Down Club Hurling & Football

[PAULD123]

The secondary schools in Down need to take a hard long look at themselves regarding GAA being done in schools
The abbey train as little as they can possibly get away with.Havent looked like competing in mccory level for about 7 years
St Marks don't even train anymore(imagine that team that got beat in the final actually trained)
St Colmans again the tradition they have should be doing better.They used to be the big hitters of school football not anymore
St Joseph's are working with a limited bunch but we should be producing 1-2 players out if this school every few years but we are not.
St Louis has produced nothing really since the team that clarke played in
St Malachys are now run by a rugby man and haven't really been competing like they once did when PJ Magee was head of PE
St Columbans are not producing to the standard that they were years ago when they won an all Ireland but what I will give poacher credit for he

St Colmans won a double all-ireland in 2010/11 that's only a few years ago. There are lads still at the school who attended those matches. So hardly a long fall from grace. This year they went to the McCrory quarter finals and let themselves down as they let it slip against a Lurgan side they were better than, who were then easily beaten by St Pauls (another local school with a Burren corner forward)

As you said St Marks have just finished runners up in an All-Ireland final by a single point

As for the headline cup - MacRory, many of the teams above compete in that tournament so they can't all be winning and reaching finals at the same time. But in the last five years the winners have been 3 Derry, 1 Cavan, 1 Fermanagh. Since 2006 - 3 Tyrone, 3 Derry, 3 Newry, 1 Cavan, 1 Fermanagh. (I say Newry because it is a mix of Down/Armagh)

These numbers aren't that bad. Even St Pat's Maghera went ten years without even reaching a final before their recent run of 3 wins in 4 years.

At a lower level St Colmans got to the Rannfest cup final in 2013.

It's not a huge roll of honour but a few fallow years is hardly a famine!

[Smurfy123]

Take Mooney out of them teams and they Woukd not have won.Yes they had players on them teams that are now good players but back then mooney won it for them
St Marks got to the final without training so I think the clubs should take credit for that.
St Colmans and the Abbey should at least be getting to the finals of this competition year in year out
Let's be honest it's not an overly hard competition to win
Pre Christmas 2 teams out of 12 get eliminated and then you are straight into a quarter final after Christmas.So basically play 3 good games you win it
Our underage structures in Down are pathetic

[TheClutch]

Take Mooney out of them teams and they Woukd not have won.Yes they had players on them teams that are now good players but back then mooney won it for them
St Marks got to the final without training so I think the clubs should take credit for that.
St Colmans and the Abbey should at least be getting to the finals of this competition year in year out
Let's be honest it's not an overly hard competition to win
Pre Christmas 2 teams out of 12 get eliminated and then you are straight into a quarter final after Christmas.So basically play 3 good games you win it
Our underage structures in Down are pathetic

Possibly one of the most ridiculous statements ever made.

[snoopdog]

As much as I hate to say it would some kind of supporter stance highlight the feeling to the county board. Do the supporters club have any say or sway. Maybe pulling membership of club Down etc and non attendance at county games. Would that get a message across.
As most point out here we won't see change until the county board gets an overhaul. Depressing times. Have we ever lost so many games in a row regardless of division.

At least you can swap over to the Dubs as you're down that direction. Heaven help any young person being able to look forward to anything good happening around Down football.There'll hardly be a sellout on tickets for the supporter's bus(es) at the weekend.

I couldn't do that.

[snoopdog]

Take Mooney out of them teams and they Woukd not have won.Yes they had players on them teams that are now good players but back then mooney won it for them
St Marks got to the final without training so I think the clubs should take credit for that.
St Colmans and the Abbey should at least be getting to the finals of this competition year in year out
Let's be honest it's not an overly hard competition to win
Pre Christmas 2 teams out of 12 get eliminated and then you are straight into a quarter final after Christmas.So basically play 3 good games you win it
Our underage structures in Down are pathetic

Possibly one of the most ridiculous statements ever made.

Its a notoriously difficult competition to win. My God it can be a minefield as st colmans discovered this year.
And yes Mooney was exceptional for st colmans in their back to back but 1 man doesn't win all irelands. The johnsons etc were  just as influential. A statement like that is nuts it's like sayin they wouldn't have won in the late 80's without wee James for god sake. Yes 1 man can make a difference but he can't do it on his own. I don't remeber Southampton winning much with Le tissier in the  team.

[Smurfy123]

I don't think the johnstones were as influential as mooney.Take Mooney out of the side and no they would not have won the Hogan
What's so hard with winning 3 games?
Give Poacher the managerial reigns at either St Colmans or Abbey and they would win a hogan within 4 years
That's the difference

[NP 76]

Catch a grip with yourself. Money fluted in and out of games in both the Hogan teams. Leaders like mc Parland ,Gough the livelys the johnsons were steady men in every game. As for Poucher there is some difference in coaching at c level under no pressure than mc Crory where you are expected to win every year. Some of the things you have come out with are laughable and shows a fascination with slot of people in our county who seem to think things are easily won. You are right that the schools in Down are not helping by their limited coaching but is the clubs doing any better for the lads

[Brick Tamlin]

I don't think the johnstones were as influential as mooney.Take Mooney out of the side and no they would not have won the Hogan
What's so hard with winning 3 games?
Give Poacher the managerial reigns at either St Colmans or Abbey and they would win a hogan within 4 years
That's the difference

This right here. Brilliant.
If only his face fit he could solve all our problems.
Damn that non-fitting face of his.

[A man from Down]

We have had so many all Ireland winners in the past who attended schools in Downpatrick which have never had the greatest success. But anyway its all about the Newry schools and a couple of the great GAA schools based in ........Kilkeel.

[A man from Down]

To start blaming the schools is ludicrous.

[PAULD123]

Mooney was never a player to lead. He drifted in and out of matches, doing very little for ages and then popping up to score a goal and a few points. Shay McCartan was far more influential in the forward line and a better player. Too bad he went to soccer because he would be a county senior now. If Mooney was the only good player then how come Shay McCardle, Jerome Johnston, Ryan Johnston, Ross McGarry, Niall McParland, Connor Gough, Daryl Brannigan and Donal O'Hare all have reperesented Down at senior county level.

As for St Colmans and the Abbey expected to get to the final every year - Well isn't that a bit of an insult to Omagh, Dungannon and Maghera?

[snoopdog]

Mooney was never a player to lead. He drifted in and out of matches, doing very little for ages and then popping up to score a goal and a few points. Shay McCartan was far more influential in the forward line and a better player. Too bad he went to soccer because he would be a county senior now. If Mooney was the only good player then how come Shay McCardle, Jerome Johnston, Ryan Johnston, Ross McGarry, Niall McParland, Connor Gough, Daryl Brannigan and Donal O'Hare all have reperesented Down at senior county level.

As for St Colmans and the Abbey expected to get to the final every year - Well isn't that a bit of an insult to Omagh, Dungannon and Maghera?

Yeah Shay McCartan a big loss. I see he scored for norn iron u21's last night.

[Smurfy123]

To say Shay was more of an influence than Mooney is ludicrous
The fact of the matter is if Mooney wasn't playing with St Colmans they would not have won 2 hogans
That's the bottom line
The other players you mention are all decent players now but mooney carried them teams on his own
The reality is his goals at crucial times when St Colmans were behind won them the matches

[knockitdown]

To say Shay was more of an influence than Mooney is ludicrous
The fact of the matter is if Mooney wasn't playing with St Colmans they would not have won 2 hogans
That's the bottom line
The other players you mention are all decent players now but mooney carried them teams on his own
The reality is his goals at crucial times when St Colmans were behind won them the matches

It's not fact as we will never know!!

[SHEEDY]

Monaghan u21's destroyed Armagh 2-16 to 0-9 in the Ulster semi final tonight in newry, the same Armagh that destroyed down in the 1st round.