 points. That said, I wouldn't be entirely surpised if we managed to pull off an unlikely win. Which is why I think the odds are about right. Quite simply, the two teams operate at completely different levels. Donegal are mainstays in Division 1, we aren't. Donegal have won several Ulster titles in the recent past, we have 1. Donegal are routinely considered for Sam, we are not even considered for our province.

But anything can happen on the day.

Cavan_Shambles (Cavan) - Posts: 575 - 29/04/2022 11:29:35    2414027

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Replying To SouthOfTheGap:  "Not only that, but if you do the analysis, a very high percentage of the short kick outs go to the left corner, which allows opposition plan for an overload against us."
Opposition give certain players the ball when retreating from the kickout. They'll mark Ban and usually leave Mc Menamin or Ward to an extent free. The lesser threats.

TheRock2121 (Donegal) - Posts: 1142 - 29/04/2022 11:42:47    2414033

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