Yawn

[ardtole]

There have always been poor quality games, but Down v Armagh this year was the worst I ever witnessed. It was the straw that broke the camels back in terms of me advocating for rule changes.

Having said that, I was at the Armagh v Kerry semi final, and I found that enjoyable and Donegal v Galway the following day was good too, but in general a lot of the matches are bordering on risk-free, possession based, keep away from contact, football, and no matter how passionate you are about Gaelic football it can be a tough game to watch for 70 mins.

[clarshack]

As a Tyrone man I feared the Armagh teams of 20 years ago who had the likes of McDonnell and McConville up front and Bellew at the back. This Armagh team wouldn't have the same fear and it's the same as the Tyrone team of 2021 which wouldn't have been as good as Tyrone 2003-2008. Players might be fitter but the teams aren't better than then.

[Truthsayer]

I know I just found it funny you ended it in 08 rather than even a decade

Not convinced Sunday will be great. Galway are very good but are defensive and I wonder about how Armagh counter that without mirroring it. Hope I am wrong. I think it'll open up a bit but could be cagey enough.

😄

[Franko]

I don't think individual quality has dropped though it's just the systems that are used make it harder to watch. Being less watchable and lower quality don't necessarily go hand in hand imo. Too many tactics now and the concession of kick outs changes a lot.

That's it.

Physically and technically, the quality of the individual players has probably never been better.

But because of the styles/systems of play invoked in this era, the quality of the end product is absolutely dire.

[tonto1888]

Wooly interviewed McGeeney released today.

McGeeney reckons football has never been as high a quality as it is now.

He would say that... does he really believe its better quality than 2002 - 2008? and the football those teams were playing... Tyrone, Kerry, Armagh, Dublin, Mayo even Sligo for some of it... Canavan, O'Neill, Mugsy, Gooch, Clarke/McDonnell...
Quality is being totally stiffled. The game is ruining the likes of Clifford who back then wouldn't have been just there to put his hand up for a mark..

well he played in that timeline of 2002-2008 so is well placed to say it.
That said you do make good points. Are the games and players more technical now? Yes. Fitter? Yes. Are the games a better spectacle to watch? Probably not

[Ethan Tremblay]

Players are instructed to play the percentages, rather than off the cuff, as they would have been back in that era, so its harder to judge now to be honest. 

Eg Rian O'Neil hit a score from 45yards out against Kerry, executing skill at its highest level, but those type individual pieces of excellence are few and far between.  Most players would have been slated for attempting that type of shot, even if they have the capability. 

If Ciaran McDonald was playing now he probably wouldn't have hit half the scores he hit, the type of goal Mugsy scored wouldn't happen these days either, even though players like Clifford and Walsh are more than capable. 

[JoG2]

Players are instructed to play the percentages, rather than off the cuff, as they would have been back in that era, so its harder to judge now to be honest. 

Eg Rian O'Neil hit a score from 45yards out against Kerry, executing skill at its highest level, but those type individual pieces of excellence are few and far between.  Most players would have been slated for attempting that type of shot, even if they have the capability. 

If Ciaran McDonald was playing now he probably wouldn't have hit half the scores he hit, the type of goal Mugsy scored wouldn't happen these days either, even though players like Clifford and Walsh are more than capable. 

Players like Con O'C are regularly scoring incredible goals. The last few Ulster finals, some of the point taking has been off the charts and that's with the added pressure of a final. While the games can be slow going at times, the execution of goals and points (and accuracy) has never been better.

[Minus15]

I watched the first half of Armagh v Kerry final from 2002 last night. First time seeing it since I watched it live. As a spectacle, it was great, free flowing and great individual battles going on all over the field.
I was struck by how much ball Armagh kicked away in the first half whereas Kerry were a bit more methodical in their attacks, threading balls into their full forwards as opposed to the long diagonals.
Just felt watching it that Armagh could have done with someone getting on the ball and slowing things up, dictating play a bit more and not having it as chaotic.

The way football is now makes you look on that sort of tactic as a bit alien but it can still be effective. Armagh also looked second best at midfield. Darragh O'Se was a monster.

Just watching any game from that era or before makes you realise how negative an impact the forward mark has had on the game. Has to go. Stevie McDonnell caught one long ball, landed, turned and over on his left without thinking. Skill that's been taken out of the game to an extent with the percentage option being favoured.

I was 16 and a Down man in school in Newry. Great nostalgia of watching that successful Armagh team. Looking forward to the second half tonight. Hoping Kerry can hold their lead.

[Rossfan]

For those of ye into betting....
The 2025 AI odds


https://www.paddypower.com/gaelic-games/all-ireland-football

[ONeill]

Is Ulster a blight on the game?

We won everything, but the football was crap.

[armaghniac]

Bring in a rule that if one team holds the ball for 2 minutes then the last man to have it gets a black card.

[ONeill]

I watched it back tonight. Although Galway were slightly the better side, Armagh deserved to win it because they took slightly higher risks when kicking it in.

I know they thought the Mark would help that but it hasn't.

There has to be something about not passing it back when you go over the opposition's 40?

But that might lead to worse congestion.

The only time the crowd made a noise in the first half was when a ball was lumped in.

[David McKeown]

I watched it back tonight. Although Galway were slightly the better side, Armagh deserved to win it because they took slightly higher risks when kicking it in.

I know they thought the Mark would help that but it hasn't.

There has to be something about not passing it back when you go over the opposition's 40?

But that might lead to worse congestion.

The only time the crowd made a noise in the first half was when a ball was lumped in.

By what metric do you feel Galway were the better side?  I watched it again this evening and perhaps it's the knowing of the result but I felt Armagh completely controlled the game.

[Sportacus]

For those of ye into betting....
The 2025 AI odds


https://www.paddypower.com/gaelic-games/all-ireland-football

The bad news is a lot of teams will be looking at the Armagh template of everyone inside your half when defending.
The good news is everyone will be looking at the Galway template of passing the ball across and back and thinking we need to come up with something different.

[armaghniac]

For those of ye into betting....
The 2025 AI odds


https://www.paddypower.com/gaelic-games/all-ireland-football

PP is half odds each way. If you bet ew on Galway, Armagh, Derry, Donegal then you'd do rightly unless there was a Kerry Dublin final.