The System

[PAULD123]

.... It means you can let the ball in early and it will stick. And with the system Donegal play, it means they dictate the type of game it will be I.e. stuck the opposition up the pitch to allow for counter attack...

Donegal do not play that way. Sometimes, yes when the big man is free they will play a direct ball to him but that is far from a set tactic. If people believe that then it is no wonder Donegal beat so many teams. What Donegal do is very simple. They lie deep and turn over the ball (as we all know). On the turnover they break and break into space.

Every team does the above but then every team look to play the ball to their most dangerous player as quick as possible. That is where you assessment that it goes to Murphy to "win his own ball" is wrong. Donegal hit it to the most free man regardless of who he is. he then runs till closed down and releases it to the next most free man. They do not have a point of attack at all, they take the simplest route. By opting for the most free man instead of the star man they will always find players in space 25-30m out. Each player is confident enough to take their own shot/point.

While Kerry try to get it to a marked Gooch, Dublin to a marked Brogan, Down to marked Coulter, Armagh to a marked Clarke... Donegal hit it to the free man. In the Ulster Final last year Murphy acted nearly the whole game as a decoy runner, picking up tight marking and moving it away to allow space for others. Donegal do not play a attack system where a player tries to beat his man, they play a system where they avoid taking on such challenges by believing an unmarked free man is better than a marked star man.

[Eamonnca1]

That wiki page would be a bit more informative if it actually said what "the system" is.

[shawshank]

Would Mc Guinness have won an all Ireland with Tyrone or Kildare, no he wouldn't, emphasising What an asset Murphy and Mc Fadden are, big men who can win their own ball and have football brains. Tyrone don,t have big ball winners inside, kildare have a ball winner, but he has no football brain. For example how much would Walsh improve Kerry if her returned from Aussie rules, therefore giving Kerry two powerful footballers who could win their own ball and have the brains to use it effectively. It means you can let the ball in early and it will stick. And with the system Donegal play, it means they dictate the type of game it will be I.e. stuck the opposition up the pitch to allow for counter attack.

Wht puzzles me the most Tyrone gave Donegal their toughest game playing the Donegal system last yer in the ulster semi, they should have stuck to it. there is a lesson in there.

he would aye! tyrone have o neill who is big and kildare have o connor!mc faddens not a `big man!`

O Neill is 5 ft 10 and Mc Fadden 6ft 2. I did football brains,O Connor ? No!

.... It means you can let the ball in early and it will stick. And with the system Donegal play, it means they dictate the type of game it will be I.e. stuck the opposition up the pitch to allow for counter attack...

Donegal do not play that way. Sometimes, yes when the big man is free they will play a direct ball to him but that is far from a set tactic. If people believe that then it is no wonder Donegal beat so many teams. What Donegal do is very simple. They lie deep and turn over the ball (as we all know). On the turnover they break and break into space.

Every team does the above but then every team look to play the ball to their most dangerous player as quick as possible. That is where you assessment that it goes to Murphy to "win his own ball" is wrong. Donegal hit it to the most free man regardless of who he is. he then runs till closed down and releases it to the next most free man. They do not have a point of attack at all, they take the simplest route. By opting for the most free man instead of the star man they will always find players in space 25-30m out. Each player is confident enough to take their own shot/point.

While Kerry try to get it to a marked Gooch, Dublin to a marked Brogan, Down to marked Coulter, Armagh to a marked Clarke... Donegal hit it to the free man. In the Ulster Final last year Murphy acted nearly the whole game as a decoy runner, picking up tight marking and moving it away to allow space for others. Donegal do not play a attack system where a player tries to beat his man, they play a system where they avoid taking on such challenges by believing an unmarked free man is better than a marked star man.

I would agree with about the Ulster final, by the time the All Ireland semi came Mc Fadden was the target man and by the final Murphy was playing up along with McFadden. Mc Fadden was easily there top scorer, but they do spread there scores apart from them.