Armagh v Galway AIQF

[tonto1888]

The social media pile on this one isn't arbitrary. It was the highest attended match of the year, broadcast live across the country. The perpetrator had no reason to be on the pitch, no reason to be touching distance of an opposing player. And then he delivered a truly filthy act, one with such potential for lifelong repercussions that it cannot be condoned by anyone.

As I say, not arbitrary. Not for this one.

so the social media pile on is alright then? He deserves it?

[Manning18]

Walsh is getting a fair bit of stick for that pass and rightly so but thought he played well without doing anything spectacular, nailed all the frees he should and scored one from a really difficult angle with his left that very few would make. He attracted a lot of attention and used that well at time by just keeping out of the way which created space for others which can be seen with McDaids goal when nobody tracking Mannion. He was definitely not right at that challenge in the first half, he didn't turn on the after burners all afternoon and was visibly hobbling on a few occasions.

Comer very good again although should have passed when he went for goal but suppose can understand given his record when given that opportunity. After the Mayo game all the talk was if you could stop Conroy, Comer & Walsh you'd beat Galway easily, doesn't look the case now.

Completely agree bar the afterburners. First half of extra time he gets the ball under the Cusack, burns Morgan on the outside and is pulled, and kicks the free from near the sideline. Won and kicked a free in similar circumstances when Galway were struggling in the first half. Considering he won the frees, how are they not as good as scores from play (he kicked a gorgeous one of those incidentally).

Considering how many late hits he shipped and the fact that every time he went on a run he had two lads converging on him, I thought he really stood up. The second goal came because he drew 3 players before shipping it off. Some near neighbors who've been defending Cillian o'Connors 3 all ireland finals scoreless from play for years seem to be taking delight in saying he went missing when its utter nonsense, he was trying to take too much responsibility if anything, aiding to that braindead moment at the end of normal time. Luckily he made up for it in ET and penalties

The point around Galway having 3 players and noone else mere weeks ago was hilarious. Before the Roscommon game it was all about Roscommon having 6 scoring forwards and Galway relying on 2. One of those forwards couldn't make his sigerson team while Finnerty and Tierney were two of the best players in the entire competition. Recency bias in GAA circles and media knows no bounds. McDaid and Finnerty will be the dangermen to watch for the next game despite most media having no idea who they were 4 weeks ago

[tonto1888]

I'm not denying it will be difficult, such is trial by social media nowadays...

His actions though will hopefully be acted on (gouging and entering field of play) and maybe discourage it going forward, I'll certainly be explaining to the captains on Wed night that if there is one melee the first ones in will not be getting "ah come on lads" attitude

We can't continue to have these all in type situations, I've had 4 games at football where this has happened this year, people getting worked up and taking things personal, the ball should be your only focus, we'll end up with a sanitised game to reduce the amount of flare ups we have. Now that would be shit viewing also.

I've only asked he get's what everyone else has received in the past, nothing more. Anything more would be unfair.

the entering the field of play part. Will everyone who isn't part of the squad who entered the field of play get a punishment or just him? Rightly or wrongly he was with the team on Sunday and had to cross the field to get to the changing room. Does that count as entering the field of play?

[Armagh18]

I'm not denying it will be difficult, such is trial by social media nowadays...

His actions though will hopefully be acted on (gouging and entering field of play) and maybe discourage it going forward, I'll certainly be explaining to the captains on Wed night that if there is one melee the first ones in will not be getting "ah come on lads" attitude

We can't continue to have these all in type situations, I've had 4 games at football where this has happened this year, people getting worked up and taking things personal, the ball should be your only focus, we'll end up with a sanitised game to reduce the amount of flare ups we have. Now that would be shit viewing also.

I've only asked he get's what everyone else has received in the past, nothing more. Anything more would be unfair.

Did McMahon get one match that time for eye gouging? So one for that (although it deserves far more and likely he will get far more) Will he even get done for entering the field of play? Game was over and players were on their way into the changing rooms.

[yellowcard]

I'm not denying it will be difficult, such is trial by social media nowadays...

His actions though will hopefully be acted on (gouging and entering field of play) and maybe discourage it going forward, I'll certainly be explaining to the captains on Wed night that if there is one melee the first ones in will not be getting "ah come on lads" attitude

We can't continue to have these all in type situations, I've had 4 games at football where this has happened this year, people getting worked up and taking things personal, the ball should be your only focus, we'll end up with a sanitised game to reduce the amount of flare ups we have. Now that would be shit viewing also.

I've only asked he get's what everyone else has received in the past, nothing more. Anything more would be unfair.

Did McMahon get one match that time for eye gouging? So one for that (although it deserves far more and likely he will get far more) Will he even get done for entering the field of play? Game was over and players were on their way into the changing rooms.

I agree that the gouge deserves more but likely one match ban as a precedent has already been set with Philly McMahon. He paid the price in the aftermath of that incident though as he lost out on POTY because of the social media lynching when he would have been a shoe in.

I'm not sure about whether he would be deemed to have entered the field of play illegally. The match was over and the 2 subs benches were on the opposite side of the field to the dressing rooms so they had to cross the pitch to get there. I'd be fairly sure that he'll get more than one match though. I've seen people bandy around time bans such as 96 weeks. Do time bans even exist anymore, I thought it was purely based on a number of matches? Six months for example would be of no consequence for a player who is on the long term injury list anyway.   

[seafoid]

The social media pile on this one isn't arbitrary. It was the highest attended match of the year, broadcast live across the country. The perpetrator had no reason to be on the pitch, no reason to be touching distance of an opposing player. And then he delivered a truly filthy act, one with such potential for lifelong repercussions that it cannot be condoned by anyone.

As I say, not arbitrary. Not for this one.

so the social media pile on is alright then? He deserves it?

Yes he deserves it.

This is not arbitrary. This is what happens when a person interferes clearly with another person's eye socket live on national tv.

It's psychotic behaviour. Those trying to play it down for fear of the perpetrator's mental health, are unwittingly opening the door for psychos to do what psychos want, under the protection of their own mental health.

By the way I'm not calling him a psycho. This could very well have been the first aggressive incident of his life.

But there are plenty of psychos in the GAa, and they don't need fuel for their energies.

He probably needs treatment. And he should turn off his phone.

[seafoid]

https://www.rte.ie/sport/football/2022/0628/1307271-cccc-set-to-examine-armagh-galway-melee-later-today/

[seafoid]

What's the priority for Armagh going forward? How good is the wider panel ? Are a few more players required or is tactical improvement more important? The fans are obviously a huge asset.

Getting lads back from injury- probably down 4 or 5 starters the other day- Oisin O'Neill (brother of Rian and similar quality), TK, Niall Grimley, Paddy Burns and Ciaran Mackin who came on wearing protective gear on Sunday. Although the 2 young lads who got game time Sunday did really well as well.

Donaghy is some addition on the line as well so keeping him would be massive

He seems to have been a very positive influence this year

[tonto1888]

What's the priority for Armagh going forward? How good is the wider panel ? Are a few more players required or is tactical improvement more important? The fans are obviously a huge asset.

Getting lads back from injury- probably down 4 or 5 starters the other day- Oisin O'Neill (brother of Rian and similar quality), TK, Niall Grimley, Paddy Burns and Ciaran Mackin who came on wearing protective gear on Sunday. Although the 2 young lads who got game time Sunday did really well as well.

Donaghy is some addition on the line as well so keeping him would be massive

He seems to have been a very positive influence this year

other than telling the team to concede the last Galway kick out I agree. Very positive

[galwayman]

What's the priority for Armagh going forward? How good is the wider panel ? Are a few more players required or is tactical improvement more important? The fans are obviously a huge asset.

Getting lads back from injury- probably down 4 or 5 starters the other day- Oisin O'Neill (brother of Rian and similar quality), TK, Niall Grimley, Paddy Burns and Ciaran Mackin who came on wearing protective gear on Sunday. Although the 2 young lads who got game time Sunday did really well as well.

Donaghy is some addition on the line as well so keeping him would be massive

He seems to have been a very positive influence this year

other than telling the team to concede the last Galway kick out I agree. Very positive

I can see both sides of that last kickout. Press and ye have a chance of winning possession and the game is effectively over.
But if Gleeson goes long and ye don't win it - ye have less cover at the back and Galway have more room to manufacture an equaliser.
McDaid's equaliser was a brilliant score kicked under severe pressure.

[Applesisapples]

What's the priority for Armagh going forward? How good is the wider panel ? Are a few more players required or is tactical improvement more important? The fans are obviously a huge asset.

Id say we have the best players in the county on the panel. Some may argue we dont have our best 15 starting though. Hopefully getting the likes of OONeill and Grimley back will improve midfield though in fairness we could do with unearthing another body for there.
Tactically we could improve, certainly defensively we can improve further.

There is a third O'Neill brother coming through and I have been told he could potentially be better than Rian, haven't seen him in action yet though.

[APM]

It's hard to know where to start with all of this. The game, the atmosphere, the experience has been talked to death. The better team won and that's without doubt but we could have won also. Penalties an absolute lottery but until there is anything else they are what we have.

The melee and gouging....the parties involved in how the melee started should be punished. I believe CP will have to make a point and punish both sides here but will they?  I suspect given the narrative being driven that Armagh will get heavier punishment, rightly or wrongly. Tiarnán Kelly will get a heavy ban though anything beyond 6 months is excessive in my opinion. Look at what happened in previous gouging cases and then add some on as an aggravating factor given that he was not part of the match day squad. He should have been in the stands and that's something that the GAA as a whole need to look at. The issue of the teams going into the same tunnel is a red herring. Responsibility for actions needs to be driven. Players, managers, officials all have a responsibility to act accordingly. Respect is not there and that's probably increased by the tribal nature of the sport. This isn't Armagh alone and is not recent either but something needs to change.

Where to now for Armagh?  People will point to the wins against Donegal and Tyrone and say it was a good year. If you look though at the year it's played 11 between league and championship won 5, drew 1, lost 5. Beat Dublin who were on their holidays, Tyrone twice who were very poor, Kildare in the league who were relegated and are pretty poor and Donegal in a very good performance (albeit they looked like they were out on their feet). For all the seeming improvements we are as far away from a trophy as we have ever been in my opinion. People will point to injuries etc and they did play a factor but I genuinely don't see a team that has an identity, a structured plan. It's very much off the hoof and hope for the best. Maybe that's all that we can do but I suspect it's not. I think the best players more or less from the county are on the squad but I don't believe that the best is being brought out of them for a variety of reasons. Geezer will get another year and probably deserves it but that doesn't mean it is the right thing to do. I personally feel he has brought this team as far as he is capable of doing, kinda like the 2 Brian's in 2001, but now is time for change before the opportunity you a lost. There are too many good players there to miss another year.

Few comments on the game:
1. Agree that Galway deserved to win it.  Armagh didn't bring the same intensity to this match that they brought to the Tyrone and Donegal games.  Despite pressure on the short-kickouts, we had no turnovers.  I lost count of the number of times that Kealan Molloy was able to easily get away from the tackler. At the back, it felt like we weren't able to get a hand on Galway.  Perhaps it was the extra room in Croke Park, maybe Galway moved the ball better, but we didn't get hands on enough.  The intensity of the previous games wasn't there at times I felt. 

2. Game management - Why we allowed Galway the short-kick out in extra time after Jemar Hall's point, I don't know. They were able to work the ball into scorable positions all day long and we should have been contesting possession. 

3. The row - This suited Galway and was the last thing we needed going in after recovering from a 6 point deficit.  Galway should have been going in deflated, but instead I'll bet they were pumped by the time the fighting was over.  We have a tendancy to get involved in these pointless rows even though they are not in our interest.  The one in Donegal in the NFL was completely stupid given the Championship match around the corner.  Same on Sunday.  At some stage, management and co. board have to take responsibility for this.  It will be easy now for other teams to target Armagh given this developing reputation. 

4. Goalkeeper - On one score, I am somewhat pleased for McGeeney - the success of the Rafferty experiment.  The GK position was an issue throughout his tenure and it feels like he has went full circle following the massive (and unfair) criticism he took for starting Paul Courtney in nets in 2016.  He stuck to his principles and found someone to do the job the way he wanted. 

5. The Future - The manner of the defeat at the weekend sets them up well going into a new season - not unlike the defeats between 1999-2001, when they weren't that far away.  We will watch how Galway get on with interest. Kind of agree with you about McGeeney, but unlike the 2 Brians period, there isn't an obvious successor. We have a lot of talent at our disposal, but some of our vital cogs (Campbell (31), Grugan(31), Morgan(31), Forker (30) Shields (33)) are getting on. Given the lack of underage success and injuries, who knows if they will be replaced with players of equal quality? Will Campbell be able to have another year like this one? I therefore see Armagh having a short window of about 2 years to achieve any kind of success.  Co. Board facing a very difficult decision about McGeeney's future and my instinct is that he will be given another year. Honestly have no idea whether or not that is the right thing to do.

5. As a supporter, bringing young kids to the game, (melees excepted) it's been a memorable year.  Brings back memories of 1993 when we took Tyrone's scalp, had a famous, chaotic comeback and had serious building support.  While there was no silverware, and that is the ultimate benchmark, it is great to see us playing really attractive football in the top Division and competing at the top level.  It remains to be seen whether we can push on, but I'd say there are many supporters from across Ireland that would take the season that Armagh just had.  [EDIT] At the end of the day, I go to football matches to be entertained.  It is some time since I got the entertainment value that I got in Dublin on Sunday.

[maddog]

What's the priority for Armagh going forward? How good is the wider panel ? Are a few more players required or is tactical improvement more important? The fans are obviously a huge asset.

Getting lads back from injury- probably down 4 or 5 starters the other day- Oisin O'Neill (brother of Rian and similar quality), TK, Niall Grimley, Paddy Burns and Ciaran Mackin who came on wearing protective gear on Sunday. Although the 2 young lads who got game time Sunday did really well as well.

Donaghy is some addition on the line as well so keeping him would be massive

He seems to have been a very positive influence this year

other than telling the team to concede the last Galway kick out I agree. Very positive

I can see both sides of that last kickout. Press and ye have a chance of winning possession and the game is effectively over.
But if Gleeson goes long and ye don't win it - ye have less cover at the back and Galway have more room to manufacture an equaliser.
McDaid's equaliser was a brilliant score kicked under severe pressure.

Was chatting to couple of Galway mates last night about this. That shot from McDaid was probably a 1 in 5 chance. Some balls to go for it.

[Armamike]

The social media pile on this one isn't arbitrary. It was the highest attended match of the year, broadcast live across the country. The perpetrator had no reason to be on the pitch, no reason to be touching distance of an opposing player. And then he delivered a truly filthy act, one with such potential for lifelong repercussions that it cannot be condoned by anyone.

As I say, not arbitrary. Not for this one.

https://www.sportsjoe.ie/gaa/kieran-donaghy-opens-up-on-how-close-he-was-to-eye-injury-after-philly-mcmahon-incident-45201

Did this not happen in an AIF?

Social media pile-ons are always arbitrary Wobbler.  They are completely uncontrolled and take on a life of their own and by the time the GAA get round to administering justice, the mob will have got their pound of flesh (whatever a pound of flesh may look like - arbitrary??).  The online mob is a fairly vindictive bunch.

Not every perpetrator of this offence suffers the same.  The same thing could happen in the semi-final, under slightly different circumstance and the mob mightn't mobilise at all.

It's modern life.  Somebody messes up and the social media mob pile on in.  Every Tom Dick and Harriet want their say.  There's people who've never been to a football match calling for a life ban ffs.

[tonto1888]

What's the priority for Armagh going forward? How good is the wider panel ? Are a few more players required or is tactical improvement more important? The fans are obviously a huge asset.

Getting lads back from injury- probably down 4 or 5 starters the other day- Oisin O'Neill (brother of Rian and similar quality), TK, Niall Grimley, Paddy Burns and Ciaran Mackin who came on wearing protective gear on Sunday. Although the 2 young lads who got game time Sunday did really well as well.

Donaghy is some addition on the line as well so keeping him would be massive

He seems to have been a very positive influence this year

other than telling the team to concede the last Galway kick out I agree. Very positive

I can see both sides of that last kickout. Press and ye have a chance of winning possession and the game is effectively over.
But if Gleeson goes long and ye don't win it - ye have less cover at the back and Galway have more room to manufacture an equaliser.
McDaid's equaliser was a brilliant score kicked under severe pressure.

a stunning score. i was stuck between heart break and admiration haha