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Any word on Galway's injury worries ??

I'd always be wary of predicting a Galway win against Cork especially in Thurles. Galway have always been able to put it up to Kilkenny and Tipp down through the years and beat them every now and then but we always seem to underperform badly against Cork. Galway have had better teams than Cork in the past and still managed to find a way to lose to them.

Overall though I think you would still have to make Cork favourites. Thurles is practically a home venue for them.

You might as well lose to Laois as to Cork. They aren't going to win anything this year. They are a team in transition. When Galway hurlers get to go to college and beat the Cork lads playing Sigerson or whatever there is no point in having any respect for the Cork jersey. The only reason Cork win more allIreland finals than they lose is because of attitude.  It's Mayo in reverse.  If McIntyre has the heads right they should beat Cork and go another step further. 

And if Galway can get that sorted out the teams will be more stable, there'll be less chopping and changing, there'll be more players getting the right exposure and you'll have more all-Irelands.   

I think the Cork-Galway match was arranged by the old firm. If Galway are to win the all-Ireland they will have to beat all 3 of them or something along those lines.   

Mouview


The memory must be going. Didn't they get beaten in Ennis back in 2007 early in July? Did that just put them in the path of the KK combine harvester? I remember the KK match in 2006. Jesus.


I was watching the RTE interview with McIntyre. He seems to be on the ball.
A nice change for a Galway hurling manager.  If Galway were to lose to Cork I think you would have to class it as a damp squib to what seems to be an encouraging bit of progress. I thought there would be a step up in approach in 2006 but instead there was a massacre and they lost their way more or less with Gerlock.

There seems to be a sense of smacht with the hurlers this year, more discipline, a bit of commitment. Less of the wishy washy traithiuil stuff.   

About Cork- i don't think the open era of second chances has enhanced their reputation. The jersey used to be mesmerising but they seem very mortal these days. The only jersey that to me seems to have retained the aura is the black and amber. 

 

Galway were dumped out the championship by 2 mediocre teams recently that weren't going anywhere - Clare in 2007 and Cork in 2008. Fair play to Cork for scoring a last minute point last year but I don't remember seeing them in the final.   

It's all a bit "shit or get off the pot" with cork. They still think they are entitled to keep the pot warm even though nothing appears to be coming.   

Cork may not be generous but they are a team in decline. They lost a big match in 2006 and that was it.  They seem to deploy their energy , what's left of it, off the pitch. Galway appear to be building up a nice bit of momentum too.   The O'Connors and Tom Kenny in their pomp buzzing around the pitch and popping points over from every angle and distance were a sight but that is going back some time now.

I was thinking they'd hammer Clare. They shouldn't be afraid of Cork or anyone else either. At least not until late august... 

You can'ay good riddance to the Rock. Any man that can set the stadium in thurles humming on the back of one rousing clearance will be missed.

The Rock was cleaned out several times last year if I remember correctly. So the helmet isn't the only reason. I remember reading a great story in a Gaelsport annual from 1980 where the hero played on despite a head wound and won the county final at the price of being scarred for life but things have changed in the meantime.

I think it would be more meaningful to insist on making bank shareholders responsible for the performance of their boards. 

Sadly the traditional Offaly second half fade out arrived again to make the scoreboard look ugly.

Offaly hurling sides need to cope better with setbacks.
A major bugbear of mine is that in this decade Offaly team seems to completely go out of games and concede a string of easy scores once they fall more than 5 or 6 points behind.

So what's going on in Offaly? Is it the golf or too much suburban executive style housing? In the days of Pat Carroll and Padraig Horan or even the Pilntons there was no such thing as a traditional Offaly second half fade out. Or is the county just biding its time lulling everyone into a false sense of security? 

Jesus - Armagh are out before the parade season has even started.

If they are good enough let them win it. I don't think Galway are going to make many waves this year. But once we get a decent team going again...

seeing as cork and tyrone are in the other side of the connaght Draw in athe AI semis i would be not atall suprised to see mayo in another AI final. and would gfancy us taking tyrone in the final less so than cork. not that tyrone are worse than cork jsut horses for courses.
Yes mayo very worried after the derry games and belive me we were throwing up at half time in the donegal game but since then mayo have found form shape and a few new players.where as galway have gone seriously backward, maybe in an elaborate plot to fool mayo but , last sunday they looked old and tired, maybe not a happy camp? so why would mayo people not have a lot more confidence now,
that For me is studying the form not being fickle.

Mayo optimism godhelpus. It comes around with the midges. And disappears as the evenings start to draw in.

I read Christy O'Connor's goalkeepers book a few years ago. Donal Og came across as a narrow minded obsessive who would be one of the worst people to sit beside at any wedding or similar social occasion. A bore.  It is an awful pity that Ring died so young. Cloyne has produced far better ambassadors for the game than Cusack.

The numbers from the IMF are truly shocking. Budget deficit in excess of 10% of GNP. Unemployment to head north of 15%.
Banks will probably have to be nationalised in addition to the NAMA job, 13.5% economic contraction. Every day there is more news of ineptitude and greed on a colossal scale. Today it was an article in the Irish Times about gullible punters who lost money to unscrupulous estate agents selling flats in places like Bulgaria. Yesterday was people who lost all of their deposits to a builder collapsing being told to look on the bright side because the prices of houses had fallen in the meantime. the day before was Setanta. And that's only 3 days' worth.   

If GAA wallas can't see the writing on the wall they should look around. GAA grants were a nice idea in the overheated economy but the country is virtually bankrupt today and just can't afford fripperies. 

Whatever came of Kerril Wade or Conor Kavanagh or Alan Leech?

Apparently there were only 6 of the 2007 team that played Kilkenny starting last Saturday. I don't know when was the last time a Galway hurling fan could reel off the names of the half back line without thinking. There hasn't been any patience to stick with teams over any length of time.   The team that got to the AIF in 2005 was dismantled shortly afterwards. Managers came through a revolving door. You can't win all-Irelands with that sort of set-up.