All-Ireland Final, September 18th, 2016 - Dublin v Mayo

[imtommygunn]

What height is Diarmiud O'Connor? Wouldn't have thought he was big enough. Fenton is a big guy and probably considerably more powerful than he looks.

[Mac2]

Give it to me, big boy. This is just exactly how I like it. Oh, yeah. 

Sigh. I thought you might actually be interested, oddly enough, in a discussion.

How about a kick in the balls instead, discussion my hole, all you want to do is spew invective against a great player.

Woohoo, another one! I had no idea COC had such a large fan club! Invective? I'm impressed you know what the word even means. Pray tell, what invective have I been spewing?

A "great" footballer?! f**k me, maybe that's why Mayo can't win things. Considering that as great. Great my f**king hole. Tell me what other players you think are great and who he ranks alongside

You're looking for rational discussion after abusing a player and you're too dense to recognise it?

Right, so now it's abuse to express an opinion on the quality of a footballer or express dislike of aspects of their playing style. Yet you offer me "a kick in the balls". But I'm the one who's dense. Well done.

As for looking for rational discussion, it's a discussion board, that's exactly what I'm looking for. Shouldn't be that much of a surprise. I can't legislate for the utter idiocy of some though, so I guess I was a bit naive there.

Below is you expressing an 'opinion' as you call it, no abuse there are you for real?


"O'Connor is most certainly a coward. As mentioned previously, he's a bad f**ker for sneaky hits off the ball. While he was hit a nasty wraparound by McAuley, it a only came after he tried to throw the shoulder in. He's a nasty little bollocks."

[gallsman]

Which if you've the ability to read between the lines (you clearly don't), you can clearly see is a statement in relation to his style of play, particularly given that the phrase in bold follows discussion of, you know, his style of play. He is very much a nasty little bollocks of a footballer, always throwing sly, late hits in.

Whether he's a nasty little bollocks of a human being, I've no idea. I've certainly never heard anything to suggest it, nor do I have any reason to.

Take your faux outrage somewhere else. But please, only after you elaborate on his greatness.

[Mac2]

Oh I see he's only a nasty bollocks of a footballer, that's alright then, ffs cop on would you.

[Tubberman]

Which if you've the ability to read between the lines (you clearly don't), you can clearly see is a statement in relation to his style of play, particularly given that the phrase in bold follows discussion of, you know, his style of play. He is very much a nasty little bollocks of a footballer, always throwing sly, late hits in.

Whether he's a nasty little bollocks of a human being, I've no idea. I've certainly never heard anything to suggest it, nor do I have any reason to.

Take your faux outrage somewhere else. But please, only after you elaborate on his greatness.

You've called him a coward and a nasty little bollocks. That's not discussion or assessment of him as a footballer. That's abuse, so why don't you take it somewhere else? You're contributing nothing.

[gallsman]

I give up. He's an outstanding footballer. A real leader of men on the field. Pin all your hopes and dreams on him for the replay and see how far it goes. As I said, any of you pretending you have faith in him to go out and drag you to an all-Ireland are talking through your holes.

[Tubberman]

I give up. He's an outstanding footballer. A real of men on the field. Pin all your hopes and dreams on him for the replay and see how far it goes. As I said, any of you pretending you have faith in him to go out and drag you to an all-Ireland are talking through your holes.

Well without his last minute point yesterday, the Dublin homecoming would be in full swing around now, so you sound more likely to be talking through your hole. Good luck.

[criostlinn]

Which if you've the ability to read between the lines (you clearly don't), you can clearly see is a statement in relation to his style of play, particularly given that the phrase in bold follows discussion of, you know, his style of play. He is very much a nasty little bollocks of a footballer, always throwing sly, late hits in.

Whether he's a nasty little bollocks of a human being, I've no idea. I've certainly never heard anything to suggest it, nor do I have any reason to.

Take your faux outrage somewhere else. But please, only after you elaborate on his greatness.

No lad its you that's the nasty little bollix and a cowardly p***k spewing your abuse from behind a keyboard. You are totally ignoring facts re Cillian O'Connor to get across some sort of personal agenda

Ps. Dont take offence. Im just forming this opinion from your posts. Nothing against you as I dont know you

[seafoid]

Even if the Dubs win the next day I think Jim Gavin will resign. He can't bring them on much.

[ZeitChrist]

I give up. He's an outstanding footballer. A real leader of men on the field. Pin all your hopes and dreams on him for the replay and see how far it goes. As I said, any of you pretending you have faith in him to go out and drag you to an all-Ireland are talking through your holes.

He actually is those things though. You know, I've come across a few people (mostly Dubs) who seem to have a completely irrational hatred of the O'Connor lad and seem to take it in an oddly personal way when he does well. It also leads to them ignoring blatant facts about him. He regularly does his part for Mayo, even if only as a free-taker, and does seem to be a genuine leader within the team. He's one of the steeliest players in the game right now, very mentally strong and regularly takes responsibility when the game is in the melting pot. He's an intelligent kid. Does he have a mischevious streak? Most definitely, as all top inter-county players should and do have. He's a great man to have on your side, probably frustrating to play against. If Mayo finish the job, which I think they will, you can be sure O'Connor will have had something to do with it.

[Main Street]

7th minute of injury-time, a point down and not playing particularly well and he does this:

https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=UCjXpOQQX38

After receiving a lay off from AO'S, who's not supposed to do things like that.

[Main Street]

What height is Diarmiud O'Connor? Wouldn't have thought he was big enough. Fenton is a big guy and probably considerably more powerful than he looks.

Fenton has the knack of being tall but plays with the elegance of someone less tall.

[larryin89]

A majority of hill 16 dubs are tinkers amd hate both cillian and aido in a soccer fan type style. Of course ye will now rubbish this as completely untrue " youre a fookin c u n t" diry horrible sc**bag" just two examples from the hill 16 dubs who are without question tinkers.

[seafoid]

Malachy Clerkin: A collective stinker from Dublin forwards
It had never occurred to anyone that Mayo's forwards would outscore the Dublin ones
about 8 hours ago

Malachy Clerkin at Croke Park 

 
 
With the clock rolling at 76 minutes and Dublin a point ahead, the ball went out off a Mayo toe under the Hogan Stand. Ciarán Kilkenny went over to collect it, but by the time he turned around to look to play it short, Diarmuid Connolly had all but tackled him to the ground. Kilkenny wanted to play a short one and keep possession but Connolly was having none of it.
The shot went wide and Mayo saved the day from the kickout, but it was easy enough to forgive Connolly his indulgence. For one of the only times all day he had a chance to shoot at the posts without Lee Keegan velcroed to his side.
It summed up the sort of day the Dublin forwards had. Couldn't do right for doing wrong. We looked at this game from a thousand different angles in the build-up and not once did it occur to anyone that the Mayo forwards would outscore the Dublin ones.
Or that the return from Bernard Brogan, Kevin McManamon, Paul Flynn and Ciarán Kilkenny would be zero points. Mad stuff.
A Dublin team malfunctioning as an attacking unit hasn't been seen around these parts since the Celtic Tiger was in full cry. Even accounting for the rain and the underfoot conditions, even giving full credit to the Mayo defence, this was a collective stinker. Including substitutes, nine Dublin forwards took 22 shots at the posts and returned a meagre 0-7.

GAA confirm All-Ireland final replay tickets at reduced prices
John O'Keeffe: Mayo defence gave an exhibition
Jim Gavin: 'We didn't deserve to win'
Black carded
Exempt from all criticism must be Paddy Andrews, who came off the bench 10 minutes before half time when James McCarthy was black carded and kicked two splendid points into the Canal End, one from either wing. Mayo shackled him better in the second half, yet his chance of a start in the replay must have sky-rocketed.
Paul Mannion, pacy and dangerous in possession when he came on, must be in with a shout as well.
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Who will he replace? Take your pick.
Dean Rock had a terrible day, kicking four wides and dropping two short. Normally such a done deal from placed balls, he missed three frees and a 45. To his enduring credit, he nailed a fine score in the 52nd minute to help stop the bleeding after Mayo had come out and scored the first five points of the second half. But he must be under pressure now.
And what of Brogan? Dublin's leading scorer (either jointly or alone) in each of their three All-Ireland finals, he was anonymous here. His main contribution was to toe-poke the ball goalwards en route to Kevin McLoughlin's own goal but otherwise he was silenced by Brendan Harrison. He took two shots at the posts – one went wide, one dropped on the 20-metre line.
Flynn made little impression. McManamon was the first man called ashore. Kilkenny had to do a stint at wing-back after McCarthy walked. Dublin's best performers in attack were runners from deep – Brian Fenton in the first half, John Small in the second.
Connolly and Keegan essentially reduced this to a 28-man game, alkali to the other's acid all afternoon. Connolly was reduced to three shots in total – that sideline ball at the end, a first half-effort that was blocked by Seamie O'Shea and a 69th-minute point from a botched David Clarke kickout. Mayo would have happily taken that beforehand.
The own goals kept Dublin in the game. Mayo reacted well to both of them, scoring the next point each time. And squeezing ever tighter on the Dublin forwards. "There is going to be setbacks," said Keegan afterwards. "When you're playing a team of the quality of Dublin there are going to be setbacks regardless of how well you're going or not going.
Huge positive
"The goals were what they were, but we had a very good start to the first half and we held them scoreless points-wise for 20 minutes or so, so that's a huge positive for us.
"The Dublin forward line is built up to be one of the best there is out there, and I thought we did well as a unit and, look, in the second half we only conceded four [it was actually five] points. The stats are pretty good on our behalf but it's not the result we wanted."
Maybe not but as a defensive unit their day couldn't have worked out much better.
For the Dublin forwards it couldn't have been any worse.

[Main Street]

And finally.... can Mayo expect an allocation of tickets for the central section of Hill 16 for the replay with Dub supporters split in the peripheral sections, i.e.: the reverse of today? No, of course not. What was I thinking

Another urban myth.

There is no segregation on the Hill.

Supporters naturally gravitate towards their own colours, so you get clusters of supporters in particular areas. I was on the centre of the Hill behind the goalposts. During the minor game there were groups of Mayo lads around us but they all gradually moved across to where the bulk of the Mayo supporters had positioned themselves.

Maybe so, but in this instance probably the smell of hay was much more attractive than the smell of urine.