Leinster Club SFC Final Moorefield v Rhode

Started by Dinny Breen, November 27, 2006, 12:19:19 PM

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Dinny Breen

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laoisgaa

Speaking to Leinster Council Chairman Liam O'Neill yesterday he reckons it will be a toss so either O'Connor Park or St. Conleth's Park. Failing a toss the game will be played in O'Moore Park, Portlaoise. Venue to be decided tonight.

Dinny Breen

St Conleths would give a distinct advantage to Moorefield as Moorefield have played an awful lot games there plus it's right bang in the middle of their home town...
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Lone Shark

I'd say it would be feck all more advantage than Tullamore would be to Rhode. Most strong club teams would be very familiar with their county ground.

Twould be nice to see though, I love to see either home or away games rather than just neutral venues.

Dinny Breen

Quote from: Lone Shark on November 27, 2006, 01:54:47 PM
I'd say it would be feck all more advantage than Tullamore would be to Rhode. Most strong club teams would be very familiar with their county ground.

Twould be nice to see though, I love to see either home or away games rather than just neutral venues.

If it's in Newbridge I think you'll be surprised at the size of the Moorefield support, all cramped up on the Town terrace, they can be quite vocal and often give the Moors a lift when they most need it...
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Dinny Breen

AIB Leinster Club Football Championship Final

Moorefield (Kildare)
vs
Rhode (Offaly)
at O'Moore Park, Portlaoise.
Tosnu: 2.00pm
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Lone Shark

Quote from: Dinny Breen on November 27, 2006, 01:58:44 PM

If it's in Newbridge I think you'll be surprised at the size of the Moorefield support, all cramped up on the Town terrace, they can be quite vocal and often give the Moors a lift when they most need it...

You'd imagine surely to God that if they were club supporters they'd have gone to the game if it was on in Tullamore, Portlaoise or Newbridge? They were hardly going to stay at home for the sake of 45 minutes trip?? Anyone who just wandered along because the game was local but would have stayed away otherwise would probably be a mildly interested Kildare local than a Moorefield fan surely?   

Onlooker

 8) With the Leinster Champions playing the Munster Champions in the semi-final, the defeat of Nemo Rangers by Dr. Croke's yesterday opens up the title race quite a bit.   Dr. Croke's were beaten in the Kerry County Final and could be vulnerable on the way to Croke Park.

Dinny Breen

QuoteAnyone who just wandered along because the game was local but would have stayed away otherwise would probably be a mildly interested Kildare local than a Moorefield fan surely?

You'd think is right, Moorefield would be from the poorer side of Newbridge and would get a big home crowd but for whatever reason their supporters don't travel in great numbers, they'll have a least a thousand their on Sunday but if the game was in Newbridge they would have at least double maybe treble that. All semantics now, Moorefield haven't played well all year but still find themselves in a Leinster final if they can kind find a performance I thinkl they'll win. Rhode's title to lose though.
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Timothy Leary

It's a pity the game isn't on on one of the home grounds, as the attendance would be higher. However on a positive note, O'Moore park is a wider pitch and both teams should benefit from this. As for the result, Rhode should have enough to win, but I have fond memories of "Sos" (remember the goal against the dubs in '95?) and for his sake wouldn't begrudge the Moores the win.

Rhode 1-09

Moorefield 0-08

Dinny Breen

Seemingly Rhode refused to toss for a venue so the game ends up in Portlaoise

Lone Sharks article has been noted by the Moors

QuoteBetween now and Sunday it's safe to say there'll be no shortage of preview articles wittily titled about how it's been a "Long Rhode" to this stage of the competition. It's hard to blame the headline writers – who among us wouldn't discharge our working duty so simply if we could?

(Note to editor – please avoid the obvious ironic joke of using it for this article....)

One hopes however that in previewing the game a little more effort is put in by writers, because if they don't, there is a danger that every column will pay due deference to the stickability of the Kildare champions before going on to suggest Rhode should take the garlands with a couple of points to spare. This widespread assurance of Rhode winning on Sunday insidiously pervading the dressing room as players prepare for the match would make it very easy for the players to take the field underestimating the scale of the challenge facing them, which is obviously not the attitude one wants for the Offaly representatives going into a Leinster final.

The reason this problem arises of course is because when this game is dissected and stripped down to the bare bones, Rhode should win. That may be a very blunt way of putting it, and no doubt some eagle eyed reader with Moorefield connections will be only delighted to seize on this know-nothing-hack's two cent opinion and look to present it to the Moorefield dressing room as evidence of how they are being given "no chance" by the Offaly media, but it is nonetheless very true. Rhode have evolved considerably since the millennium, beginning the decade as a team with great talent but lacking the nous to close out county championships. Their grip over the Offaly scene grew tighter, eventually reaching its current vice-like state, and now they are consistent performers on the Leinster stage as well. Moorefield on the other hand came into this year's Leinster campaign on the back of three lean years, their Newbridge rivals Sarsfields having had the upper hand since Moorefield's previous success in 2002. Both sides can boast of a solid backbone of intercounty performers, but Rhode would be better endowed with "stars", the McNamees in particular enjoying a level of celebrity not shared by any of their Moorefield counterparts. In the guise of St. Michael's, with the assistance of St. Brigid's and Clonmore players, Rhode has benefited from a steady stream of players who have been very successful at under 21 level, while Moorefield's underage record has been unspectacular once they get past under 16. Above all, Rhode, in running Kilmacud so close last year and beating UCD this year, have marked themselves out as a team that is able to compete with the very best clubs in the country.

Based on their form so far, Moorefield haven't really done anything that would warrant their inclusion in that kind of exalted company. Of course this leads to the danger highlighted above, that the national media won't look past these bare facts and will fail to properly assess the real threat that they pose. From the heart of Ireland's racing heartland, they may yet turn out to be that loveable type of thoroughbred that digs deep to just about edge out their opponent by a neck irrespective of how good or bad they are. In their last five championship ties, they've had one two-point win, three one-point victories and one success after a replay. As one would imagine when that statistic is factored in, the strength of this team lies in their power and experience around the middle rather than any particularly free scoring forward line. Kevin O'Neill was one of the few bright spots for the Kildare county team this year, and he has been anchoring the Newbridge outfit very well from centre back in recent games. Defenders like Ian Lonergan and Kenny Duane mightn't be county starters any more but they are players that thrive in winter football, and their battles with Niall McNamee and Roy Malone respectively will have a big say in how Rhode's attack functions both on the 45 and further inside. The quicker legs of the Offaly pair will be an advantage in these match ups if they can be supplied with good ball, and this leads us to the real key area for this game – midfield. Despite Alan McNamee being one of the county's mainstays, Rhode have struggled to find a suitable partner for him, with at least five different players having played alongside the club captain this year so far. In contrast Moorefield have a very solid pairing, Ross Glavin's intercounty experience complementing Daryl Flynn, a skilled young player who was one of the stars of the Kildare county championship this Autumn. This combination has been performing very strongly so far this year and they give their team a balance and a solidity around the middle that Rhode lack.

Where Rhode should hold the advantage is that the solidity and power of the Moorefield backs and midfield is not matched by any great flair or incisiveness up front. Pa Murray and Ronan Sweeney between them contribute most heavily to the Moorefield score sheet, but neither is prone to running up four or five scores from play with regularity. They are consistent, and it will be very surprising if the team registers less than eight or more than ten flags, but if Rhode can make sure that at most one and if possible none of those flags are of the green variety, they will put themselves in a good position to stretch their excellent season on into 2007.

At the start of the year, the Leinster championship would have been targeted by Rhode as the logical next step in their development, however results at the weekend have changed the landscape somewhat. The defeats of Nemo Rangers and Corofin saw the two leading contenders for the All Ireland fall by the wayside and Crossmaglen's scraped victory over Clontibret does not suggest that the Armagh champions are in rude health either. For now this will be in the back of Rhode's mind as they prepare for next Sunday – but it certainly wouldn't have gone un-noticed, as what started out as a campaign for a first ever Leinster title for the village could yet end up being so much more.
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Lone Shark

Quote from: Dinny Breen on December 01, 2006, 08:32:27 AM
Seemingly Rhode refused to toss for a venue so the game ends up in Portlaoise

Lone Sharks article has been noted by the Moors

Quote
....... and no doubt some eagle eyed reader with Moorefield connections will be only delighted to seize on this know-nothing-hack's two cent opinion and look to present it to the Moorefield dressing room as evidence of how they are being given "no chance" by the Offaly media..... 

I might be a hack, but a prophetic one nonetheless....  :D

Dinny Breen

Lone Shark

I have a mate who plays for them and he pointed me in this direction...

http://www.moorefield.net/bulletin/viewtopic.php?t=113
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Dinny Breen

The fact the Kildare clubs have regluarly contested the Leinster final in the last few years indicates that Kildare football is probably among the strongest in the province and it was only a matter of time that one would win it, congratulations to the Moors, Neesons will be mighty craic tonight.
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lynchbhoy

Well done Moorefield
had way too much for Rhode today

Two very successful teams out of the one town in recent years
fairly good going !

will the flourbags reap the rewards though...
(not with JC as boss imo)
..........