Ulster Senior Football Club Championship 2009

[Stevie Nicks]

Dont know how kilcoo men can complain about he ref when he gave you some handy decisions.  Firstly gave a handy free in defence when it wasnt and you ended up getting a point from it. Secondly hopping the ball when our forward was for taking a free kick and said he took too long to take it even though we were 2 points down and no need to waste time - its just the way he takes them. Thirdly giving an easy 20 yard free kick for a third man tackle when your man kicked out as ours first.  Allowing an extra 30secs to a min to try and let you equalise.  Granted your mans sending off was cruel but you have to careful when on a yellow.  And after that he booked any loup player for coughing wrong so he could try and even things up.  The booking after Paul Devlin was shot sorry fouled and dived like he had been watching Tyrone DVDs for the last week was a joke.  Cant blame the ref for all your misses and the fact that you should have been 6 points up at half time.  Once we scored the goal there was only one winner. 
Thing about it is I would have wished any Kilcoo man all the best in the final so no point having sour grapes.  Anything after the county final until your in the ulster final is a bonus. So celebrate your county victory and stop your complaining.  Yes if we were beat i'd have complained about the ref but would have said ah well we would have loved being in this position at the start of the year.
Sorry if my English isn't the greatest tonight but i'm just home from the club celebrating with a few pints.
PS St Galls willl be very very tough.

Sorry but i guess its just the manner of what happened that has annoyed a lot of us. There is geniunely no malice towards the Loup and we do wish them all the best in the final. They've a good game plan and a few superb players. St. Galls will be a step up in class from ourselves but hopefully yous can take the game to them and win the title.
Where I say yous were strong against us was your accuracy when shooting and the delivery of the ball into Young and the layoffs he provided. You did struggle though when we ran at you after a defender was either stucked in or caught on an overlap. Hopefully that can be patched up for the final though! Also you'd need to watch the bookings, some were debatable but many for pulling and dragging and off the ball tackles weren't. The two cases where Loup players were booked for tripping Kilcoo players making a run are case in point. Both of these were picked up by the umpires.
In terms of the referee. Yes the examples above are correct, however with the exception of the extra time (also worth bearing there was a subsitution and injury during it) all the examples occured earlier in the first half. After 15 minutes we seemed to get nothing... The Loup goal as well taken as it was should have been a free out to Kilcoo 30 seconds before and as well as that the ball in came from a Loup "free" where the linesman had already signaled a line ball to Kilcoo.
Perhaps is a case that the step up from the static game in Armagh was too great for him. Where skills such as the solo run and disiplined tackle disappeared during the late 90s. Maybe as a result of Francie's exploits over the last decade physical contact has resulted in that big a casuality list that its been outlawed. Whether the man was biased (in my view) or just plain useless doesn't matter now. The fact that the so many are discussing him is never good. Lets just hope lessons are learned and thats the last time he's allowed to venture beyond the whin strewn borders of armagh.Come on the Loup! Get stuck into them frankies and win it for the clutchies!

I think it is quite obvious to all what even Armagh men think of the afore mentioned ref, he is not up to the standard but it does not warrant this bullsh-t Magpies. His refereeing is not a reflection on football in his club never mind county. We will not churn out the records from the late 90's regarding club and couty titles won by the folk from the orchard compared to the mourne men it would only depress you more.
As a Kilcoo man you should be proud of what the boys have achieved and having seen them in most championship games they are a credit to the club and county (at least 3 or 4 should get a run out next year in the red and black) Ten minutes into the second half against Mayobridge you could only dream of waht has happened since. I won't argue the ref done you no favours and quite possibly an Ulster Final spot was denied by his actions but it is simply down to him being a below standard ref no matter where he comes from.

[SambaSaffron]

milltown a bit of the old former falls road siege mentality comin out there. Cross was still right they could name the winners at an early stage. Loup have had the easy end of the draw in derry and ulster wonder how they will do now with better opposition

Unlike Armagh there are no easy championships in Derry

I'm no Armagh man, but thats balls.

[Master Yoda]

milltown a bit of the old former falls road siege mentality comin out there. Cross was still right they could name the winners at an early stage. Loup have had the easy end of the draw in derry and ulster wonder how they will do now with better opposition

Unlike Armagh there are no easy championships in Derry

I'm no Armagh man, but thats balls.

Whats balls?

[thewanderer]

milltown a bit of the old former falls road siege mentality comin out there. Cross was still right they could name the winners at an early stage. Loup have had the easy end of the draw in derry and ulster wonder how they will do now with better opposition

Unlike Armagh there are no easy championships in Derry

I'm no Armagh man, but thats balls.

and armagh is easy ? with the best team in ireland over the last 13 years in it, . dry ur eyes if cross had been in any other county they still would have created the records. and some of the other teams in armagh would have won titles in the other counties, namely dromintee and pearse ogs.

[gallsman]

Fair play to St Galls, when these boys are training and playing football it means they are not out stealing cars and the like.

Small, petty man.

[Master Yoda]

milltown a bit of the old former falls road siege mentality comin out there. Cross was still right they could name the winners at an early stage. Loup have had the easy end of the draw in derry and ulster wonder how they will do now with better opposition

Unlike Armagh there are no easy championships in Derry

I'm no Armagh man, but thats balls.

and armagh is easy ? with the best team in ireland over the last 13 years in it, . dry ur eyes if cross had been in any other county they still would have created the records. and some of the other teams in armagh would have won titles in the other counties, namely dromintee and pearse ogs.

Wise up you fool.
No doubt Cross where/are a great team and would have won alot of titles in any County but there is no way in hell they would have won half of what they had won if they had to play in the Derry Championship as last 15 years.

For f**k sake they could set their training so that they would peak for the ulster club because they where up against f**k all in Armagh.

[winsamsoon]

milltown a bit of the old former falls road siege mentality comin out there. Cross was still right they could name the winners at an early stage. Loup have had the easy end of the draw in derry and ulster wonder how they will do now with better opposition

Unlike Armagh there are no easy championships in Derry

I'm no Armagh man, but thats balls.

and armagh is easy ? with the best team in ireland over the last 13 years in it, . dry ur eyes if cross had been in any other county they still would have created the records. and some of the other teams in armagh would have won titles in the other counties, namely dromintee and pearse ogs.

your taws wanderer, It is clear to be seen that there is a better standard of football overall in both Tyrone and Derry than in Armagh. Having played club football over the years ie Armagh senior championship and division one football i can say this without hesitation. Now don't get me wrong the top 4 or 5 teams in Armagh would have competed but they certainly wouldn't have been successful in either of the two counties . Cross are obviously an exception, they would have been challenging for every honour in either county but they wouldn't have won 13 county titles in a row and a couple less ulster and All Irelands. But it is all hypothetical talk because they don't play in Derry or Tyrone they play in Armagh and they can only beat what is put in front of them. But i think you have to acknowledge a better overall standar of football exists in Derry and Tyrone.

[SambaSaffron]

milltown a bit of the old former falls road siege mentality comin out there. Cross was still right they could name the winners at an early stage. Loup have had the easy end of the draw in derry and ulster wonder how they will do now with better opposition

Unlike Armagh there are no easy championships in Derry

I'm no Armagh man, but thats balls.

and armagh is easy ? with the best team in ireland over the last 13 years in it, . dry ur eyes if cross had been in any other county they still would have created the records. and some of the other teams in armagh would have won titles in the other counties, namely dromintee and pearse ogs.

Wise up you fool.
No doubt Cross where/are a great team and would have won alot of titles in any County but there is no way in hell they would have won half of what they had won if they had to play in the Derry Championship as last 15 years.

For f**k sake they could set their training so that they would peak for the ulster club because they where up against f**k all in Armagh.

This is whats balls. Derry people go on about how tough their Championship is. Yet can they really back it up? How many of your teams have gone on to win Ulster in the last 10 years? Genuine question by the way. I know Ballinderry and Loup did.
Derry people talking about Derry football reminds me of English people talking about English soccer. They claim to have the best league/championship around, they claim their players  are all elite yet when it comes to the big tournaments they flatter to deceive.

[Master Yoda]

milltown a bit of the old former falls road siege mentality comin out there. Cross was still right they could name the winners at an early stage. Loup have had the easy end of the draw in derry and ulster wonder how they will do now with better opposition

Unlike Armagh there are no easy championships in Derry

I'm no Armagh man, but thats balls.

and armagh is easy ? with the best team in ireland over the last 13 years in it, . dry ur eyes if cross had been in any other county they still would have created the records. and some of the other teams in armagh would have won titles in the other counties, namely dromintee and pearse ogs.

your taws wanderer, It is clear to be seen that there is a better standard of football overall in both Tyrone and Derry than in Armagh. Having played club football over the years ie Armagh senior championship and division one football i can say this without hesitation. Now don't get me wrong the top 4 or 5 teams in Armagh would have competed but they certainly wouldn't have been successful in either of the two counties . Cross are obviously an exception, they would have been challenging for every honour in either county but they wouldn't have won 13 county titles in a row and a couple less ulster and All Irelands. But it is all hypothetical talk because they don't play in Derry or Tyrone they play in Armagh and they can only beat what is put in front of them. But i think you have to acknowledge a better overall standar of football exists in Derry and Tyrone.

 

[SambaSaffron]

Just to state, I'm not saying Cross would have won so many titles in a row in Derry, but to say they were up against f**k all and could use Armagh as nothing more than a training session is disrepectful, and ultimately, a load of shite.

[Master Yoda]

Bellaghy won it in 2000 as well don't forget Samba.
Who is talking about Derry football being elite?
All I am saying is it is very competitive and I don't think any team no matter how good they are would win 13 titles in a row, like be realistic about the thing in the 13 years that Cross won the Armagh title they are bound to have had bad days but none of the teams that they where playing against where good enough to take advantage of this, to be this suggests the rest of the teams hadn't much quality as when Cross had a off day in one of their many Ulster campaigns they where normally beat.

PS. By the way Samba outside of St Galls & Cargin Antrim football is at a far lower level than Armagh.

[Master Yoda]

[[/quote]

This is whats balls. Derry people go on about how tough their Championship is. Yet can they really back it up? How many of your teams have gone on to win Ulster in the last 10 years? Genuine question by the way. I know Ballinderry and Loup did.
Derry people talking about Derry football reminds me of English people talking about English soccer. They claim to have the best league/championship around, they claim their players  are all elite yet when it comes to the big tournaments they flatter to deceive.
[/quote]
Year       Winner County                            Opponent County
2008      Crossmaglen Rangers 0-12 Armagh  Ballinderry 1-04 Derry
2007      Crossmaglen Rangers Armagh         St Gall's Antrim
2006      Crossmaglen Rangers Armagh        Ballinderry Derry
2005      St Galls Antrim                             Bellaghy Derry
2004      Crossmaglen Rangers Armagh         Mayobridge Down
2003      An Lúb Derry                                St Galls Antrim
2002      Errigal Ciarán Tyrone                     Enniskillen Gaels Fermanagh
2001      Ballinderry Derry                            Mayobridge Down
2000      Bellaghy Derry                              Errigal Ciarán Tyrone
1999      Crossmaglen Rangers Armagh        Enniskillen Gaels Fermanagh
1998      Crossmaglen Rangers Armagh        Bellaghy Derry
1997      Dungiven Derry                            Errigal Ciarán Tyrone
1996      Crossmaglen Rangers* Armagh      Bellaghy Derry
1995      Mullabawn Armagh                      Bailieboro Cavan
1994      Bellaghy Derry                            Clontibret O'Neills Monaghan
1993      Errigal Ciarán Tyrone                    Downpatrick Down
1992      Lavey* Derry                              Burren Down
1991      Castleblayney Faughs Monaghan    Killybegs Donegal
1990      Lavey Derry                                Kingscourt Cavan

In the past 20 years Derry have had a team in all but 7 of the finals, thats why Derry people reckon that we have a very competitive club championship here.

[SambaSaffron]

Bellaghy won it in 2000 as well don't forget Samba.
Who is talking about Derry football being elite?
All I am saying is it is very competitive and I don't think any team no matter how good they are would win 13 titles in a row, like be realistic about the thing in the 13 years that Cross won the Armagh title they are bound to have had bad days but none of the teams that they where playing against where good enough to take advantage of this, to be this suggests the rest of the teams hadn't much quality as when Cross had a off day in one of their many Ulster campaigns they where normally beat.

PS. By the way Samba outside of St Galls & Cargin Antrim football is at a far lower level than Armagh.

Forgot about Bellaghy, thought there was another one.
I was meaning in general, a lot of Derry people constantly go on about how good their championship is. Competitive yes, and probably the most amount of teams who have a genuine chance of winning it. Not the greatest of matches though, and I don't think the quality of teams winning it is as high as, say 10 years ago.
I have no doubt Cross had off days, but the likes of Pearse Ogs, Dromintee and and one are 2 others have tested them to the max over the last few years. As I said, to describe the Armagh championship as nothing more than a training session is disrepectful to the likes of these teams.

I never mentioned Antrim football, but I  don't think its fair to say its at a far lower level than Armagh. Depends what you are talking about. Our club champions beat their club champions. Our county team got to an Ulster final and should have beaten the eventual All-Ireland champions, if they'd had a bit more confidence. If you are meaning strength of the Division 1 league, then I'd say we are a bit behind.

[AFS]

Bellaghy won it in 2000 as well don't forget Samba.
Who is talking about Derry football being elite?
All I am saying is it is very competitive and I don't think any team no matter how good they are would win 13 titles in a row, like be realistic about the thing in the 13 years that Cross won the Armagh title they are bound to have had bad days but none of the teams that they where playing against where good enough to take advantage of this, to be this suggests the rest of the teams hadn't much quality as when Cross had a off day in one of their many Ulster campaigns they where normally beat.

PS. By the way Samba outside of St Galls & Cargin Antrim football is at a far lower level than Armagh.

This would be fair to say if you were talking purely in terms of footballing ability, but I don't think many outside Armagh realise the psychological stranglehold Cross had on everyone. Of course they had off days when they should've been beaten, but other clubs shat themselves on one or two occasions and threw away the chance to topple them. Clubs outside the county didn't quite have the same mental block. Ogs win this year was massive, the fear factor is severely diminished.

[mackers]

Bellaghy won it in 2000 as well don't forget Samba.
Who is talking about Derry football being elite?
All I am saying is it is very competitive and I don't think any team no matter how good they are would win 13 titles in a row, like be realistic about the thing in the 13 years that Cross won the Armagh title they are bound to have had bad days but none of the teams that they where playing against where good enough to take advantage of this, to be this suggests the rest of the teams hadn't much quality as when Cross had a off day in one of their many Ulster campaigns they where normally beat.

PS. By the way Samba outside of St Galls & Cargin Antrim football is at a far lower level than Armagh.

This would be fair to say if you were talking purely in terms of footballing ability, but I don't think many outside Armagh realise the psychological stranglehold Cross had on everyone. Of course they had off days when they should've been beaten, but other clubs shat themselves on one or two occasions and threw away the chance to topple them. Clubs outside the county didn't quite have the same mental block. Ogs win this year was massive, the fear factor is severely diminished.

Nail on head.........and just because a championship is competitive doesn't mean it's good, Derry people would sicken your hole about their club football. I also reckon the standard is dropping in Derry with an exceptional Ballinderry team appearing to be past their peak, Bellaghy and Lavey going through a dip, a Derry man said to me recently that it was a worrying sign when Loup won the title.