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This was last week

Westmeath manager Dessie Dolan questioned the GAA's fixtures scheduling after his side won the Allianz Football League Division 3 title, just eight days before they have to play a Leinster SFC quarter-final.
"It is hectic," Dolan told RTÉ Sport. "This is our third week in a row and we're playing Wicklow in the championship next week. It's hard to believe the championship is only a week away after a national final.
"The winners play the following weekend as well, so there's the possibility of five weeks in a row. It is extremely busy.
"It's difficult to get the lads regrouped and focused for match after match after match but that's what we have to do.

It would have been some injustice if Clare had lost the game coming down the strait. Especially as the ref looked to be giving the Cats plenty of assistance near the end.
Cody hitting the penalty down into the mud patch was a schoolboy error. TJ Reid would have put it high towards the top corner.

In fairness he let Fitzgerald take close to 10 steps for his goal, you don't usually see a player being allowed to pause, cut inside (while still not taking a tap) and then continue

He's a serious man for taking 10 steps.

In fairness, easily the best player in the National League this year. Clare will be hoping he keeps this run of form up. With David Mc Enerney, Shanagher and O'Donnell off the bench last night Clare are working on developing their panel. Just need them injury free as Munster will be tough.

Lohan needed the win last night to justify his work. Well deserved. Were the better team throughout. Clare were hungry and aggressive and in Mc Carthy and Duggan, they have good outlets up top.

Malone works hard in mid-field, Cleary is an old style full-back with Hogan developing into a super man marker/cornerback.  With TK to come back, they'll by boosted for Munster.

KK were disappointing although they still have that never say die spirit. They seemed to be off the boil a bit e.g. Blanchfield missing the pick twice for Clare's goal.  Simple stuff.
Cody's penalty was poorly struck in the marsh. Who know what would have happened if it went in but they didn't deserve it.

TJ was a big miss as on out bll at full-forward although Mossy Keoghan showed really well when introduced - 3 points I think.   

KK were/ are poor I dont see anything improving them drastically as the championship gets going. TJ will slightly but think he is on the other side of it.

They seem to be producing the same type of player at the moment with nothing really standing out.

They used to be able to freak teams out just by turning up. They have savage workrate but they don't have the players any more.
Clare had more energy.

There is no jeopardy for the majority of  teams in the top 2 divisions. Being beaten doesn't mean what it used to mean. The provincials should be separate from the all Ireland . The system is not the finished article.

Tom Sullivan, Coalisland Co Tyrone.
 The first Tyrone man to score a point for his county in Croke Park.
 Minor Final 1947 v Mayo

They will be remembered by their people

[If Derry went into Leinster they'd have MHKE Stockholm syndrome after a decade too. Meath and Kildare are serious football counties with a combined total of 11 times Derry's or Armagh's all Ireland tally. Meath are 5th in the roll of honour]

At this stage I think we should get Donald Duck to manage Meath. Colm so out of his depth it is unreal. No disrespect to Longford but to concede 3.12 is an absolute disgrace Dublin could inflict the biggest ever defeat on Meath. With the return of Jordan Morris and the best player not on Meath team last few years James Conlon we looked better upfront. But we are so so bad defensively it is unreal. I fear what will happen next weekend but worse still I fear what will happen to Meath going forward if we don't change management at end of championship.

Why should Meath be arsed about taking the Leinster football championship seriously? They can't win it and they need to focus on the Round Robin. Why should fans pay to see matches in the Dublin side of the Leinster championship ?  Nobody who voted for the system at Congress did much forward thinking.

Or they could tighten up and start competing with Dublin. Derry can do it. Mayo did it for years.

Easy excuses.

If Derry went into Leinster they'd have MHKE Stockholm syndrome after a decade too. Meath and Kildare are serious football counties with a combined total of 11 times Derry's or Armagh's all Ireland tally. Meath are 5th in the roll of honour. Kildare are 9th. Derry and Armagh are joint 18th. Leinster used to produce a variety of all Ireland winners. The Leinster championshio used to be a great testing ground for emerging teams.
Mayo never beat financially doped Dublin in a final. Neither did Kerry.
If they get you asking the wrong questions they don't have to worry about the answers. 

Holy mo, rolling out the roll of honours list from decades ago, what does that have to do with 2024? They were serious football counties in the AI series, not at the moment, and not in the league either tbf. If they've given up, that's on them and no one else

It's the system. Blaming the victims for what is wrong is geting it arseways.
Gaelic football is about Dublin and Kerry versus the rest.
If you don't like the honours list, how would you project your favourite team  into the future ? Are they going to join Dublin and Kerry in the permanent Government or are they are going to rise and fall like everone else  ?

At this stage I think we should get Donald Duck to manage Meath. Colm so out of his depth it is unreal. No disrespect to Longford but to concede 3.12 is an absolute disgrace Dublin could inflict the biggest ever defeat on Meath. With the return of Jordan Morris and the best player not on Meath team last few years James Conlon we looked better upfront. But we are so so bad defensively it is unreal. I fear what will happen next weekend but worse still I fear what will happen to Meath going forward if we don't change management at end of championship.

Why should Meath be arsed about taking the Leinster football championship seriously? They can't win it and they need to focus on the Round Robin. Why should fans pay to see matches in the Dublin side of the Leinster championship ?  Nobody who voted for the system at Congress did much forward thinking.

Or they could tighten up and start competing with Dublin. Derry can do it. Mayo did it for years.

Easy excuses.

If Derry went into Leinster they'd have MHKE Stockholm syndrome after a decade too. Meath and Kildare are serious football counties with a combined total of 11 times Derry's or Armagh's all Ireland tally. Meath are 5th in the roll of honour. Kildare are 9th. Derry and Armagh are joint 18th. Leinster used to produce a variety of all Ireland winners. The Leinster championshio used to be a great testing ground for emerging teams.
Mayo never beat financially doped Dublin in a final. Neither did Kerry.
If they get you asking the wrong questions they don't have to worry about the answers. 

At this stage I think we should get Donald Duck to manage Meath. Colm so out of his depth it is unreal. No disrespect to Longford but to concede 3.12 is an absolute disgrace Dublin could inflict the biggest ever defeat on Meath. With the return of Jordan Morris and the best player not on Meath team last few years James Conlon we looked better upfront. But we are so so bad defensively it is unreal. I fear what will happen next weekend but worse still I fear what will happen to Meath going forward if we don't change management at end of championship.

Why should Meath be arsed about taking the Leinster football championship seriously? They can't win it and they need to focus on the Round Robin. Why should fans pay to see matches in the Dublin side of the Leinster championship ?  Nobody who voted for the system at Congress did much forward thinking.

Monaghan are either shite or planning to peak for the round robin

2 all

Wicklow 10 5 up against Westmeath with 20 to go. That would be a big upset.

Westmeath will win it handy. Will be looking to peak against Kildare next weekend.

Wicklow three up on 70 minutes. Five injury time.

Wicklow win
It's a great idea to play the first round a week after the league finals.

The high ball into the full forward line
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=udAXYoJf6Xo

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IAkY5m00rpY

The only certainty is that Ulster football today is very hard to watch

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RaaL-z4z3wo

I love the seeing a pitch covered at half-time with young and old, fathers and mothers with their kids etc. pucking and kicking a ball about. No issues.

A great sight.

Conversely, I've seen kids being hunted off pitches i.e. Athletic Grounds at inter-county club championship games by 'jobworths' and it's only 2 or 3 kids looking to kick or puck about, not 500 children.

A joke.

I saw the halftime puckaround yesterday.  It's class

I know, my point is it soon won't exist.

Even out of pure selfishness and money making the GAA and Leinster council would benefit from a competitive competition. Meath and Kildare used to almost fill Croke Park.

Now you won't half fill it on a double header without the Dubs. But the top man in Leinster seems to think it's fine the way it is.

The Leinster football championship is not a championship. It is a procession. The Leinster football Championship is fake.


https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=n5h0qHwNr

It would have been some injustice if Clare had lost the game coming down the strait. Especially as the ref looked to be giving the Cats plenty of assistance near the end.
Cody hitting the penalty down into the mud patch was a schoolboy error. TJ Reid would have put it high towards the top corner.

That's the Kilkenny problem in a nutshell. It takes years to develop a TJ Reid or a Johnny Sexton.