NFL Division 1 2024

[seafoid]

Should Derry risk injuries and try to win Ulster or opt out to be ready or the big prize ?

You want the top seed. Lose it and you could be in a group with Kerry or Dublin which means a preliminary quarter final is more likely and we all know how those teams struggled last year with games week on week

You want to be in peak condition for the QF and onwards. Derry are not going to go out in the Round Robin. There is a 50% chance of getting Dublin or Kerry in the RR if Derry opt out of Ulster. They can still finish second and have a 33% chance of meeting the other one in the qf. A fresh Derry team could top the RR group without winning Ulster.. It's all about the percentages 

[tbrick18]

Should Derry risk injuries and try to win Ulster or opt out to be ready or the big prize ?

You want the top seed. Lose it and you could be in a group with Kerry or Dublin which means a preliminary quarter final is more likely and we all know how those teams struggled last year with games week on week

You want to be in peak condition for the QF and onwards. Derry are not going to go out in the Round Robin. There is a 50% chance of getting Dublin or Kerry in the RR if Derry opt out of Ulster. They can still finish second and have a 33% chance of meeting the other one in the qf. A fresh Derry team could top the RR group without winning Ulster.. It's all about the percentages 

There is no hope that Derry will opt out of Ulster.
We may rotate players depending on opposition but I fully expect a full Derry side (injuries aside) to be named against Donegal in the first round.

[JoG2]

Should Derry risk injuries and try to win Ulster or opt out to be ready or the big prize ?

You want the top seed. Lose it and you could be in a group with Kerry or Dublin which means a preliminary quarter final is more likely and we all know how those teams struggled last year with games week on week

You want to be in peak condition for the QF and onwards. Derry are not going to go out in the Round Robin. There is a 50% chance of getting Dublin or Kerry in the RR if Derry opt out of Ulster. They can still finish second and have a 33% chance of meeting the other one in the qf. A fresh Derry team could top the RR group without winning Ulster.. It's all about the percentages 

How do you opt out? Go 3/4 pace? How do those conversations go at training etc? Guys, you've put everything youse have into the last few years, we've a chance of winning 3 Anglo Celts in a row and avoiding Kerry and Dublin in the groups, but...

[marty34]

Should Derry risk injuries and try to win Ulster or opt out to be ready or the big prize ?

You want the top seed. Lose it and you could be in a group with Kerry or Dublin which means a preliminary quarter final is more likely and we all know how those teams struggled last year with games week on week

You want to be in peak condition for the QF and onwards. Derry are not going to go out in the Round Robin. There is a 50% chance of getting Dublin or Kerry in the RR if Derry opt out of Ulster. They can still finish second and have a 33% chance of meeting the other one in the qf. A fresh Derry team could top the RR group without winning Ulster.. It's all about the percentages 

How do you opt out? Go 3/4 pace? How do those conversations go at training etc? Guys, you've put everything youse have into the last few years, we've a chance of winning 3 Anglo Celts in a row and avoiding Kerry and Dublin in the groups, but...

Yeah, this is the same narrative as...who cares about the league final...blah, blah, blah.

We basically want to lose.

[seafoid]

I would love to see Derry winning Sam but they will need to have everything going right   to do it .

[Derryman forever]

I would love to see Derry winning Sam but they will need to have everything going right   to do it .

Do you not think it is going pretty well so far?

[Blowitupref]

Should Derry risk injuries and try to win Ulster or opt out to be ready or the big prize ?

You want the top seed. Lose it and you could be in a group with Kerry or Dublin which means a preliminary quarter final is more likely and we all know how those teams struggled last year with games week on week

You want to be in peak condition for the QF and onwards. Derry are not going to go out in the Round Robin. There is a 50% chance of getting Dublin or Kerry in the RR if Derry opt out of Ulster. They can still finish second and have a 33% chance of meeting the other one in the qf. A fresh Derry team could top the RR group without winning Ulster.. It's all about the percentages 

How do you opt out? Go 3/4 pace? How do those conversations go at training etc? Guys, you've put everything youse have into the last few years, we've a chance of winning 3 Anglo Celts in a row and avoiding Kerry and Dublin in the groups, but...

Silly talk, much the same as those that was saying "nobody wanted to win the Div 1 title"   Derry players and management will aiming to retain the Ulster title no question, if not they will plan accordingly.

[Derryman forever]

There is much talk about the better players Dublin have to bring back in.
Fitsimmons , Mc Carthy, Mc Caffrey.
Which is all well and good, but what weak/poor players are being dropped to accommodate them?
When Dublin beat a 2nd team from Tyrone we were told that Dublin had no weak links at all.

[Wildweasel74]

If they do win the ulster 1st seed. They be destined to met Dublin in a semi if they top the group qualifiers and win their quarter final. If they lost in Ulster and did draw in Kerry Dublin section in the qualifiers they might be better placed to avoid Dublin to the final If they managed to progress that far, food for thought.

[Derryman forever]

If they do win the ulster 1st seed. They be destined to met Dublin in a semi if they top the group qualifiers and win their quarter final. If they lost in Ulster and did draw in Kerry Dublin section in the qualifiers they might be better placed to avoid Dublin to the final If they managed to progress that far, food for thought.

My thoughts:
You might be able to manage to lose a game here or there.
But that will only make the management of winning them more problematic.
Try to win every game and you will lose the unwinnable  anyway

[seafoid]

If they do win the ulster 1st seed. They be destined to met Dublin in a semi if they top the group qualifiers and win their quarter final. If they lost in Ulster and did draw in Kerry Dublin section in the qualifiers they might be better placed to avoid Dublin to the final If they managed to progress that far, food for thought.

My thoughts:
You might be able to manage to lose a game here or there.
But that will only make the management of winning them more problematic.
Try to win every game and you will lose the unwinnable  anyway

Trying to win every game isn't necessarily the best approach in the new system

[Derryman forever]

If they do win the ulster 1st seed. They be destined to met Dublin in a semi if they top the group qualifiers and win their quarter final. If they lost in Ulster and did draw in Kerry Dublin section in the qualifiers they might be better placed to avoid Dublin to the final If they managed to progress that far, food for thought.

My thoughts:
You might be able to manage to lose a game here or there.
But that will only make the management of winning them more problematic.
Try to win every game and you will lose the unwinnable  anyway

Trying to win every game isn't necessarily the best approach in the new system

I wouldn't be sure of that, and i don't think Mickey Harte could be convinced of it either.

[Mario]

There is much talk about the better players Dublin have to bring back in.
Fitsimmons , Mc Carthy, Mc Caffrey.
Which is all well and good, but what weak/poor players are being dropped to accommodate them?
When Dublin beat a 2nd team from Tyrone we were told that Dublin had no weak links at all.

Yeah exactly, this was meant to be the new Dublin, the team that beat a full strength Kerry by 10 points.  I don't think Fitzsimmons improves them - a lot of hype last year because Clifford kept hitting wides. McCaffrey isn't a starter or even near it anymore. Cluxton is about 45. McCarthy might start but he wasn't the same player last year as he was in previous years (despite his all star) so remains to be seen how he comes back this year. They are all legends of the game but at some point you have to accept they aren't as good as they once were.

[Blowitupref]

There is much talk about the better players Dublin have to bring back in.
Fitsimmons , Mc Carthy, Mc Caffrey.
Which is all well and good, but what weak/poor players are being dropped to accommodate them?
When Dublin beat a 2nd team from Tyrone we were told that Dublin had no weak links at all.

Wouldn't call them weak/poor players but If all of Stephen Cluxton, Michael Fitzsimons, Lee Gannon;Jack McCaffrey  James McCarthy,Paul Mannion, Cormac Costello are fit/in top shape then I would expect they'll replace Evan Comerford; Seán McMahon, Cian Murphy; Tom Lahiff; Ross McGarry, Killian McGinnis, and Niall Scully in the starting 15 from last Sunday.

[Derryman forever]

There is much talk about the better players Dublin have to bring back in.
Fitsimmons , Mc Carthy, Mc Caffrey.
Which is all well and good, but what weak/poor players are being dropped to accommodate them?
When Dublin beat a 2nd team from Tyrone we were told that Dublin had no weak links at all.

Wouldn't call them weak/poor players but If all of Stephen Cluxton, Michael Fitzsimons, Lee Gannon;Jack McCaffrey  James McCarthy,Paul Mannion, Cormac Costello are fit/in top shape then I would expect they'll replace Evan Comerford; Seán McMahon, Cian Murphy; Tom Lahiff; Ross McGarry, Killian McGinnis, and Niall Scully in the starting 15 from last Sunday.

And how much of an improvement is that.
Outside of Comerford I am not sure you are replacing worse with better


The great hype with Dublin last year and this, was that their great strength was in their depth.
They could bring on players of equal quality to what they were bringing off.
Derry's weakness was the diametric opposite of that. (With which I agree). But the performance of Derry's subs on Sunday would say that has already gone some way in being addressed.