Cork v Tyrone

[Hound]

Cork could be very dangerous. They could have a day where their forwards catch fire and score from everywhere.
Also any analysis of the game from "the experts" seems to ignore that Tyrone are a good notch below the level they were playing at this time last year. Meath-Tyrone was a very even game, and Cork are probably as good as Meath. Tyrone need to up their performance, both to beat Cork and to be competitive in S8.

[Gabriel_Hurl]

Maurice Deegan reffing

[Lamh Dhearg Alba]

The list of teams Cork have beaten in the championship in the last few years

2018 Tipperary
2017 Tipperary
2017 Waterford
2016 Limerick
2015 Clare
2014 Sligo
2014 Tipperary

You look at the absolute hammering by Kerry (who I think turned in more of a 7 out of 10 performance than an 8 or 9 out of 10 performance ), the Tipp win  and Cork's league results  - 3 wins against Down, Louth and Meath and 4 losses to Tipp, Clare, Cavan and Roscommon and you would have to say it would be a massive shock if Tyrone didn't get the win here.

I think the biggest danger to Tyrone is a lack of appetite amongst the Tyrone lads to be playing in the Super 8s. Watching the Cavan and Meath games, I didn't exactly see much evidence of hunger/desire from the Tyrone players for long periods.

You didn't see any hunger in the Meath game as they pulled out a draw with the last kick of the game? Funny how people view things differently. If nothing else, in a relatively poor performance, at least that game displayed a fight and desire not to lose that was very encouraging. And again on Saturday when Cavan got back to level, a team with no hunger or desire would easily have folded. We are negotiating our way through these rounds very well in my view. Cork worries me though, they always have.

Agree that it's interesting how people see things in different ways. As far as I am concerned, Tyrone are a busted flush since last summer. Mickey was given a chance with a nice mix of good players with a few years experience and an U21 winning side to add to the mix. He made the call to go with a McGuinness plus style and the players bought into it. Dublin was the big test and the system was shown up within 5 minutes. That put the management in the awkward spot of going back to the players and saying this system we asked you to play and the huge effort put into it was actually flawed. Have looked rather unconvincing and rudderless ever since. The first half decent side they face will beat them, as Meath and Cavan would have with a bit more belief.

[imtommygunn]

How big a loss is cavanagh? I think that is an understated factor in tyrone's "decline".

[omagh_gael]

Ronan O'Neill to start this weekend? Surely we have to have more natural full forwards than McAliskey?

Bradley and Brennan were completing sprinting drills during Tyrone training last week and must be close to be named on the bench at least.

[ONeill]

How big a loss is cavanagh? I think that is an understated factor in tyrone's "decline".

Definitely.

Even though they still squeezed past Meath and Cavan, Sean would have taken those games by the scruff. But it's up to Mattie and Harte to do that now.

[rrhf]

Even the passive influence of Sean Cavanagh on the field is missed. Mc Aliskey struggled on sat but embodies the best of the spirit of this Tyrone team. Key player. Would love harte to play full forward with Mc aliskey on one side and Brennan on the other.

[Main Street]

I don't miss Sean at all.

Isn't he in the Tyrone doghouse now along with any other refuseniks?

[southtyronegael]

Even the passive influence of Sean Cavanagh on the field is missed. Mc Aliskey struggled on sat but embodies the best of the spirit of this Tyrone team. Key player. Would love harte to play full forward with Mc aliskey on one side and Brennan on the other.

i think peter harte has had enough chances in every other position without trying to turn him into a full forward. i dont think he would enjoy being marked anyway. only ever any use when he gets a free role against poor teams.

[Whishtup]

I like the fact that we haven't seen the best of Tyrone yet.  My only concern is how the heads drop after a couple of wides/misplaced passes. The accuracy just isn't there yet.  Sludden/Harte/Donnelly shaping up nicely.  I'd say hold off with Brennan/Bradley until needed.  Potentially a lot of games coming up.  Would like to see a new combo of maybe Mcaliskey/Brennan/O'Neill.

[ONeill]

That's a clatter of slashes.

[Whishtup]

Not too much/many.

[ONeill]

I just can't see the big performance. The only backdoor game I've been to is Carlow and for 25 mins you couldn't tell who was the division 1 team was. The Meath game we were out if they'd caught the last kick out.

I hope I'm wrong but I think the Dublin hammering last year is still sending its shockwaves. A half decent side will put us to bed.

[trileacman]

I favour us to raise the game for a big side or a do or die clash so all I hope is that we can negotiate these qualifiers against the lesser sides. I was very, very worried about Cavan and now Cork are troubling me a bit. It was their sheer size and physicality we could never match in the 2006 - 2014 period when we were paired against them frequently in Div 1. Now that they seem to have laid off the growth hormones I'm not just as nervous as I would be about facing them as I was back then.

I find this talk of Cavanagh being a miss as kind of shite talk. He had more bad games after his 30th birthday than he had good ones. Bar those booming kicks against Donegal in the Ulster final two years ago he didn't cover himself in glory against the top sides in the '13, '15 or '16 defeats to Kerry and Mayo. His decline as a footballer post-2012 was clear enough at times. That's my opinion of it anyway.

We arguably have a better full-back line than last year with yesterday's men McCarron and McCrory relegated to the bench and the fresh legs of Hugh Pat on the park. McNamee also seems at times to be bringing his excellent club form into the senior side more so than other years I seen him been handed the full-back shirt. Burns is a serious addition to the team sheet and is by some clear distance the Tyrone county footballer of the year so far. Harte and McCann are struggling for form, Mattie is racking scores and leading reasonably well, can't expect a whole lot more of him. Midfield is a washout, Colm has to do all the donkey work himself and McClure is currently just the lesser of two evils (McClure v McNulty). This scenario is replicated in goals where Morgan is clearly the more talented keeper but his weekly clangers deny himself and the fullback line of any confidence. O'Neill is a standard keeper from 15 years ago, catch and boot it out, no finesse to his game.

The sad truth of it is that this is simply a panel punching at it's weight and occasionally a bit over it, we just don't have the footballers in Tyrone to challenge Dublin and, by the look of it now, Kerry either. It's the sad realisation that 30 counties and their fans have to come to. We're set for possibly a 6-7 year period of Kerry/Dublin dominance were the best your team can hope for is a one-off shock victory against a team falling away from the top table (a la Mayo-Kildare). Now I'm sure this will serve up some classic finals but that will only serve to paper over the general malaise at the heart of the game. I'd imagine the press cheerleaders will gladly hark to the 70's Dublin Kerry rivalry with gusto and for a short time people will buy this horseshit but I see a tiered "champions league" championship being foisted upon us by about 2021 or 2022 as the game continues to decline.

[ONeill]

I find this talk of Cavanagh being a miss as kind of shite talk. He had more bad games after his 30th birthday than he had good ones. Bar those booming kicks against Donegal in the Ulster final two years ago he didn't cover himself in glory against the top sides in the '13, '15 or '16 defeats to Kerry and Mayo. His decline as a footballer post-2012 was clear enough at times. That's my opinion of it anyway.

That's the kind of narrative I can't abide. I think Sean scored 0-15 from midfield last summer. On a bad year apparently. People remember the booming kicks of 2016 but can't appreciate the dirty stuff.