NFL Division 1

[J70]

Looks like Ros and Cavan are going down. They don't seem to be able to defy gravity

We'll see. Cavan host Donegal on Saturday night. If Donegal win, they're probably safe, maybe needing another point to be sure. If Cavan win, Donegal are in a relegation fight. Donegal have a very inexperienced team this year.

[omagh_gael]

So here's how we stand after match day 3 (minus Tyrone and Cavan result)

Monaghan     3 2 1 0 3 5
Mayo            3 2 0 1 8 4
Dublin          3 1 2 0 7 4
Tyrone         2 1 1 0 6 3
Donegal       3 1 1 1 -2 3
Kerry           3 1 0 2 0 2
Cavan          2 0 1 1 -7 1
Roscommon 3 0 0 3 -15 0

All very tight so far, Dublin's two draws have thrown the competition wide open so should keep competitiveness up till the end. I would say Kerry and Donegal need three more points each and Cavan and Roscommon will be more or less cut adrift.

[GrandMasterFlash]

Jaysus, that last free for Donegal was soft. Similar to Dublin's one against Tyrone

Sure t'wasn't a foul at all. But did ye see O'Gara giving a Donegal back a 2 handed push and no free given.

Yep, and a score came off it. Geaney was just shoved over the line as well by Wiley in another game and a kick out given instead of an easy free-in.

Easy free in? It was near the sideline. Monagahan got a sideline instead. Ridiculous decision.

We call that action, shepherding over the line.
Kerry got away with a lot in that game, for instance making a mockery of the mark by crashing into the back of players trying to field the ball. Some balance was restored when the ref could have awarded a penalty to Kerry near the end. In the last 10 minutes the ref was swayed a number of times towards not hindering the noble Monaghan cause.

Absolutely agree. We lost 3 of our 4 players who were substituted due do injury through cynical fouling by Kerry. Darren Hughes was cleaned a few times before finally having to retire through injury, Walsh similarly. Sheehan's episode with Hughes reflects the tone more accurately that Drew Wylie's shepherding over the end & sideline. Monaghan are physical and tackle hard but do it within the regulations, in my 'blinkered' opinion..

[mrdeeds]

Wylie loves tackling long after ball is gone.

[From the Bunker]

Seen Monaghan twice now. Once Live and Once on TV. They are motoring in a high gear at the moment. They are also playing on the edge. In Castlebar with their intensity they sorta caught everyone on the Hop including the Ref. They had a game plan, got into the Mayo heads and controlled the game including the referee who they read like a book. They did the same with Kerry yesterday. Sheehan took the bate.

[Taylor]

Watched game back an as above Monaghan are definitely playing on the edge.
Not worried about reputations.

No one will get anything easy against them but will the flop yet again in Croker?

Any Monaghan posters worried they could be peaking too early?

[Main Street]

Seen Monaghan twice now. Once Live and Once on TV. They are motoring in a high gear at the moment. They are also playing on the edge. In Castlebar with their intensity they sorta caught everyone on the Hop including the Ref. They had a game plan, got into the Mayo heads and controlled the game including the referee who they read like a book. They did the same with Kerry yesterday. Sheehan took the bate.

Sheehan swallowed his own bait.  After the tug of war, he had full possession of the ball and with every Kerry person screaming at him to get a move on, he chose instead to punch Hughes on the ground. I'd say if he hadn't done that, the ref would have moved the ball forward.
Gone in 60 seconds (Kerry style).

[yellowcard]

Malachy O'Rourke must be the most under rated manager in Ireland. Has done an incredible job with Monaghan, getting them into division one and winning a couple of provincial titles along the way. They are now firmly established as a top 8 team and the success that the county has had in recent years seems to be bearing fruit as a few good younger players are starting to come through. He had a good record in previous jobs as well so I would put him in the top 3 managers in the country and possibly even the best considering the resources that he is working with are limited in comparision to others. 

[GrandMasterFlash]

Watched game back an as above Monaghan are definitely playing on the edge.
Not worried about reputations.

No one will get anything easy against them but will the flop yet again in Croker?

Any Monaghan posters worried they could be peaking too early?

In terms of injuries to key players, yes. We've definitely increased our 'strength in depth' quotient, which is something we lacked for years as a small county. In saying that, if the likes of Wylie(s)/Walsh/Hughes(s)/McManus get injured I'd fear..

There's nothing won yet mind so I for one certainly won't be getting carried away. We made a flying start to the league last year in winning the first two games and then just about beat Donegal in a dogged affair in the last round to just about stay up.. and the less said about the summer the better! 

[straightred]

Seen Monaghan twice now. Once Live and Once on TV. They are motoring in a high gear at the moment. They are also playing on the edge. In Castlebar with their intensity they sorta caught everyone on the Hop including the Ref. They had a game plan, got into the Mayo heads and controlled the game including the referee who they read like a book. They did the same with Kerry yesterday. Sheehan took the bate.

eh? Hughes took 3 blows to the head yesterday and eventually had to go off with concussion. Walshe had to go off after a heavy knock. It was tough football but you can't say that it was just Monaghan that were "on the edge". Same with the castlebar game (that I was at and therefore saw 1st hand). Mayo are no shrinking violets and they gave as good as they got. From a team that many thought had a soft centre they are now as physical as anyone. The ref didn't allow COC to ref the game that night - fair play to him for that.

Hard to know if monaghan are peaking too soon. I don't even know if they are peaking. Kerry were awful yesterday and Mayo weren't much better in Castlebar. They've probably done enough to stay up but I think they should be pushing on and trying to get to the final. A crack at a Div 1 title would be a huge achievement for a small county like Monaghan and they've put themselves in a great position.

[Cunny Funt]

Malachy O'Rourke must be the most under rated manager in Ireland. Has done an incredible job with Monaghan, getting them into division one and winning a couple of provincial titles along the way. They are now firmly established as a top 8 team and the success that the county has had in recent years seems to be bearing fruit as a few good younger players are starting to come through. He had a good record in previous jobs as well so I would put him in the top 3 managers in the country and possibly even the best considering the resources that he is working with are limited in comparision to others.

A fine job he is doing where would Monaghan be without him?  he built his team from the back as any good manager would do. Monaghan are as well organized and work as hard as any team. Kerry starting 6 forwards only scored 1 point from play yesterday when did that happen before.

[SouthDublinBro]

Seen Monaghan twice now. Once Live and Once on TV. They are motoring in a high gear at the moment. They are also playing on the edge. In Castlebar with their intensity they sorta caught everyone on the Hop including the Ref. They had a game plan, got into the Mayo heads and controlled the game including the referee who they read like a book. They did the same with Kerry yesterday. Sheehan took the bate.

Monaghan are secretly one of the dirtiest sides in the country. They have even surpassed Donegal for me in that respect. Up there with 00's Armagh. Against Kerry they took advantage of a referee from a hurling county not understanding how football should be played.

[Main Street]

[Il Bomber Destro]

Seen Monaghan twice now. Once Live and Once on TV. They are motoring in a high gear at the moment. They are also playing on the edge. In Castlebar with their intensity they sorta caught everyone on the Hop including the Ref. They had a game plan, got into the Mayo heads and controlled the game including the referee who they read like a book. They did the same with Kerry yesterday. Sheehan took the bate.

The ref didn't allow COC to ref the game that night - fair play to him for that.

I thought O'Connor played the ref like a fiddle in the game with Monaghan, how many frees did O'Connor manage to get moved into scoring range for nothing? He must have got three or four in that manner and was lucky to avoid a red late on.

[PW Nally]

Jaysus, that last free for Donegal was soft. Similar to Dublin's one against Tyrone

Sure t'wasn't a foul at all. But did ye see O'Gara giving a Donegal back a 2 handed push and no free given.

Yep, and a score came off it. Geaney was just shoved over the line as well by Wiley in another game and a kick out given instead of an easy free-in.

Easy free in? It was near the sideline. Monagahan got a sideline instead. Ridiculous decision.

We call that action, shepherding over the line.
Kerry got away with a lot in that game, for instance making a mockery of the mark by crashing into the back of players trying to field the ball. Some balance was restored when the ref could have awarded a penalty to Kerry near the end. In the last 10 minutes the ref was swayed a number of times towards not hindering the noble Monaghan cause.

Absolutely agree. We lost 3 of our 4 players who were substituted due do injury through cynical fouling by Kerry. Darren Hughes was cleaned a few times before finally having to retire through injury, Walsh similarly. Sheehan's episode with Hughes reflects the tone more accurately that Drew Wylie's shepherding over the end & sideline. Monaghan are physical and tackle hard but do it within the regulations, in my 'blinkered' opinion..

Hughes had plenty of Mayo lads stepping away from his he man routine as us small part time farmers not up to the build of full time beasts like himself.  No harm him getting bit of a clipping from the true animals.

Mighty to see the shrooms getting the win at the long whistle.